# Max Hives per Acre?



## oldenglish (Oct 22, 2008)

I doubt there is a good answer.
Bees forage several miles from the hive, it is going to depend what is available in the foraging area.
Another thing to consider is local ordinaces, in my area the rule is under 5 acres no more than 50 hives, over 5 acres and there is no limit.


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## Merlyn Votaw (Jun 23, 2008)

Also bees will take one kind of frower at different times of day.Someone here talked about a flower that the bees would take all day long but I don't remember what it was.I do know they take Buckwheat in the morning. Probablt the same for wild flowers too.


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

How many do you have?


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## PCM (Sep 18, 2007)

A circle around a apiary with a 3 mile foraging radius is 28.27 sq. miles or 18,093 acres.

Some say a good rule of thumb is to have 25 -40 hives in a permenat apiary.

Bee's do travel in their search for food, even though we try to entice them to take care of the home front first !

PCM


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

How do you entice them to do that? Won't they just go where they want to?

What works in one place may not work as well in Utah.


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## EastSideBuzz (Apr 12, 2009)

I have 30 on my 5 acres. But, it depends how much food source you have around your acres. Luckily I have no upper limit as far as restrictions go. 

But, I have 30 at my house and 30 at an out yard. Next year will go to 100 probably keep 30 home and the rest in the out yard. 

I do have a problem when it is really hot they take over my neighbors fountain so water is important also. And being a good neighbor is also important. 

Sorry I could not give you a clear answer. But, there is no right or wrong one.


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## Bens-Bees (Sep 18, 2008)

sqkcrk said:


> How do you entice them to do that?


By planting forage plants they tend to enjoy.



sqkcrk said:


> Won't they just go where they want to?


Yes, and enticing them means making the home-front more desirable for them so that they want to take care of it more often than they would have otherwise had you not done that planting for them.



sqkcrk said:


> What works in one place may not work as well in Utah.


That tactic tends to work everywhere... but the plants that are planted do change from one location to the next.


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## BMAC (Jun 23, 2009)

You should probably talk with a local commercial beek and find out what they run. When I ran bees in Missouri I had no more than 20 hives per yard and some as low as 16. Here in NY I have a couple yards as high as 50 without problems. In Georgia I had 100 in 1 spot and they still pulled in surplus honey. My friend in Oklahoma said he can only run 20 and still sometimes only gets 30 lbs a season from them.

I mus say this isnt per acre. This is per apiary with atleast a 3 mile distance between apiaries.


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## honeydreams (Aug 10, 2009)

it takes 3million blooms to make one pound of honey. how many blooms do you have in the 3 mile area you live in and remember some beeke may be in your little 3mile radius too. Beekeeping is all regional what works for my region may not work in yours, Visa versa.


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