I have a docile wild hive in a tree near the creek and want to know if it’s ok to locate a new, as yet unpopulated, flow hive near the existing wild hive.
Is it too optimistic to hope that putting the Ritz next to the wild hive might encourage a split or will I need to be more proactive than that?
You need to be more proactive than that. You can trap the bees out & lure them into your flow hive. Also the bees might already be in the Ritz, compared to a wooden hive with only 20mm wall thickness, & then possibly positioned in full sun.