Quick paper – pen – write down address – that damn thing won’t write – look for nines – address, phone number, name. Read it out loud again and double-check so as not to make a mistake. Say thanks, take a deep breath and hang up. That’s probably it for the cozy family gathering. Mr. Schmitt needs help after all.
So quickly call Tobias and pack the equipment. No! First call Mr. Schmitt.
“Hello – we will save you – don’t panic – stay calm – keep windows and doors closed, we’ll be with you shortly! Please provide more details about the phenomenon – uh the bees”. Now to the facts:
- Swarm at 4m height
- Ladder is available
- has been trying unsuccessfully to reach a beekeeper all day and then called the fire department
- 19:45 hours, wind force 4, 8°C outside temperature, overcast sky
- No – bees don’t fly in those conditions
Well then off to Tobias and check the equipment:
- 2x protective suit – check
- Goose feathers – check
- Boots – check
- Spray bottle – check
- Swarm catching special carton – check
- Smoker – check
- Gloves – check
- Pruning shears – uh – doesn’t matter
- Cover cloth – check
- Belt for securing – check
- Lighter – check
- GPS and address – check
And – let’s go – Really only missing the blue light and the 1959 Cadillac Miller-Meteor.
A short time later we’re there. The swarm is not a swarm but a freezing solid cluster of bees at 4m height on the outermost branches of an oak tree. Good that Mr. Schmitt has a ladder. Good that Mr. Schmitt also has a pruning shears. Bad that the only flying bee around tried to use my bee-proof rubber boot as a new home just before putting it on (ouch!).
This “swarm catching” was more of a grape harvest than a hunt. Up the ladder, spray with water, hold the twigs, cut the twigs, put twigs in carton, cloth over it, secure cloth, done, say thanks, drive home.
The little bees stayed in my basement overnight, and since they got quite warm I pointed a small fan at the cloth.
After 15 minutes in the basement the humming stopped. Dead silence? Knock on it: knock…ssSSSSSss..
OK – all good. Phew!
The next day at 16:00 we weighed the girls (2.4 kg) and put them in a hive with 7 foundation combs. After they had distributed themselves reasonably well, the remaining four foundation combs went back in. Since then there has been lively flight activity from two colonies in Tobias’s garden. Whether the two bee colonies will make it until the linden bloom???