I was perusing the archives, and found a reference to a homemade Nasonov lure.  What intruiged me was that one of the three main indredients (Geraniol) is found in bee balm (genus Monarda).  Since I seem to be experiencing unusual swarming/supersedure problems this year (5 of 7 hives, two lost swarms last week), I thought I'd throw a little bee balm into my swarm traps, just for the hell of it (along with some old comb and a used queen cage).  

I probably missed a queen cell or two today (the blighters are getting very sneaky lately - I found a queen cell on a frame of honey!), so I'm hopeful that this might actually work, since I don't actually have any Nasonov pheromone in the bee cupboard at the moment.  

Anyone on the list had any experience with using bee balm in this manner?

Thanks,

Todd.

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