[Demijan81]

Hello all, I am new here and so far, I was just reading.

I am looking for an article or any format of instruction on the topic of installing multiple hives in close proximity from package bees. Bees will be shaken from other hives into packages and introduced to young mated queen on the evening before installation to hives. I am afraid that the bees will choose stronger queen nearby.

All the help is much appreciated.

 

[Michael Bush]

If they are shaken from hives in the same apiary, half of them or more will return to their original hive. If not, yes, they do drift to the better queens. But it really doesn't seem to matter that much how close they are. They will drift. The main way to limit this is to install them just before dark so they have less time to drift before they settle down for the night. If the weather isn't hot, you could block the entrances with some grass until after dark.

 

[Demijan81]

If they are shaken from hives in the same apiary, half of them or more will return to their original hive. If not, yes, they do drift to the better queens. But it really doesn't seem to matter that much how close they are. They will drift. The main way to limit this is to install them just before dark so they have less time to drift before they settle down for the night. If the weather isn't hot, you could block the entrances with some grass until after dark.

Great, thank you very much for the tip!

Bees are not from the same apiary and it is really hot here, so I will install them just before nightfall. In the worst case scenario, I will end up with the strongest queen.