There are professional ways to rear bumblebee colonies, but I tried a
   very simple method in a situation such as you describe, and it worked
   fine. A friend had a bumble bee nest in the rocks where his 2 and 4 year
   old had their sandbox, so the decision to moved the nest was made.
 
   I had a clear plastic package from the supermarket bakery: like a clam
   shell, about 6 x 4 x 4 inches. I stapled one side of the package in a
   sheltered spot just ouside a window, where we could watch. I stapled a
   piece of cloth, draping over the clear plastic for shade and insulation.
   I put a 3/4 inch hole in the box for an entrance.
 
   I used another plastic container to carry the nest. I had my bee veil
   and some rubber gloves. I moved some rocks and found the nest in an old
   mouse nest. I  picked it up and put it in the container, with the large
   queen and about 20 smaller bumblebees, and covered it with a cloth, then
   I waited for 20 or so other bees to return to the nest spot, where I
   picked them one at a time and popped them into another container.
 
   I took the whole works home, put them in the clear box on the post, and
   released the bees. Within a couple of hours they were foraging as if
   they had been there all along.
   When the kids wanted to see them, I'd lift up the cloth and we would
   watch them a while. In a few days they had built a cover over the
   cluster of cells, and we couldn't see much except the foragers.
 
   The colony did alright for maybe 6 weeks, until September. Then the
   activity decreased and when I last looked there were quite a few mites
   running around in the nest material, but no bees.
 
   It was nice while it lasted.
 
 
   Kerry Clark, Apiculture Specialist
   B.C. Ministry of Agriculture
   1201 103 Ave
   Dawson Creek B.C.
        V1G 4J2  CANADA          Tel (604) 784-2225     fax (604) 784-2299
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