We have purchased our first Flow Hive and are preparing to get it set up. We are on 25 acres of which 4 is formal gardens and another 1.5 is kitchen garden and orchard. Due to diease we do need to spray our orchard several times a year. We have a small native offset behind the orchard where I was hoping to place the hive however I am concerned about killing the bees with chemicals. Am I best to place it at the other end of the garden (about 200 metres away) in the flower garden (noting we often have open days so hundreds of people thru the garden. A third option is to put the hive down the far end of the property near the dam (about 500 metres from the house) however it would reduce our ability to check/monitor the Bee’s health every day
Hello and welcome to the Flow forum! 
Wow, this is a very tough question. What disease? Fungus, bacterial or insect pests?
If you have to spray for insects, I would say that you need to move your hive at least 5-8km away when you spray. Especially if your orchard is blooming. I speak as a beekeeper who has lost a hive to somebody spraying open blooms. 
If it is fungus or bacterial, I would say try to spray when the bees are not foraging, and don’t spray open blooms. Bees forage most from about 8am to 5pm during peak nectar flows. If you can spray before and after that, and the spray has time to dry, it will lessen the impact on your colony.
I don’t know if you have a friendly local DPI equivalent, but if you do, an inquiry to them might help you manage this efficiently. @aussiemike and @JeffH might have some more ideas for you. Hope that helps!
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Thank so much Dawn. Very helpful. Unfortunately we’re in an agricultural area but I will take your advice and put the hive as far away as possible from any potential sprays. We only spray for fungal/bacterial issues with the fruit trees but good to know not to spray at all during blossom season. Very excited to start our bee keeping.
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Hey Joanne,
I don’t have anything to add to Dawn’s reply, other than reach out to AGVIC. The bee Biosecurity officers are very helpful. Although all their attention is on Varroa at the moment, they can guide you on any bee question.
I think AGVIC run an app or website that tracks spraying and hive locations. The data is voluntarily supplied for the benefit of farmers and beekeepers. I don’t have any detail, just recall hearing about it at one of the bee conferences.
I suggest joining a local bee club too.
Mike
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I received an email this morning pointing to a short blog on the topic you might find interesting. https://bqual.com.au/minimising-pesticide-use/
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