How close/far away do I need to put the front of one hive to the back of another? The entrance faces east (prevailing wind is SW for me). i.e.
[ Hive 1 ] -> ? [ Hive 2 ] ->
-> indicates the entrance. So, how far should 1 and 2 be separated? (For the bees sake and mine when working on Hive 2).
Thanks!
mine are about 30 feet.. If you need to put them real close together put them back to back
I have seen yards with pallets of hives with less than 5 feet between pallets. People put hives with entrances right next to each other all of the time so I think they could be close without too much trouble. Of course, more space may be best but space can be at a premium.
I would say 3 feet minimum, but would suggest working from the side of the hive in front. Obviously more is better, but I don't know your exact circumstances.
Mine are about 10 feet and I have no problem working them.
Mine face opposite directions and are touching each other in the winter. All in two rows of seven:
http://www.bushfarms.com/beesmisc.htm#hivestand
3-5 feet apart is fine, here is a pic of some of mine.
(http://img200.imageshack.us/img200/4955/2picoffcamera355.th.jpg) (http://img200.imageshack.us/my.php?image=2picoffcamera355.jpg)
No problem with that.. the girls know which door is theirs.
Mick