[Dukeoflawnchair]

Good afternoon Ladies and Gentlemen!

Got an urban hive location question.

How detrimental is it to have a hive not located in direct sunlight?

The most inconspicuous and "our of sight / out of mind" location for neighbors / passerbyers is in a corner between my garage, shed, camper, and a row of trees. Would have maybe 10x10 ft of sky view.

I'm leaning in this direction. Thoughts?

 

[texanbelchers]

That would be fine for the bees; they will spiral up as needed. I assume you don't have small hive beetles to deal with . lucky! The biggest question is access for you. Is there enough space for 2 (or more) hives? Can you get in and around the hive? Is there space to set boxes off, shake bees, set down the smoker, etc? You'll need additional storage space somewhere, too.

 

[dkofoed]

I've found that hives generally do better with more sun throughout the day, but a hive in complete shade will still be fine. The ideal combination seems to be full sun in the morning and dappled sunlight for the hot afternoons.

 

[Michael Bush]

>How detrimental is it to have a hive not located in direct sunlight?

Likely they will do fine, but full sun is a better bet. Bees in the forest live in hollow trees with no sun...