>>There are few beekeepers in the area and nearly no feral colonies.

This may very well be the case but it might be worthwhile for you to 
do some bee-lining to determine if there actually are any feral 
colonies.  It's really the only way to know - when can't go by the 
bees seen on random flowers.  I'd set up for bee-lining some 2 - 3 
miles from your yard apiary in 4 different directions and see if you 
can attract and track some bees back to their nests.

Also, try setting up some swarm traps for next spring.

Most of my feral removals involve areas with no known beekeepers.  I 
say no known beekeepers based on our local bee club's membership 
list.  But I know from experience there are beekeepers out there who 
don't belong to bee clubs...

Do you use Apistan or Checkmite for varroa control?  Contaminated wax 
will result in poorly laying queens.

Waldemar
Long Island, NY

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