One of the threads on Bee-L lately has been about uniting colonies.
 
I would like to pass on a method I and others in this area (Southern Oregon) use.  When working colonies I carry a spray bottle of sugar syrup containing a few drops of mint extract.  (Usually spearmint, as it is usually cheapest!)
 
When I find a bad colony, (Poor queen, no queen) I will put it on top of a good colony that perhaps needs more bees.  The bad colony, during inspection for why it is bad (colonies with laying workers are shaken out on the ground, disease is treated and not united!) is misted with the syrup.  The good colony that I add it to has the lid removed, the top of the box and the bees there are misted and the bad box is simply placed on top.
 
 If I want to make nukes, I will lightly mist each frame of bees as I put them in the nuk box.  The frames can come from several colonies, allowing much more flexability in this process.
 
It seems that as the bees clean each other up the scent of the extract  overpowers the hive scent and changes it enough to allow the bees to get on as one colony without difficulty.
 
 
Dennis Morefield
Sideline Beekeeper,  100 colonies(at times!), Oregon, USA
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