# Split distance



## Aroc (May 18, 2016)

I am no where near being ready or able to do a split but was just wondering when that time comes do the two colonies have to be separated? If so how far? If so when can they be brought back together again? I've heard you need to separate them by a couple of miles?


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## Buzzed (Oct 26, 2014)

I just did a split and put the Nuc right beside the hive I split. That was two weeks ago. Both hives are doing fine. I have heard of people doing this and this is the first time I have tried it. So far so good.


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## lemmje (Feb 23, 2015)

Often i split a ten frame into two five frames, a walk away or even split i think it is called. I will divvy up the frames between the two new boxes which are sitting side by side, then a few days later swap their position and let the foragers drift from one to the other. Eventually the bees figure out where to go and one of them raises their own queen. 

Have done several times with success. never worried about moving the hives away from each other.

I think it depends on why you are splitting them, and how you populate the split.


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## Ravenseye (Apr 2, 2006)

I usually place the split quite near the original hive, sometimes right on top. I've never gone "miles" away but I have taken them to the other side of the yard or around the back of the house. Didn't seem to make a difference so now I just leave them right near where I split them.


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## J and R Apiary (Mar 5, 2016)

You don't have to move them anywhere. I split 4 nucs from one of my big hives and put them next to and on top of the main hive. All are doing fine. One nuc I added a mated queen and the other three were walk aways.


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## Aroc (May 18, 2016)

What prevents the unqueened hive from all going back the queen rite hive? The presence of brood?


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## Ravenseye (Apr 2, 2006)

Aroc said:


> What prevents the unqueened hive from all going back the queen rite hive? The presence of brood?


Not much. But you're not as much concerned with the field bees as you are the nurse bees. Give them enough nurse bees and let them be bees.


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## Buzzed (Oct 26, 2014)

Aroc said:


> What prevents the unqueened hive from all going back the queen rite hive? The presence of brood?


That would be my guess.


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## lemmje (Feb 23, 2015)

Nurse bees have not yet been outside the hive and will not leave open brood. The only reason i use queen excluders is to get a frame of nurse bees -- not what i talked about above, but i do start splits that way, too, sometimes.

Shake a frame of brood clean of bees so you don't get the queen, put a QE over the stack and a box over that. Put the frame (or 2) of brood in the empty box and give the nurse bees a couple hours to cover the brood. When i am introducing a queen i do it this way. All house bees, so i feed them in the nuc till they get going.


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## Buzzed (Oct 26, 2014)

Checked split yesterday. Added another box on my Nuc. Plenty of larva and capped brood. Packed with bees. Looked like they needed more room. I may split this Nuc again before The summers over.


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