I have a hive that has become quite aggressive. I plan to re-queen as soon as a replacement come available but have been thinking a lot on how to avoid riling them up while I hunt down the existing queen. I live in a neighborhood of 1.5 acre lots so many neighbors could be impacted if I handle things badly. For this reasons, inspections of this hive are always done last and very cursorily. I will likely have to go deep to find the queen. So…
In addition to lots of smoke, and picking a time when most folks are away or indoors, I am considering:
- sugar/spearmint oil spray - I know I may lose a few but sticky bees have a hard time flying and creating a nuisance. Besides I lose more than a few each inspection when they leave their stingers in my gloves so maybe a wash.
- bee vac - sucking up the triggered bees seems like it could be helpful, but will they be that much more aggressive when I release them back into the hive?
Any other suggestions?