[quigibo]

As a "newbee" I try to read and watch as many videos on bees as I can. One thing I have not been able to find is how do you determine how many hives an area can support? My hives are in zone 8, near a lake, surrounded by trees and no fields. So far my bees are doing what I would like to be doing and that is spending all day around the lake. Any suggestions on how many hives an area can hold?

 

[sqkcrk]

No. One less than too many? Nobody can tell you that until you see what you think are the effects of too many and you could still be mistaken. You can't see the range bees go to to forage, unless you are up on a hill. Their foraging range is huge.

Also, just too many variables.

 

[sqkcrk]

Perhaps a better question for you to answer is how many is too many for you to handle?

 

[Jackam]

I asked a commercial bee keeper near me about putting a few hives on some property I own near his. I was afraid that my bees would have too much competition. He has over 400 hives. His reply "You can put 100 hives on that property and the bees will still have more than they can handle!"

 

[sqkcrk]

When the crop is there everybody gets it. When it isn't, they don't.