I have the hive ready to go. How close to the 1st one should I put it? And forgive me for the lame question....but I need to go buy another queen for the second hive, right? Can I put some frames of bees from my first hive into the second one? Or will they figure it out and move out there on their own?
Thanks for any help!
Place the new hive a distance away from the first where you can comfortably work both hives.
If you will only be keeping a maximum of a few hives or so, spread them out a bit, say at least 3' apart or more.
Most people who keep many colonies usually place them closer but still further apart to work them comfortably.
How large is your first colony? How long have you had it? How many boxes? How many frames are covered by bees in those boxes? What is your set up? Two deeps and a medium? A deep and three mediums, etc...?
If your colony is large and booming you may be able to make a split without affecting honey production, but if it is not very strong you could set it back by removing frames.
Do you have an experienced beekeeper who could help you look through your hive to answer some of the answers you are seeking?
BTW, bees will not simply leave an established colony to begin another unless they cast a swarm. So to answer your question "Or will they figure it out and move out there on their own?" That answer would be No.
...JP
Oh boy, those are really good questions that I need to figure out. I only have one hive with two deeps and one medium. I have a call out to have my mentor check it out with me to see if it's big enough to split. Thanks for taking the time to reply; I had no idea I could affect production by splitting it prematurely.
Keep up the good work and we should always remember there's no such thing as silly/lame questions ok.We all thrive/learn from making mistakes whether from our own mistakes or from that of others.