South of you in Jackson, MO, our swarm calls have been few and far between as well.  I blame the freeze we had around Easter.  It knocked out the nectar flow.  Without the nectar coming in, hive congestion was reduced, and without any blooms to supply nectar and pollen, I sense the queen reduced her laying.  The observation hive at the Conservation Department had worker bees pulling out larvae, presumable because they had no feed.
   
  Things are beginning to pick up.  I had two calls yesterday and I had two pheromone-baited traps with swarms in them.
   
  But what is really weird is the two swarms I've caught, and the two my buddies have caught have all been on the ground.  Big piles of bees 2 feet in diameter on the ground.  It sure makes taking them home easier, but I wonder what's up with this phenomena?  Until this spring, I never had a swarm on the ground.
   
  Grant
  Jackson, MO
   

       
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