Want to manage your overcrowded beehive effectively? This guide on splitting beehives will teach you the right time and best methods to do so.
We teach various classes at Foxhound, but after teaching the basics, we like to teach about splitting a hive. It's a skill that every beekeeper needs to learn and could be considered "advanced," but it's really not that hard.
Bees are already really good at it; we call it swarming when bees do it. But if a beekeeper does it, it's called splitting or dividing.
A colony of bees that has swarmed
Splitting a beehive is a smart way to prevent swarming, grow your apiary, and raise new queens. This guide explains when, why, and how to split your hive successfully.
From spotting swarm signs to choosing the right timing and equipment, this article teaches beekeepers how to split strong hives and raise nucleus colonies that thrive all season.
A good hive split starts with strong bees, careful prep, and ends with more colonies, less swarming, and better control over your bees.
Table of contents
What is a Split? Why Split a Beehive to Prevent Swarming? Key Takeaways When to Split a Beehive Signs Your Hive Is Ready to Split Impact of Weather on Splitting Preparing for a Split Creating a Nucleus Colony or Split Step-by-Step Guide to Making a Split or Queenless Hive Preparing Equipment for a Successful Split Location for Making a Split Creating the Queenless Colony Methods for Splitting Beehives Walk-Away Splits Using Queen Cells For A Split Purchasing Caged Queen For Splitting Post-Split Care and Monitoring Common Challenges and Considerations
What is a Split?
If you don't know what it means to split or divide a beehive, it means transferring frames with bees from a strong colony into separate equipment, raising both colonies into established, independent colonies. It is similar to taking a cutting from a plant, allowing it to grow roots, and replanting it. Like in plants, when splitting a colony, the original colony or plant must be strong enough to provide the resources needed to start a new colony or plant.
There are ways to make a split where you need to find the queen bee and ways you can do it without finding the queen. There is an option for every type of beekeeper, regardless if a beginner or an experienced beekeeper.
Another way to think of a split is by calling it a nuc. Nucleus colonies, or “nucs,” are smaller, manageable colonies typically consisting of five frames with a queen, brood, and resources like honey and pollen . Nucs offer easier management and quicker establishment compared to larger colonies, making them an excellent way to expand your apiary or manage bee populations effectively.
When you started your first beehive, it likely started as a nuc or a package. And a nuc started with a split.
Why Split a Beehive to Prevent Swarming?
Splitting a beehive is an effective strategy to prevent swarming, a natural process where a large portion of the bees, along with the queen, leave the hive to form a new colony. This can lead to a significant loss of bees and a decrease in honey production. By proactively splitting the hive, beekeepers can manage the population more effectively and provide a new home for the excess bees, thereby reducing the likelihood of swarming.
This method not only helps in controlling the bee population but also offers several other benefits:
Reduce the Risk of Swarming: By splitting the hive, you can alleviate overcrowding, which is a primary trigger for swarming.
Increase Hive Numbers: Splitting allows you to create additional hives, expanding your apiary and increasing your overall bee population.
Boost Honey Production: With more space and resources, both the original and new hives can focus on honey production rather than preparing to swarm.
Enhance Colony Health: A well-managed split can lead to healthier colonies, as it can create an opportunity to reduce varroa mite levels naturally.
By understanding and implementing hive splitting, beekeepers can maintain their beekeeping goals bee and ensure a productive bee yard.
Key Takeaways
- Timing is key for splitting beehives. Spring is the best season, and specific signs, like overcrowding and swarm cells, indicate when to split.
Different methods for splitting beehives include walk-away splits, using queen cells, and purchasing a queen, each with its effectiveness based on the situation.
Post-split care is crucial. Monitoring both new and original colonies ensures they get through the process well, and regular inspections and supplemental feeding help them thrive.
When to Split a Beehive
Timing is crucial when splitting beehives. The right conditions ensure the health and vitality of both the original hive and the new colonies.
The best time to split is typically in spring, from late March, April, and May, when the colony is growing strongly. For most parts of the US, the period of growth is between the winter and summer solstice. That growth period and warm weather 60°F plus is ideal.
