Natural Beekeeping International Forum

[melissabee]

Hi there,

about an hour ago I found a tiny swarm hanging in a bush next to our house. There is a marked queen there and boy she is dark! Definitely no buckfast and no Carnica as well. Now they are in a slpit box in the basement, dark and cool. Going to feed them tomorrow.

But really, the swarm is tiny, kid's fist size maybe. Should I try with brood comb or are they too small in numbers to keep the brood warm? I don't want to combine as I want to see what bees come from that queen. Any suggestions?

Thank you so much,
melli

[colobeekeep]

I'm not an expert, and I've never been in this specific situation, so my advice/thoughts aren't based on experience with your specific situation.
Here's what I would do to try to help them make it through the winter.
Put them in a small hive Bo's with one or two combs from another hive; preferably two. One or both completely full of stores. Put swarm in the box with one or two combs. Feed it generously with sugar syrup. Feed hive from which you took combs.
Hope for the best. I think they need combs as quickly as possible, and may not have the energy and time to build them all out. Combs that provide some food and cells for brood rearing can help.
My colony that I removed from the wall of my house (and started me in beekeeping) was too small and didn't have enough stores to survive the winter (according to experienced beeks) survived the winter and flourished the following year. I was glad I didn't listen to them.
Let us know how it goes.