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I've never split a colony before. Can anybody describe the process? What are good indicators coming out of winter that a colony might ready/able/strong enough to split?
Well the problem is that the nurse bees will stay with the split but the forgers will return to the original hive the next day if you leave it in the yard. This means that the split will not be getting supplied with pollen and nectar which the brood (which should be at all stages) need to survive. Maybe if you place the split right next to the original hive if you can't move it you will get drift but you would be taking a chance. Once the new queen is established you can move the hive (split) back (at night) to the original yard and they will return to that hive.Hi alpha6,
That makes great sense! Thanks for the information. One question: Do you really need to move the hive 2 miles away (from original location)? Won't the bees stay with the brood so you don't have to worry about them drifting back to the original hive? I'm not sure what options I would have moving them to a different location. If you do move them, how long do you leave in the new location?
Thanks,
Chris
A lot of people seem to want to find the queen just for the sake of finding her... it's rarely ever needed. One brood frame will tell you as much about the queen as you need to know most of the time (and all of the time if you like mutt queens like I do). Playing "Find The Queen" is a fun waste of time, but a waste of time none-the-less.I was wondering why you'd even need to look for the queen. One box will have her and one won't. Unless it's to watch for laying workers?