For most of the United States, April and May are the best months. Splitting too early can weaken both colonies due to insufficient resources. Proper preparation and timing are key to success.
Mid-season splits, meaning in June and July, can be beneficial if done correctly, ensuring the new colony has enough adult bees and resources to thrive. Both colonies can maintain themselves through the summer and into the fall.
Graph of colony growth through the year
Carefully choosing the right time and ensuring optimal conditions significantly enhance the chances of a successful split and the overall health of your bee colony.
Signs Your Hive Is Ready to Split
Several clear indicators suggest it’s time to split a beehive. One obvious sign is overcrowding on the hive frames. Bees may establish a beard outside the hive when it becomes too crowded, signaling insufficient space inside.
When bees beard in the spring, it is a sign a colony is going to swarm within the next several days. Ideally, you will want to split a colony before it gets overcrowded.
Swarm cells are another clear indication that the hive can and should have been split soon. If bees prepare to leave the hive and swarm cells form, it’s a strong signal that the hive is crowded and ready to split. Though this is considered late, and the colony should have been split weeks earlier.
Recognizing these signs early helps prevent swarming and ensures that both the original and new hives remain strong and healthy.
A colony with a lot of bees in the spring
Impact of Weather on Splitting
Weather significantly affects the success of splitting hives. Checking weather conditions before splitting ensures favorable outcomes for both new colonies. Favorable temperatures during the process enhance the chances of both new colonies thriving. You don't want to split a colony in February or March just before a cold snap. Cold weather makes it harder for a colony to stay warm, and splitting a colony during or just before cold weather creates problems.
Always consider the weather when planning to split a hive, as it can significantly impact the success of your efforts.
Preparing for a Split
Before starting the process of splitting a beehive, thorough preparation is important. This ensures that both the original and new hives have the best chance of thriving. It can be easy to "over-split" a colony and all the colonies suffer. Here are the key steps to prepare for a successful split:
Evaluate Colony Strength: Ensure that the colony is robust and healthy. A strong hive with plenty of bees and resources is essential for a successful split.
Check for a Healthy Queen: The presence of a strong, healthy queen is vital. If the queen is weak or failing, consider replacing her before the split.
Look for Swarming Signs: Inspect the hive for queen cells and a large bee population, indicating that the colony is preparing to swarm. Also, check for bearing on the front of the hive during spring. A spring colony that is bearing is preparing to swarm.
Prepare Equipment: Gather all necessary equipment, including a new hive, frames, and any additional tools you might need. Ensure that the new hive is ready to accommodate the split.
Plan Timing: Schedule the split to coincide with the nectar flow and favorable weather conditions. This provides the new hive with ample resources to establish itself.
Consider these additional factors to ensure a smooth process:
Seasonal Timing: The best time for splitting is during the spring when nectar and pollen are abundant. It's not great to create splits in the fall when resources are low.
Colony Health: Ensure that both the original and new hives have or will have sufficient resources and a healthy queen.
Experience Level: Beekeepers should assess their own experience and comfort level with the process, seeking guidance if necessary.
By carefully preparing for a split, beekeepers can set the stage for a successful expansion of their apiary.
Creating a Nucleus Colony or Split
Before you ever get to the part where you are adding queen cells, eggs or a mated queen, you have to make a queenless colony first. This is possibly the most important part and also the part that requires some fitness to get good at it. You have to move the right resources around, the right frames of brood and the right amount of bees (and the right age of bees).
Step-by-Step Guide to Making a Split or Queenless Hive
Creating a nuc involves transferring frames with the queen and a few brood frames into a smaller, defendable box. Note that a new colony is a target for pests and other bees, so the new colony needs to be in equipment that is easy to defend.
A split can be as little as three frames or as many as 10. The most common size is five frames as that allows enough brood, honey, pollen, bees, and room to grow for a new colony.
You can make the split small when it is warm outside, like in the late spring or summer. However, the split should be larger if it is done during early or mid-spring.
Preparing Equipment for a Successful Split
.You have to have the right tools available to make a split and fortunately, you don't need that many. You need a box to split into, and this could be as simple as a pro-nuc or as much as a 5-frame wooden box with a top and bottom. The plastic or corrugated boxes are only good for splitting into when you are doing a "heavy" or "large" split with a lot of bees or when the temperature is consistently warm.
