Are you searching for effective bee removal tips but don’t want to kill the little buzzers?
Bees can be very pesky and annoying. However, there is no doubt that they serve a valuable purpose in your garden. You need them to keep the garden pollinated and flourishing. However, when bees start forming hives in your backyard, the risk of bee stings heightens. Many people have allergic reactions to bee stings, and in severe cases, the sting may be deadly.
You might want to discourage them from your yard, but you recognize that these insects are essential pollinators. You don’t want to kill them, but you need them to vacate your property–asap! So what are you to do?
7 Humane Bee Removal Tips and How to Discourage Hives Too Close to Your House
Here are seven ways to discourage bees from nesting near your house without killing them.
1 – Call for Bee Removal Help From a Beekeeper
If you can find a beekeeper in your city or town this is the best option for getting rid of a beehive. A beekeeper will be more than happy to take some beehives off your hands–depending on the species.
Beekeepers know how to professionally work with bees, and they will learn how to remove and take care of them.
Avoid pest control companies, as they will use chemical sprays to kill the pollinator insects instead of merely removing them.
2 – Try Cinnamon
If there is a beehive in your garden that you want to get rid of, sprinkle cinnamon around the hive for at least seven days. The smell of the cinnamon will repel the bees and they will start looking for someplace else to create their nests.
3 – Bee Repellent Plants
One of the best ways to keep bees out of your yard without having to remove them physically or killing them is to plant bee repelling plants around your garden. The best bee repellent plants are eucalyptus, mint, and citronella. Some of these plants can get rid of different types of nuisance wildlife as well. They can also get rid of insects such as mosquitoes.
Once these plants begin to grow and give off fragrance the bees will leave your garden. As a bonus, most of these plants are relatively easy to grow, so it should not take long for your plan to work.
4 – Plant Bee Attracting Pollinator Plants AWAY from Your Home
Conversely, you can plant a pollinator garden to attract bees and other pollinators away from the area where they are a nuisance. This establishes a safe zone for both of you!
5 – Use Moth Balls
Bees do not like the smell of mothballs. To get rid of bees, you can hang mothballs near the beehives in your garden. Eventually, the smell of the mothballs will repel the bees, and they will leave your garden.
You can also hang the mothballs in different locations around your outdoors to prevent the bees from forming a hive in another area of your yard.
6 – Smoke Them Out
Smoke is a very effective way of getting bees away from your garden. Bees are susceptible to smell. Whenever they smell smoke, they usually think it is a fire. They will leave very quickly and often they don’t come back.
You can build a controlled fire using cardboard or get firewood. Place the fire directly underneath the beehive. Ensure that you keep away from the hive while it is being smoked because the bees will become irritated and are more likely to sting as they begin to leave.
This method is especially effective for a short-term evacuation–like getting bees to leave while you clean your gutters or make a roof repair without a sting. They will return after the smoke clears.
7 – Make a Garlic Spray for Bee Removal
You probably realized by now that bees are susceptible to certain smells. Garlic is one of those smells that they hate. All you need to do is crush some garlic and mix it with water to create a garlic spray.
Start spraying it near the beehive, and the odor will encourage the bees to leave and nest elsewhere.
The Takeaway: Bee Removal Can Be Humane But Effective
While there is no doubt that bees are essential to pollination, too many of them can be a problem–especially for someone allergic to stings. If your garden is becoming overrun and you are even afraid to enter it without getting stung, you might consider using the natural methods outlined here.
Avoid killing bees or pollinators at all costs–they are essential to a healthy ecosystem.
On her downtime, Shashika enjoys container gardening on her rooftop and shares her bounty with friends and neighbors.
