I am downsizing my two Flow Hives and will be selling one to a friend. They have a great spot for a hive. The one going is a dual brood box. It’s early February here in western Kentucky, US. Some recent warm days have brought the bees out, but our average temps in the 50/30s is prevalent. They will be moving 8.8 miles away.
I did some searching but got confused. My plan is to seal the hive late at night and move it the next day? Taking precautions to strap it together tightly and as gently as possible load and go.
And hope for the best.
Am I thinking about this wrong? When would be the best time of the season to do this? I’d think sooner/cooler than later when it warms up?
Chris,
Your plan looks good to me. It doesn’t have to be late at night. Just soon after dusk with all bees inside.
I prefer moving bees in the day mainly for safety. I can see better in daylight.
I recommend beekeeper have at least two hives so they have resources to share if things go south for one, but it’s not always feasible to have more than one.
Mike
I agree with @aussiemike , move during the daylight & lock them in in the morning. If any bees are out foraging before you lock them in, they will be accepted by the other colony, as long as they return with food
If you lock them in the night before, you run the risk of suffocating the colony, a regrettable mistake I made more than once. @Dawn_SD might remember the time I posted about it.
