Splits

[Big John]

I am new at this,this would be my first split. Is it to late in the season for a split? Would it be best to let the bees raise their own queen or would it be best to order one for them?

[1of6]

I wouldn't do it this late.  I look at it as this - at this point in the year we should be building up for winter.  I stopped splitting a few weeks back and am really only left with a couple re-queening projects at this point.  We get a very good fall flow here most times, but I only rely on that to fill out for winter.

As for queen raising, I'd possibly try it only if I had a hive ready right now and was just simply re-queening or maybe raising a queen.  If I was splitting and letting the hive fill out, I'd want to already have that project pretty well under way at that point.

I'm in PA, so we're at a different point in the season though.  We also have some clover though, and the jewelweed, chicory, and aster are all going, with goldenrod coming soon.  I'm not sure how your flow is there.

My $0.02.  It's different for everyone, and it's different for every location.

[Scadsobees]

I agree except if you want a split really bad. 

And then only if you have a queen ready and drawn comb and can make a large split.  I don't think that they have enough time this time of year to raise their own queen, although I'm sure it is possible.

They can build up very fast if you keep syrup on them, and can easily build up a full brood box by winter.  And if you overwinter them in a single deep brood box, which shouldn't be a problem if they have enough food and are healthy.

And this is constantly feeding them till winter.

Rick

[Big John]

Thanks for the info, like I said I was new to this and I am just impatient! My best bet will be to wait until spring and order 2 new swarms.

[Michael Bush]

Unless it's a real boomer of a hive and you've got enough to give both sides to get through the winter, it is kind of late for them to build back up.

[Brian D. Bray]

To do a split this late I would want to pull 2 frames each from 4 hives and put in 2 new frames plus use a purchased queen (8 frames of bees, 2 empty frames, and a queen).  That will give you a single box hive to over winter--the minimum IMO.  Or you could do a 2 story 5 frame nuc, which just might work better for wintering such a hive. 

But to be realistic, I'd wait until spring to do the split and use it as swarm control management as well.