>
>Is there any correlation between numbers of hives kept in a small area and
>the relative difficulty in getting them through lean times?
>
>
  Chris,

I've kept bees in yards of between 15 and 60 colonies. It would seem that
there must be a saturation point where the area is overstocked. This is
probably so, but...
         I have found that in lean times they all suffer...no matter how
many colonies there are, and in times of plenty, they all make honey.
         I now try to keep 30 colonies in my yards...mostly for my benefit.
Depending upon the task at hand, working bees in large yards can mean an
all day job...or longer...in the same yard. I prefer to get the yard
worked...before robbing gets too bad, and move on to the next location.

Mike

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