[bobbyjonesboro]

If I split my hive, what prevents the bees from the mother hive from returning?

 

[concrete-bees]

Distance and re-orintation --- place a branch or a clumb of grass in front of the hives - they will stay --- i normaly move the parent hive to another bee yard and put the spilt in its place that way i get the field bees

hope this helps

 

[theriverhawk]

Anytime I do splits, I leave 1/2 the bees in the original location and move the new split at least 3 miles away. I leave them in the new location for at least a week. After a week, I move them back. They'll reorient again but return to their new box.

 

[bobbyjonesboro]

Thanks for answering so fast. Can i not put a screen on the entrance for a few days untill they begin to accept the new queen?

 

[concrete-bees]

if there is a couple frames of brood ..... they will not leave
it might just be my luck but ive never had them reject a queen during a split
i think its becouse i wait until they have made queen cells before i spilt so the hives mind is to split anyway - i just do it for them

 

[Michael Palmer]

If you make a split and leave it in the same yard, of course the field bees will return to the old stand. You need to include many young bees.

Make the split using 1 frame of honey,2 frames of sealed brood, 1 frame of unsealed brood, and a pollen frame.

Shake all the bees back into parent hive.
Place excluder on parent hive
Place body with nuc on excluder
Cover overnight. Next day remove nuc to new stand.

The open brood will attract many young bees to care for it. These won't fly back to the parent hive.

 

[Michael Bush]

>If I split my hive, what prevents the bees from the mother hive from returning?

Nothing if it's in the same yard. I just shake some extra bees in and figure half will return, or do an even split where there is no hive on the old stand and they have to choose. The main thing is that you account for it. Several systems are listed above.

 

[Countryboy]

If leaving the split in the same yard, you can do a drift divide. Turn the mother hive 90 degrees, and put the split entrance facing the entrance to the mother hive. This helps even out the populations.