Started 2 new hives on May 21st. With recent heavy rains it is apparent that I need to raise my hives further off the ground. They're on a hilltop so flooding is not the worry.....I just don't like the dirt that is splashed all over them and I've noticed a FEW ants looking for a dry place to hang out. Can I raise my hives or do I need to go through the moving procedure....move them a couple of miles away for 3 days and then return them to their elevated stand?
if your talking about a foot or so , raise them up, as long as you dont move them , they do fine. IMO
I agree, go ahead and raise them. I would not raise them more than a foot though. I have mine a foot up and on a stand . I have 2 deeps and 3 medium suppers on and that is absolutely as high as I can go and still get them off easily when filled.
If your just worried about the mud splatters, but down some landscaping fabric, stone, or wood chips. That will eliminate your splatters without adding in the difficulty of manipulation/inspections of the hive when it grows over your head.
You can move the hive roughly 3 feet without effecting the orientation of the colony. You can put a raised stand next to the hive, move the hive over onto that stand, and they will be fine, you don't even have to worry about placing the stand back in the original location of the colony.
I use cinder blicks. Sturdy. Cheap.
Thanks all