Divided Hives and Support Colonies

A divided hive is a hive arrangement that houses several small colonies side by side or one above another by splitting a single body with bee-tight division boards; colony support means keeping weak or small colonies going by letting them benefit from strong colonies in terms of warmth, bees and brood. These arrangements are used for overwintering nucs, mating, keeping spare queens and rescuing weak colonies.

How does a divided hive work?

The body is separated by tight-fitting division boards that bees cannot pass. Each compartment has its own entrance, its own queen and its own frames; the colonies live independently of each other. Through the shared wall, however, they share warmth.

A small colony loses heat through a large surface relative to its volume. Two small colonies side by side lose less heat than two colonies in separate boxes and keep their brood warm more easily. This is especially useful for overwintered nucs and on cold spring nights.

Types of divided and supported arrangements

Divided nuc in a single body

A standard brood box is split into two (or more) parts by a tight-fitting division board down the middle; a colony of a few frames is placed in each compartment. The entrances open in different directions. A separate crown board, or a bee-tight top cover between the compartments, is essential.

Multi-compartment mating boxes

In small boxes with two or four compartments, a young queen is mated in each compartment. This is the common way to obtain many queens with few bees; details are on the "Mating Nucs" page.

Nuc above a strong colony (double-screen board)

A divider board with two layers of mesh and its own entrance is placed on top of a strong colony; the nuc is set on top of it. The warmth of the colony below rises and warms the small colony, but the double mesh prevents contact and fighting between the bees. The upper colony's entrance faces the opposite way from the lower one. At the end of the season the board can be removed and the two colonies united, or the nuc moved to its own hive.

Bee house and shared shelter

In some European countries hives are arranged side by side and on top of each other in enclosed buildings called bee houses. Although the colonies have separate bodies, they are protected from the wind and benefit from each other's warmth. In these buildings coloured fronts and different entrance markings are indispensable for the bees to find their own hive.

What are divided hives used for?

• Overwintering nucs: Small colonies set up in autumn get through the winter more safely by sharing warmth; in spring they are ready as spares.
• Queen mating: Several young queens are mated in the same body.
• Spare queens: Laying queens are kept ready to give to colonies that become queenless.
• Increasing colony numbers: Small colonies in the compartments are moved into separate hives as they grow stronger.
• Rescuing weak colonies: Colonies that cannot get through the winter alone benefit from the warmth of a strong neighbour or are united.

Entrance direction and marking: the most critical detail

The most common cause of failure in a divided arrangement is bees, and especially a young queen returning from her mating flight, entering the wrong compartment. A queen that enters a foreign compartment is usually killed; drifting bees strengthen one compartment and weaken the other.

1. Open the entrances in different directions; if two entrances must be side by side, set them as far apart as possible.
2. Paint the areas around the entrances in different colours; bees distinguish blue and yellow well.
3. Add distinct shapes such as triangles, circles and lines around the entrances.
4. Do not line divided boxes up in a flat, uniform row; make use of natural landmarks nearby such as trees and stones.

Colony support: how do you strengthen a weak colony?

Besides the divided arrangement, there are other ways to support weak colonies. First find the cause of the weakness: a queen problem, disease, varroa or starvation. Support given before the cause is identified is wasted.

• Giving sealed brood: A frame of sealed brood about to emerge is given from a strong colony, with the bees shaken off it. It soon joins the colony as young bees. Do not give more brood than the weak colony can cover; uncovered brood gets chilled.
• Giving young bees: Young nurse bees on a frame of open brood are usually accepted without fighting; older foragers return to their old hive.
• Reducing space: The hive volume is reduced with a dummy board to what the colony can cover, and the entrance is narrowed.
• Uniting: A colony too weak to survive the winter is united with another; it is wiser to winter one sound colony than two weak ones.

Steps for uniting compartments

1. Choose the queen: Of the two colonies to be united, the weaker or older queen is removed.
2. Newspaper method: The division board is removed and replaced with a sheet of newspaper with a few small slits cut in it.
3. Waiting: Within a day or two the bees chew through the paper; in that time the scents mix and fighting is reduced.
4. Tidying up: Paper remains are removed, the frames are arranged with the brood in the middle, and the extra entrance is closed.

Limitations of divided hives and common mistakes

• A gappy division board: Even a small gap lets bees through, leading to fighting and loss of queens. Check regularly that the board fits tightly and is not warped.
• Shared disturbance: Inspecting one compartment also unsettles the neighbouring one; inspections should be kept short.
• Disease transmission: Drifting bees and shared tools easily carry disease between colonies close together; tool hygiene becomes important.
• Robbing: Small compartments find it hard to defend themselves; entrances should be kept narrow and feeding done in the evening.
• Weight: A full divided body is heavy to carry and moving it affects all the colonies at once.