Today’s blog is a deviation from my story of first-year beekeeping. I’m bringing BREAKING NEWS (as of 4/11/26) about catching my first swarm. I wanted to share my immediate first-hand experience with you dear readers. This swarm-catching adventure started in February 2026, so just about 2 months ago.
This past winter was a bit harsh, and I lost my two hives, one in January (after a 2-week cold snap). Initially, the other appeared okay, but because there was no queen, it diminished over the next month until it was no more and got robbed out.
Naturally, I was very saddened, but knew there were options. I had nothing to lose, so after researching how to catch a swarm with my deep Langstroth hive boxes, and after talking with a North Carolina State Hive Inspector, I got busy setting up swarm traps (as these boxes are called in beekeeping lingo).
I had read that the best setup for catching swarming bees, is to mimic a hollowed-out tree space. The deep Langstroth hive box is just about the perfect size the bees will be looking for when choosing a new home. The entrance, too, needs to be very small- approximately one square inch.
Next, smell is very important! It should smell like a well-used bee home. Lewis, the State Inspector, showed me what kind of dark wax, well-used, empty frames I should put into the box to bait them (my hives appeared to be disease-free). However, it’s not recommended to fill the box with frames, you will add those after catching the swarm. You just add one or two dark comb frames and can even toss a piece of comb on the floor.
After that, you add additional fragrance to make this home very appealing. There are mixtures of sprays or drops you can buy that are specifically created for catching swarming bees. I didn’t want to spend any money, but decided to use lemongrass essential oil I had on hand. So I added one drop of oil to the inside lid, and one drop of oil on top of the frame. Then, without using an inner cover, you put the lid on and choose a spot to set your swarm trap.
I discovered that you can choose a spot from 3-15 feet off the ground facing south-ish. Since I didn’t want to go all crazy building a spot in a tree, I decided to set up 2 boxes (one on top of the other, with the entrance facing a different direction) on my deck overlooking the duck pond. That way, the entrances felt like they were above the pond by 8 or 9 feet, and in a tree. If I were a bee, this would seem like an awesome spot!
So on March 7th, I set-up two honey bee swarm traps. Now I needed to bring in the scout bees.1 I also wanted to invite bees to my yard in general, and feed the pollinators, even if I didn’t have my own bees. My colonies died off with lots of honey in the box, so I started setting out one filled honey frame at a time. Boy, did that draw in a crowd of pollinators! Everything from different kinds of wasps, to fat bumble bees, honey bees, little tiny ground bees, butterflies, and moths came to the buffet. I made sure not to put the honey frames near the traps because scout bees would not feel the trap was in a safe and secure location. In fact, that’s precisely why you do not add honey frames to your swarm trap. Scout bees looking for a new home for the colony do not want to be in a place where there is danger of being robbed by other bees (more on robbing in a future blog).
A couple weeks later, I added lemongrass to the robbed-out empty beehive just to see if that was attractive to scout bees. I now had a total of 3 traps. And I waited. I often saw bees interested in the swarm traps, circling and visiting the inside. But they may have been just looking to find honey, not a new home.
After about a month, I changed location of the upper swarm box in the stack to a picnic table in the woods, thinking that although bee colonies can live next door to each other, perhaps they don’t like the idea of “apartment living” for an initial move-in. And I added a couple more drops of lemongrass to the bait boxes. It seemed like this change did draw more interest in both swarm traps than my original stacked configuration.
In early April, I noticed more interest in the hive box on my pond deck. I have a table and chairs on that deck, and often sit there to eat or use the table for yard projects. I would peek at the entrance and saw a few bees going in and out. Then approximately 5 days later, I heard bees making sounds INSIDE the box, and more buzzing than usual, but still no colony. I refused the impulse to open the lid and look inside. I wanted these girls to feel completely secure in this new space.
SATURDAY, April 11: I was doing yard work and had some tools on the table near the swarm trap. At 3:15, I went inside and was getting a drink of water when I glanced out the window to the pond deck. Lo and behold!! The sky was a cloud of golden glinting bees! This HAD to be a swarm moving in!
I was SO excited, and I grabbed my phone to document the event. I went outside and surveyed the swarm trap from a distance, circling the pond deck slowly. Sure enough, bees were bearding (clustering) on the entrance and the front of the trap. Thousands were in the air. I began to video and take pictures, slowly getting closer. It felt like watching a miracle in action. I immediately got on an emotional high, and days later I’m still there.
It took those bees about one and half hours to funnel through the tiny entrance. And later that evening, I hardly saw a one, so I was slightly worried they had absconded (left) again. But on Sunday, numerous bees were going in and out of the entrance. The colony was still there! I knew I needed to add 8 more frames soon before they built their own version of honeycomb. David, my apiarist beekeeping neighbor, and other beekeeping articles advised adding at least one honey-filled frame.
MONDAY, April 13 (2 days after the swarm arrival): I prepared all my tools, and chose drawn-out empty comb frames, and two honey-filled frames. That morning, I had noticed numerous bees coming out from the back and BELOW the hive. That particular box had a screened bottom board lined with cardboard on the inside, which means there is a larger space underneath the hive than if it were a solid bottom board. So, I looked underneath and saw a whole cluster of bees trying to get up inside the box. Would the cluster underneath eventually find its way around to the front entrance? I had to come up with a game plan. It would be best if the trap were only opened for a few minutes.
My strategy was to add the frames. Then move the box from the screened bottom board to a solid bottom board. Next, I would knock the cluster of bees from the screened bottom board into the Langstroth swarm trap that would become their home. It sounded risky, they could get mad and leave. But I decided to just go for it.
When I opened the box at 11 am, there were hardly ANY bees inside, but there was a small cluster working like crazy on the two frames. I quickly added additional frames and then moved the box to the solid bottom board I had set up next to the swarm trap. Then I took the screen bottom and was shocked to see how many bees I shook off into the hive. There had been more bees underneath the screen board than inside the box. Now it looked like a healthy-sized colony!
WEDNESDAY, April 15: I am happy to report that the bees did not flee their new home. They started bringing pollen into the hive, which probably means they decided to stay! In a few days, I will close the entrance when it is dark and move the hive to the stand in my yard. The next morning, when they emerge, hopefully they will reorient themselves as they leave to forage, and stay happy with the new location (about 50 feet away from the present location).
I will publish my progress about this swarm in a future blog. So stay tuned to Looney Farmette beekeeping adventures!
1) Scout bees begin searching for a new home in the days and weeks before the colony decides to swarm or split. They investigate numerous spaces to decide what will become the new home.