You need frames to go into the box , and frames with drawn comb is best, but if you don't have that, brand new frames with high-quality foundation is good.
You will also need additional frames to go into the box that is split from. You don't want any box to not be full of frames, so if you remove 5 frames from crowded hive and put them into a nuc box (5 frame box), you will need to put 5 frames back into the box to replace them.
A feeder of some type to go into both the parent colony you are splitting from and into the new colony. Dividing a colony implies you are dividing their workforce, and providing sugar water to both will help with the transition.
A queen excluder can be very helpful for creating a queenless colony if you are not able to find a queen easily or if you have time to make a queenless colony and don't mind multiple trips to the hive.
Location for Making a Split
There are two ways to set your location for making a split. You can either make the split next to the parent colony, which is what most beekeepers do. Or you can make the split and move it several miles away. This option is less common as many people do not have an additional location to move the new colony.
If making the split in the same bee yard, there is a percentage of the bees that will return to the originally colony they were removed from. This is very normal and can be resolved by adding more bees than is needed to the split. Knowing that some of these bees will go back to the original colony.
If creating the split with the intention of moving it several miles away for at least a couple weeks, the split can be created exactly as needed and moved to the new location. Doing it this way prevents any bees from going back to the original location.
Creating the Queenless Colony
The queenless colony can either be made from the original colony or the new colony. Both need a minimum amount of bees, brood, honey and pollen. The easiest way to think of this is by thinking through the frames that are moved into the 5-frame nuc. Those 5 frames should be:
2-3 frames of uncapped brood
1-2 frames of pollen or honey
1 frame of drawn comb or new foundation
In addition to what is in the frames, what is on the outside of the frames matters a lot. This means the amount of bees that are covering the frames. For the queenless colony, it's important to have a lot of nurse bees. Nurse bees are worker bees responsible for feeding the uncapped brood and keeping the capped brood warm.
These bees can be moved into the split several ways. The easiest way to do this is to move frames covered in bees that contain uncapped brood. Frames with uncapped brood can be shaken to dislodge the nurse bees into the split.
Another technique is to use a queen excluder. This is popular if you have extra time and don't mind making several trips. To do this, a colony is pulled apart, and the frames with uncapped brood are all consolidated (without bees on them) in a box.
This box is placed above the queen excluder, above all the bees and the queen. The queen excluder allows the queen to stay out of the box above the queen excluder, but allows the nurse bees to come up and cover the uncapped brood.
Doing this and allowing it to sit for a couple of hours gives you an entire queenless box of young bees, uncapped and capped brood.
But you have to shake all the bees, including the queen of the brood frames, before placing them above the queen excluder. The benefit to this is that you get high-quality nurse bees without finding the queen.
Methods for Splitting Beehives
Several methods for splitting beehives exist, each with its benefits and challenges. The primary goal is to create multiple colonies from one and to prevent swarming in the parent colony. Common methods include walk-away splits, using existing queen cells, and introducing mated queens.
Each method’s effectiveness depends on specific circumstances and needs. All require a queen bee or the resources to make a queen. And all require a queenless hive and queenright colony to split from.
In a walk-away split, the original queen bee moves to a new hive, leaving the original hive queenless, prompting the colony to raise a new queen. You can also keep the queen in the original colony, but we find that making a walk-away split and moving the queen to the new colony is best.
Using existing queen cells involves placing queen cells from a strong colony into the new hive to expedite requeening. When doing this, the whole frame is moved with the queen cell attached.
Purchasing new queens involves introducing a mated queen to a split hive, enhancing genetic diversity, and minimizing downtime.
Walk-Away Splits
The walk-away split is a simple and popular method for splitting a hive. It is very beginner-friendly and a great way to learn how a colony makes a new queen.
It involves separating a colony by removing the top brood box to create a new hive. One half of the split colony will raise its own queen, while the other half retains the existing queen. There is no need to find the queen when doing this. But it is nice to know where she is.
This method appeals to beginners because it requires minimal intervention and allows the bees to establish themselves naturally. The key to doing this one correctly is ensuring both colonies have eggs and young larva.
