How do honey farmers move hives without losing all the bees?
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We move them at night or in rain/cold weather. They won’t leave the hive if it cold. They just climb on the outside.
Smoke is used to mask the “attack” smell, and again, it shows there is outside danger.
Often, we leave a nucleus hive behind, so the “lost” bee will migrate to that hive.
Moving bee is hard on the bees. It is a new environment. They will fly in a wider radius from the hive to find food. But it take a bit of time for them to get used to it.
That said. It is not rare to lose thousands in a load. The trailer is covered with dead bees. It just the way it is. And they will repopulate.
I do Pollination, I move them in blueberry field, for 3-4week and cranberry for 2-3 weeks and apple orchard where they live most of the time. I also have a few hay field where they are. When it all over, I prep them for winter with a food pad in the hive.
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