Following all of the Preparing and Repairing Bee Hives, it was time for a bee rescue!
The night before, I prepared the backyard area, and started work on the garage panels (while bees were mostly sleeping) until un-neighborly hours.
Planning and Execution of a Bee Rescue
Sunday morning, myself and another friend (who recklessly/admirably agreed to help two nights before) went over our plan, prepared the spray bottle, smoker, various precarious ladders and other tools.
We worked on transferring the bees from the garage into the hive, learning as we went.
Since I was prepared for the beeocalypse, the bees were surprisingly calm and well behaved, and did a pretty good job of allowing me to scoop them out of the wall and into the hive.
A South Coast Deli sandwich container was the perfect bee catcher. Was very interesting to see the bees alternate between calm and bee-nado as they were stirred up and moved over a couple of hours.
A few bees seemed to want nothing other than to sting us, but we happily laughed at them from the safety of our dripping sweat-soaked bee suit armor.
Methodical and Patient
We were methodical and patient, and had minimal bee losses, and no stings. The operation was a great success, and the bees are now settling in after the final step of moving them to their new home round the corner last night.
Today I saw happy bees, buzzing and dancing around their new home in the garden. I understand it’s expected to take a few more days for them to stop flying near the garage wall, as they orient themselves to their new home.
I’ll leave the panels ‘open’ for a couple more days to discourage them from trying to settle back in, and then re-attach the planks completely. All housemates and the neighbors bordering the back yard were happy and comfortable about the bees.
Overall, very satisfying to complete the task, learn new skills, and be doing good for the bees!