
                         THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
                 Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, June 17, 1994                    TAG: 9406160163 
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON                     PAGE: 10    EDITION: FINAL  
SOURCE: BY LEONA C. LILLEY, CORRESPONDENT 
DATELINE: 940617                                 LENGTH: Medium

HAVING A BUZZING SWARM REMOVED IS A CALL AWAY

{LEAD} While honey bees can be of vital help to gardeners and farmers, they can be annoying pests to some homeowners.

Turning one person's problem into another's solution is what The Bee Keepers Guild is all about.

{REST} For several years the private Virginia Beach company, owned by Calvin and Geneva Sims, has volunteered its services to the Tidewater Bee Keepers Association by providing a beekeepers hotline. The company takes calls each spring and summer from residents who are bothered by bee swarms on their property.

``A bee swarm is when a colony of bees divides,'' Calvin Sims explained. ``Half of them fly out of the hive in search of a new home. A bee swarm can be 10,000 or more in a huge ball.

``When a colony first divides it usually hangs on a tree limb, but it can be a fence post, mailbox or anything. It will hang out in the open about two hours while scouts go out to hunt a new home, which is usually between the walls of someone's house or out-building. When they settle into a building, they set up to do business there. This is where we match the people who have swarms with the beekeepers who want bees.''

Those wanting to be relieved of swarms can call the hotline (481-0706) and ask for someone to come out and get the bees. In return they are given the names and phone numbers of beekeepers who live nearby. The two parties get together, and the bees are removed for free.

``When the bee swarms go into a house they become a colony. At this point the service is no longer free of charge,'' Calvin Sims said. ``The bees go in between the walls, floors or ceiling and set up shop. A skilled technician must then go in and make an opening in the house to be able to get the bees.

``A special vacuum machine will pick the bees up without hurting them. If they have already started producing, the eggs, wax and honey have to be removed and the area sprayed with a special chemical to repel bees making sure they will not return. Nothing from a hardware store will do this job.''

Because honey bees are so necessary for pollinating crops, they have been put on the Environmental Protection Agency's list of protected insects. It is illegal to destroy them.

Swarms should be reported immediately. Beekeepers will not come and get them if they have been knocked down or sprayed.

by CNB