So about bees…

[Stihl a grasshopper]

What does one normally do about bees? I cut a tree down that had a hive in the top which broke open upon landing. They are irritated with me, and have communicated that they would prefer I stay 30-ish feet away from the tree. Recommendations? It’s currently 75 degrees, and will only get to 62 overnight, so I don’t know if that will really make them sluggish. Wait till closer to dark to limb it? Wait till mid next week when it’s 40? Hope they decide to leave? Go in there like a honey badger and get some work done? It is about a 50’ tall twin 18” trunk oak.

 

[farmer steve]

Look up Texas apiary inspection service. The have a list of people with phone numbers that might be able to help There is one guy in Orange TX. Good luck.

 

[TheJollyLogger]

What does one normally do about bees? I cut a tree down that had a hive in the top which broke open upon landing. They are irritated with me, and have communicated that they would prefer I stay 30-ish feet away from the tree. Recommendations? It’s currently 75 degrees, and will only get to 62 overnight, so I don’t know if that will really make them sluggish. Wait till closer to dark to limb it? Wait till mid next week when it’s 40? Hope they decide to leave? Go in there like a honey badger and get some work done? It is about a 50’ tall twin 18” trunk oak.

The 40 degree day will help a lot, and you can buy a tyvek paint suit and make a redneck bee suit... a paint strainer mesh over a full brim hardhat... it works fairly well, visibility sucks though.

 

[cookies]

Are they honey bees or wasps/hornets?

 

[Stihl a grasshopper]

They look like a standard honey bee. I say look like, because I don’t know if the Africanized honeybees is still a thing in our area or what not. They are for sure bees, not wasps.

 

[Stihl a grasshopper]

That’s the part their nest was in. They are almost that bad over the whole tree.
View attachment IMG_9610.MOV

 

[cookies]

go onto your local facebook pages and ask if anyone knows someone that wants to save them. We have a few folks here that will come remove them for free. Pretty sure their all mixed with africanised now being they are setting a 30ft distance they likely are dangerous.

 

[old CB]

I doubt this helps or applies to your situation, but was just commenting yesterday about how honey bees are attracted to chainsaw ops. Our neighbor keeps hives, and I frequently (like yesterday and day before) have bees come to where I'm running a saw. You would think the noise and commotion would drive them away, but no. I suspect it's the saw vibration that attracts. Probably similar to the vibration within the hive.

 

[Cricket]

I doubt this helps or applies to your situation, but was just commenting yesterday about how honey bees are attracted to chainsaw ops. Our neighbor keeps hives, and I frequently (like yesterday and day before) have bees come to where I'm running a saw. You would think the noise and commotion would drive them away, but no. I suspect it's the saw vibration that attracts. Probably similar to the vibration within the hive.

I should ask my FIL - he's had bees for sixty years, used to teach apiary classes, etc. at the state college occasionally. I have noticed they do tend to show up around running saws.

 

[Clark10]

I doubt this helps or applies to your situation, but was just commenting yesterday about how honey bees are attracted to chainsaw ops. Our neighbor keeps hives, and I frequently (like yesterday and day before) have bees come to where I'm running a saw. You would think the noise and commotion would drive them away, but no. I suspect it's the saw vibration that attracts. Probably similar to the vibration within the hive.

Could be the vibration if the bees are nesting or foraging in the tree. May also be the sap your spraying everywhere too. Time of year makes a big difference too.

 

[Clark10]

What does one normally do about bees? I cut a tree down that had a hive in the top which broke open upon landing. They are irritated with me, and have communicated that they would prefer I stay 30-ish feet away from the tree. Recommendations? It’s currently 75 degrees, and will only get to 62 overnight, so I don’t know if that will really make them sluggish. Wait till closer to dark to limb it? Wait till mid next week when it’s 40? Hope they decide to leave? Go in there like a honey badger and get some work done? It is about a 50’ tall twin 18” trunk oak.

Contact your local or state beekeeping association or club. Yes Africanized bees are still a thing in TX. A broken open hive will make any colony defensive. Local beekeepers will have the PPE and the knowledge to help. I help arborists and homeowners with colonies every year in our area. A colony that has gone through a fall and damage will frequently loose the queen and a majority of the brood so it is not a great fit for me as a beekeeper as I'm interested in saving the wild bee genetics and a dead queen kind of puts a kink in that plan. I often do cut outs and swarm captures for the bees and don't charge. However, this will just be a mess to clean up so think of paying the beekeeper for his time. If you do it yourself try it when it is below 45 degrees in the early AM as the bees will be less likely to fly. A wet dry shop vac will be a good way to remove as many of the bees as possible so that you won't have as many to work around when it warms up. This is a destruction of the colony. Better than using chemicals as the same chemicals will be poisonous all pollinators in the area and will do a lot more harm.

Just my 2 cents. ;-)

 

[Cricket]

Could be the vibration if the bees are nesting or foraging in the tree. May also be the sap your spraying everywhere too. Time of year makes a big difference too.

Often when my mother pruned the apple trees in February, if there was any sunshine at all, yellow jackets would show up from nowhere, attracted to the sap.

 

[sand sock]

What does one normally do about bees? I cut a tree down that had a hive in the top which broke open upon landing. They are irritated with me, and have communicated that they would prefer I stay 30-ish feet away from the tree. Recommendations? It’s currently 75 degrees, and will only get to 62 overnight, so I don’t know if that will really make them sluggish. Wait till closer to dark to limb it? Wait till mid next week when it’s 40? Hope they decide to leave? Go in there like a honey badger and get some work done? It is about a 50’ tall twin 18” trunk oak.

I've been keeping honeybees for about 7years. Most feral bee trees wont survive the winter. Don't worry about it. Just give them time to disapate or wait till winter to cut it up.