Lemon balm
MICRO FARMING HOW-TO — SEEDS/ANIMAL SOURCES
For a bee source from your own neighborhood, here’s an old beekeepers’ folk method for attracting a new swarm of local honeybees to the bee skep or hive. Rub lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) on the inside of the skep or hive you’ve built for honeybees right before the summer honeybee swarming time. This has been known to attract your own new colony of local wild honeybees. An essential oil in the herb mimics a bee pheromone that attracts them. Nurseries usually sell this herb in springtime. Grow it in a pot or a spot in the garden until needed to attract the bees.
Contact your local cooperative extension service for a local beekeepers’ association to get information on the precise summertime date bees tend to swarm in your area. Most beekeepers agree that local acclimated bees are the best honeybees you can get. You can also purchase the pheromone from a beekeeping supply company to attract local honeybees. A second choice would be purchasing a queen and colony from a local or regional bee supplier. Third choice would be ordering from a distant bee supplier. Before ordering, read up on the different types of honeybees you can purchase to make an informed choice (we’ll be uploading an article on that topic soon), and purchase from a reputable bee supplier that screens for disease. – www.MicroEcoFarming.com