We like to put out a few bait hives each spring not so much to get new bees as to reduce the likelihood of getting a call from a nearby household requesting that we remove these strays from their chimney or cavity wall etc. When people know that we 'do' bees it becomes pretty much expected that we'll sort out any problems, after all, to an outsider it's probably natural to assume that we caused the issue in the first place!! good public relations are always important when dealing with bees.
Another benefit of catching swarms is that we can learn a lot about the way that colonies establish themselves in nature by observing their build up -especially so if they're allowed to build natural comb.
Another benefit of catching swarms is that we can learn a lot about the way that colonies establish themselves in nature by observing their build up -especially so if they're allowed to build natural comb.