Moving a colony

[Aggravated]

I would like to move my colony about 1100 meters from my garden to my allotment.

If I block them in for a couple of days would this be enough to disorient them enough to stop them returning to my garden

Aggravated

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

What's a metre?

 

[jd101k2000]

54 chains and 14 yds

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

That's better (although you shouldn't really mix chains and yards )

Back to the question - it depends on terrain, the availability of forage (and where it is) to name a few. If you have to move them, belt and braces stuff - close them in for a day, put plenty of twiggy branches etc over the entrance/lean a board over the entrance to encourage re-orientation when you open up. Leave a nuc at the original site to mop up any stragglers.
Failing that move them gradually three feet (0.9144 metres) a day!

 

[cjhart2]

That's better (although you shouldn't really mix chains and yards )


Failing that move them gradually three feet (0.9144 metres) a day!

or if you are Welsh 0.1818 rods .

 

[Ivor Kemp]

This video says YES: [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxZ4uEgRRZg"]Beekeeping: How To Move A Hive Any Distance (More Than 3 Feet and Less Than 3 Miles) - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Duchy]

I picked up a massive swarm a few years ago, about a mile from my house. After 2 days, they were gone. Pretty sure they went high up in a tree, close to where I picked them up.

Maybe if you do a shook swarm before the hive and then move them in the evening and lock them in for a few days??

 

[MartinL]

This video says YES: (More Than 3 Feet and Less Than 3 Miles)

But does it show a crowd of very angry, (lost) ones (in an empty space) where their hive had previously been???


Probably Not!

Make sure there's an empty box, left where they were before!

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Yes, the scourge of youtube some good bits but how can you tell?

 

[MartinL]

Yes, the scourge of youtube some good bits but how can you tell?

Yes,
just the sort of thing a government stats man would produce.
Everything to prove his case and NO Control exp, (not to mention the gathering crowd on the landing board next door).

 

[Ivor Kemp]

I picked up a massive swarm a few years ago, about a mile from my house. After 2 days, they were gone. Pretty sure they went high up in a tree, close to where I picked them up.

Maybe if you do a shook swarm before the hive and then move them in the evening and lock them in for a few days??

That isn't analogous at all. The fact they were swarm means they have no 'home' to return to so it is irrelevant how near of far away you collected them.

IMO shook swarm in this instance is likely to do bees more harm than good.

 

[Ivor Kemp]

Yes, the scourge of youtube some good bits but how can you tell?

You're right, of course but to be fair it's the sometimes scourge of beekeeping advice generally, most often on forums such as this one. It's the what they don't tell you that maybe matters more!

 

[Finman]

I would like to move my colony about 1100 meters from my garden to my allotment.

If I block them in for a couple of days would this be enough to disorient them enough to stop them returning to my garden

Aggravated

Your bees know very well the landscape inside radius 1 km and almost all old bees will return to the old site.

Bees remember their site several weeks. Even queen remembers its hive siten 4 weeks as I have seen.

It means that you make an AS where distance with hive parts is 1 km. You will loose your honey yield too with that system.

If you do that (s*.*) job, put a nuc box in old site and you will see how much return to home.

.
.

 

[Summerslease]

I've moved a hive half a mile between my apiaries this year using a few holly twigs outside the hive to disorientate them. It worked a treat.

 

[Hebeegeebee]

Summary: Moving them 1100 metres might be OK, it might not. The 3 mile rule is a generality but does make sense.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Somebody here moved her bees 500 metres earlier in the week and was closing them up for two days...opening up on Thursday. I wonder how she got on?