This is important to have in both colonies because if you are not able to identify which colony has the queen, you can ensure each colony has the resources it needs to raise a queen from scratch.
You need a strong colony to split from, which is true for making any split. You also need a colony with two boxes on it for this to be done easily.
Using Queen Cells For A Split
Using queen cells from a swarming colony is another effective method for splitting hives. It involves placing queen cells from a strong colony into the new hive to quickly requeen it.
The queen cells come from either a colony that is preparing to swarm or they can be purchased. Purchasing queen cells is not common unless one is buying hundreds of them.
So for the average beekeeper, making a split with a queen cell is when they are making lemonade out of lemons. This means that a colony is already preparing to swarm, and they are trying to divide and split the colony to prevent swarming and are using the already-made queen cells.
These queen cells are often moved into the queenless colony with the entire frame. Theoretically, you can make as many splits as you have frames with queen cells on them and adult honey bees to split with.
Capped queen cell that can be moved into a split
Purchasing Caged Queen For Splitting
By far, the most efficient way of making a split is by introducing a new queen bee that is mated . This is when another beekeeper raises a queen, allows her to mate with drones, and allows her to start laying eggs before she is sold.
The queen is sold to another beekeeper in what is called a queen cage. The queen bee is fully mated and can be introduced to a queenless colony where she will hopefully be accepted.
At Foxhound, we regularly buy queens from other parts of the US to improve the genetic pool in our area. We go through the process of banking our queens to make them available for customers who need to buy a queen.
The raising of the queen, mating, and proof of quality take several weeks, so this extra time is what adds to the cost.
However, the benefit is that a colony can be split, a mated queen can be introduced, and the colony will have a laying queen within a week. There is an option to introduce a virgin queen, but this is not something that can be planned for easily.
When buying a caged queen, it is common for the queen to be marked. This process involves allowing the queen to lay eggs, then putting a water-based paint on the back of her to make her easier to identify. Marking queens is not required, but it can be helpful.
Post-Split Care and Monitoring
Close monitoring after splitting a hive ensures that both colonies are thriving and adapting to their new environments. Monitor newly split hives closely for a week to ensure the queen is accepted and laying eggs. Watch for signs of stress or aggression in colony behavior, indicating underlying challenges post-split.
Cold night temperatures can hinder a newly split colony’s ability to maintain temperature stability. Leave new hives undisturbed while the new queen(s) develop. This period of observation and care is crucial for the successful establishment of the new colonies.
Common Challenges and Considerations
Splitting a beehive is not without its challenges. Beekeepers must be prepared to address several potential issues to ensure the health and productivity of the new hive. Here are some common challenges and considerations:
Ensuring a Strong Queen: The new hive must have a strong and healthy queen. If the queen is weak or rejected, the hive may struggle to thrive.
Providing Adequate Resources: Ensure that the new hive has enough food and resources, such as honey and pollen, to support its growth.
Managing Population: Prevent overcrowding by monitoring the population and ensuring there is enough space for the bees to expand.
Monitoring for Disease and Pests: Regularly inspect the new hive for signs of disease and pests, which can quickly undermine the colony’s health.
Ventilation and Maintenance: Proper ventilation is crucial for the hive’s health. Ensure that the hive is well-ventilated and maintained to prevent issues like mold and moisture buildup.
Additionally, beekeepers should consider:
Queen Rejection: Have a backup plan in case the new hive rejects the queen. This might involve introducing a caged queen or using queen cells.
Weaker Hive Susceptibility: New hives can be more vulnerable to disease and pests. Regular monitoring and prompt intervention are essential.
Ongoing Maintenance: Regular inspections and maintenance are crucial to ensure the new hive remains healthy and productive.
By understanding and addressing these challenges, beekeepers can better manage their bee colonies and ensure the success of their hive-splitting efforts.
Adam Hickman owns Foxhound Bee Company and is a certified EAS Master Beekeeper. Before ever selling a box through Foxhound Bee Company, Adam wrote beekeeping blogs for education. Adam regularly teaches beekeeping classes through Foxhound Bee Co and also through his local beekeeping club.