# Split Location



## KGB (Jun 25, 2014)

http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?303881-Spring-Split-Last-light-or-Midday

Splits can be next to each other, back to back to somewhat limit drifting to the moved hive, or moved 1 mile or further away to prevent drifting.

Can you split this time of year down there? This would not be attempted in the fall "up north".
Maybe consider adding more space (another box) rather than splitting.


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## mharrell11 (Mar 18, 2014)

Actually, yes you can split this time of year. I already have 2 deeps and 2 medium supers so adding another is not really an option. The dearth is over and the flow is started up again a couple of weeks ago. My bees are pretty active and the hive is really full again.

I am probably going to wait another week or 2. I didn't see any swarm cells last week when I inpsected, so I think I have a little time. But at this point I am preparing.


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## drlonzo (Apr 15, 2014)

mharrell11 said:


> Getting ready to do a split. I didn't do one soon enough back in late July and my bees swarmed. Now my main hive is getting really full. How far or near can I put the hive. I think I read somewhere that when I do the split I can actually place the split directly in front and facing the old hive and this will allow the drift between the 2 hives.
> 
> The only thing holding me back from doing this currently is weather. It's been raining every day for weeks and today doesn't look much better.
> 
> Input would be great.


Splits can be done in Florida just about anytime as they have great weather most of the time. As for how far away, etc for splits.. Old beekeepers would tell you to take your split down the road at least 2 miles away, this was done in order to keep the foragers in the new hive when you split it. However, that is true for that situation to a point, you can do the same thing by putting a rock or brick over the entrance to the new hive till they can still get out but notice something is majorly diff. This will cause them to re orient to the new location of that hive and all is well. 

This is a trick that I use when making my splits all the time. 

Now the question is if you will allow your bees to make a new queen or if you are planning to put an already mated queen into the split. If you place a mated queen you get no brood break in the new hive and will have to worry with varroa more. A brood break by allowing them to make their own queen will keep the varroa numbers down in the new hive for a while.

Hope that helps..


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## DPBsbees (Apr 14, 2011)

There is one advantage to moving your splits away from your full size hives and it's robbing. If I had left my late season splits near my full size hives this year they would have been dead for sure. I'm sure this is less of a problem during a flow, but I'd still keep an eye on it.


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## mharrell11 (Mar 18, 2014)

Thank you for your input. That's very helpful. I was planning on letting them make a new queen.

One other question. Is there a particular time of day that is best? Foragers are usually out during the middle of the day. So is later in the day when more foragers will be in the hive be a better time?


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## DPBsbees (Apr 14, 2011)

mharrell11 said:


> Thank you for your input. That's very helpful. I was planning on letting them make a new queen.
> 
> One other question. Is there a particular time of day that is best? Foragers are usually out during the middle of the day. So is later in the day when more foragers will be in the hive be a better time?


Now you're starting to ask a question that is better for someone in your area. Bees are harder to work when everyone is home, so I make my splits during the day when they are foraging. It's way too late to let the bees make their own queen here. If it's not too late for your area, you may want to consider a robbing screen to minimize the risk.


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## drlonzo (Apr 15, 2014)

mharrell11 said:


> Thank you for your input. That's very helpful. I was planning on letting them make a new queen.
> 
> One other question. Is there a particular time of day that is best? Foragers are usually out during the middle of the day. So is later in the day when more foragers will be in the hive be a better time?


When I do a split like you are planning, I normally do it in the evening late. You can get your hive ready during the day. What you're proposing is what's called a walk away split. What you should do is make sure both the upper and lower parts of your deep brood boxes have frames with eggs, and small larvae. You really don't need to worry with which section the queen is in this way. Then in the late evening, pull off the top brood box, put it where you want your new split to be, then fix it till any foragers will be prompted to re orient in the morning. Go back to the hives in about 4 days and see which one has eggs and which one has queen cells. The one with eggs will be the one with the queen. Just that simple.


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## mharrell11 (Mar 18, 2014)

So in doing a walk away split, would I reducing my current hive down to 1 deep or would I be adding a 2nd deep back on both hives making both 2 deeps?


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