# Should I keep a Nuc during swarm season? **URL:** \ **Category:** Swarms & Bee Catching\ **Created:** [September 24, 2017, 10:04am UTC](https://forum.honeyflow.com/t/should-i-keep-a-nuc-during-swarm-season/12776 "2017-09-24T10:04:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![berendsbees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbce88/32.png) [@berendsbees](https://forum.honeyflow.com/u/berendsbees)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2017, 10:04am UTC](https://forum.honeyflow.com/t/should-i-keep-a-nuc-during-swarm-season/12776/1 "2017-09-24T10:04:07Z")
Hi there, I’m located in Melbourne, Australia its now Spring. I just wanted to know if I should keep a Nuc box available during this swarm season. I got my hive in February and they lasted through the winter. The box looks pretty full of bees so I just put the Flow Hive (super) on top. Just wondering what people think about keeping a nuc box in case they swarm. ---
**Author:** ![Dawn\_SD](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.honeyflow.com/dawn_sd/32/15954_2.png) [@Dawn\_SD](https://forum.honeyflow.com/u/Dawn_SD)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2017, 11:02am UTC](https://forum.honeyflow.com/t/should-i-keep-a-nuc-during-swarm-season/12776/2 "2017-09-24T11:02:03Z")
Great idea. Also, if you need to do a split to prevent a swarm, because they are building up so fast, you have a new home available for the split. 😊 ---
**Author:** ![berendsbees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbce88/32.png) [@berendsbees](https://forum.honeyflow.com/u/berendsbees)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2017, 11:57am UTC](https://forum.honeyflow.com/t/should-i-keep-a-nuc-during-swarm-season/12776/3 "2017-09-24T11:57:53Z")
Will a cardboard box do, or should I buy a wooden nuc box? ---
**Author:** ![Gaz](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.honeyflow.com/gaz/32/12446_2.png) [@Gaz](https://forum.honeyflow.com/u/Gaz)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2017, 12:30pm UTC](https://forum.honeyflow.com/t/should-i-keep-a-nuc-during-swarm-season/12776/4 "2017-09-24T12:30:08Z")
Hi, One thing we have learnt from this forum is to be ready. We have a 5 frame nuc box and a home made swarm box. Its a black 40litre plastic box from Bunnings that has a plywood lid with a small entrance (Closable) and two frames inside. A hook on the back so I can quickly tie a rope to it and secure in a tree.Its painted white on the outside to keep cool and left black on the inside to keep dark. Nice and light weight to throw anywhere in a hurry. I did it this way so that if the swarm was caught could leave them in the same box until I had time to permanently house them. ![P1040902](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/honeyflow/original/2X/4/43d32fd3ff494198e4fe0b44dac690466bf62324.JPG) ![P1040914](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/honeyflow/original/2X/8/885d491a55a1686b17d387d7a355295cb93efe30.JPG) ---
**Author:** ![berendsbees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbce88/32.png) [@berendsbees](https://forum.honeyflow.com/u/berendsbees)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2017, 12:50pm UTC](https://forum.honeyflow.com/t/should-i-keep-a-nuc-during-swarm-season/12776/5 "2017-09-24T12:50:11Z")
Wow that’s really smart and crafty. Great ideas. ---
**Author:** ![Dawn\_SD](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.honeyflow.com/dawn_sd/32/15954_2.png) [@Dawn\_SD](https://forum.honeyflow.com/u/Dawn_SD)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2017, 3:59pm UTC](https://forum.honeyflow.com/t/should-i-keep-a-nuc-during-swarm-season/12776/6 "2017-09-24T15:59:03Z")
> [@berendsbees](#): > > Will a cardboard box do, or should I buy a wooden nuc box? I would buy a wood nucleus box - they are only about $30 or so. You will need a floor and a roof. If you are really not sure about whether you want to do it, you could use a broccoli box at a pinch. Some are the right size, and with a little planning, they can be modified to take Langstroth brood frames. However, they are not durable, just OK for a week or so. 😊 ---
**Author:** ![4121local](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/4/ecd19e/32.png) [@4121local](https://forum.honeyflow.com/u/4121local)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2017, 12:02pm UTC](https://forum.honeyflow.com/t/should-i-keep-a-nuc-during-swarm-season/12776/7 "2017-09-25T12:02:29Z")
I tried to catch a swarm last year in a broccoli box. By the time I got to the shop to buy a proper nuc box they had absconded. Buy a nuc box and bee prepared! ---
**Author:** ![Faroe](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.honeyflow.com/faroe/32/11835_2.png) [@Faroe](https://forum.honeyflow.com/u/Faroe)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2017, 8:03pm UTC](https://forum.honeyflow.com/t/should-i-keep-a-nuc-during-swarm-season/12776/8 "2017-09-30T20:03:56Z")
You can also buy another brood box so that you have somewhere for the bees to live after they swarm. > **[Araucaria (Hoop Pine) Brood Box](https://www.honeyflow.com.au/collections/all/products/brood-box-hoop-pine?variant=20735677189)** > > Dispatches in 1-2 working days. Just like the brood boxes that come with a Araucaria Flow Hive Classic, these boxes can be used for brood, or as an extra conven