How To Relocate A Beehive Peacefully | No Kill Method

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Bees are extremely important insects. While other insects such as butterflies pollinate as well, bees are solely responsible for many plants that the world relies on. These include strawberries, coffee, apples, vanilla, grapes, alfalfa, and dozens of other important crops. Of course, you don't want a hive near your house. While they aren't generally aggressive for no reason, your children or pets could spook them and cause them to sting. It's important to conduct bee removal peacefully so you don't kill them or put your family in danger. Here is how you can do that.

What to Wear

First, you need to make sure your body is covered. While bees can sting through clothing, you have a better chance of being protected if you don't have your bare skin showing. Make sure you're wearing long pants. Denim is preferred because it's a tougher material. Wear long tube socks, and tuck your jeans into the socks. It will keep bees from being able to go up your pant legs. Wear a long sleeved shirt. For extra protection, a coat over your shirt would be even better. Tuck the shirt into your jeans, too, to keep the bees from flying up your shirt. Put gloves on and tuck the sleeves into them. Finally, make sure you wear close-toed shoes. Leather boots are your best option.

Ready the Transportation

You don't want to walk far with a beehive in your hand, so you should have your transportation ready. Back up a pickup truck or a trailer as close as possible to the beehive. If you're using a truck, make sure the gate is up so you can lean the hive against it for support. You don't want to close it after the hive is in and spook the bees. Make sure you already have a location in mind, so moving the beehive will be as quick as possible.

Moving the Hive

Before you pick up the beehive, you want to close the entrance so the bees don't come out. You can do this with a thick rag and a rope. You should bring someone to help you with this part. You will put the rag over the length of the entrance and then tie the rope around the hive. You can either tie one rope around the top of the rag and one rope around the bottom, or you can wrap one long rope around the hive several times and then secure the ends together. Once the entrance is covered securely, you can pick up the hive.

Reorienting the Bees

Once you get the beehive to its new location, place the hive somewhere safe. Once the bees are moved, they will be disoriented. This is especially true if the new location is close by and everything still looks the same. You need to help them reorient themselves so they don't get lost. If you take the rag off of the hive immediately, they might fly out and not even think about it until they can't find their way back. The confinement will cause them to reorient themselves, but a few minutes of it is not enough. It's best to keep the hive covered for about three days. After this happens, they will come out and pay closer attention to their surroundings. You should also put them in a location with a large branch or obstacle in front of the beehive. If they have to fly around something to leave the hive, they will pay attention to their surroundings and know how to get back to their hive.

This is the safest way to move a beehive off of your property without harming the bees. If you are uncomfortable with moving them yourselves, you can call a local bee farm. Many will come take the bees for free since they can use them.

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6 October 2015