Trap for bees from a bottle: how to make a do-it-yourself plastic container

You can expand the number of bee colonies in the apiary in various ways (buying new colonies, creating layers and breeding queens). In the spring, beekeepers catch a no-man's swarm. The easiest way to make a trap for bees is from a bottle. A small container is not suitable for this purpose. It is advisable to use a bottle with a volume of at least 5 liters. A suitable option is a water cooler bottle.

The principle of operation and design of the bee trap

A young bee colony, separated from the mother at the stage of flight from the old hive to the new dwelling, is called a swarm.To catch a swarm, they use special devices - swarmers. Standard version of the device: a light plywood box, in which 6-7 honeycomb frames are placed (volume 40-50 l). The box is equipped with a notch with a flap, fastening straps, ventilation holes, a removable lid.

Cylindrical designs are popular. The easiest option is to fix plywood guides on hoops (30-40 cm in diameter), which are then covered with canvas. It is easy to make a trap from a plastic bottle with your own hands.

Preparatory work

When assembling any product, certain requirements must be observed. Making a trap from a plastic bottle has many advantages: cheap, fast, no special materials or tools are required.

Experienced beekeepers say that regardless of the type of trap design, frames must be placed inside. When assembling a plywood box, it is recommended to install frames inside that “were already in use”. It is to such products that have darkened with time that bees react.

You also need to take into account the smell that is present inside the product.

To attract a swarm of bees, the inner surface of the bottle is smeared with wax or pine needles, fragrant plants (melissa, oregano). It is not recommended to use sugar syrup, honey, sugar or bee bread as bait. Since there is a possibility that the trap will lure wasps, ants, flies.

Required tools and materials

It is not always possible to independently assemble a trap box to catch a swarm of bees due to the lack of the necessary materials. The optimal solution to the problem is the use of common materials at hand:

• 5-20 liter plastic bottle;
• knife;
• wire for fixing the structure to a tree or any support.

In order not to miss the swarm, beekeepers advise using a plastic bottle of any size.

Because a small part of the bees will climb inside, and most insects will simply stick around the outside of plastic dishes. But keep in mind that this is a temporary means for catching a swarm of bees.

Choice of place and time of installation

The boxes are fixed on a tree at a height of 4-10 m. The most suitable are separately growing spruce, pine. Traps on branches are firmly fixed with straps, rope or wire. You can fix the device on the roof of the house or barn. It is recommended to choose areas where honey plants grow, and there is a source of water nearby.Unwanted "neighbors" will be freeways, power lines.

It is desirable to disguise the designs. The easiest way is to paint the plywood in brown-green camouflage colors. More intricate options are to glue pieces of bark, patches of moss onto the surface of the structure. A properly designed trap box will help you catch bee swarms for several seasons. Bees usually swarm during the period from the last days of May to the first days of July. It is on these days that beekeepers catch "wandering" bee colonies.

How to make a bee trap from a bottle with your own hands

The process of creating a plastic trap yourself does not take much time. There are several main stages:

• the top of the bottle is cut off in such a way that a kind of shallow funnel is obtained. Holes are made in the lower element of the bottle (at a small distance from the cut line) for attaching the wire;
• the cut off top is turned upside down and inserted into the bottom of the bottle - a kind of "base". In this case, you need to make sure that the bottom does not reach the bottom of the bottle;
• a piece of wire is threaded into the bottom of the makeshift trap and a handle is formed to hang the structure on a tree.

Pour some fragrant liquid bait into the container to attract bees. The trap is then placed on a tree/pole/roof that is close to honey plant areas.

When arranging a trap for a bee swarm, several nuances must be taken into account: the type of tree on which the structure is fixed, the proximity of areas with honey plants. It is important to securely fix the structure so that it does not fall / does not come off in case of strong wind.

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