Frequently

Asked

Questions

A tree trunk with a large bee swarm hanging on the side, with a background of green grass and a blue sky. Beekeeper John Gardner at Peaceful Beekeeping successfully captured this honeybee swarm.
A large bee swarm hanging from tree branches among green leaves with a grass field in the background. Beekeeper John Gardner at Peaceful Beekeeping successfully captured this honeybee swarm.

  • YES!! John will immediately respond to your phone call or text (301-639-9726), drive to your location, and safely gather your honeybee swarm. We relocate swarms to one of our five apiary locations, where the bees enjoy a dry, safe, and well managed home with other honey bee colonies, on a sustainably managed, no till Farm. John will travel to Frederick, Washington, Montgomery, Carroll, and Howard Counties in Maryland, and Loudon County in Virginia.

  • NOTHING! It’s a FREE SERVICE!

    In fact, we PAY YOU. We gather the swarm and leave you with a jar of honey!

  • Some people suffer reactions to honeybee stings that could be life threatening. So caution should always be used, and swarms should be left alone and people should keep their distance until John arrives. However, swarms are generally not aggressive since they do not have a home to protect. Bee careful!!!

  • Honeybees swarm to reproduce and make a new colony. Typically half of the population of a strong colony will depart with the existing queen, leaving half of the population behind with young or developing queen to carry on the old colony. This usually happens in the spring months of April - June.

  • Yes! John specially fabricates swarm catch boxes to his unique design. With landowner approval, he hangs them against the trunks of large trees in optimal locations and then baits the box a fragrance attractive to the bees. With a little patience, we often get swarms to move in. Once in the box, we relocate the swarm to one of our apiary locations, earning a jar of honey for the landowner!!

  • At your request, John will send you a photo of your swarm being moved into its new home at the new location. We successfully overwinter our colonies at an average rate of 90%, significantly safer than they would be in the wild in a tree.