> The distance between the two locations is not great as a straight line, 
> probably 800 meters ..  perhaps a little more.  The terrain is intense, 
> the new location is a separate valley and the valley sides are really 
> steep... If I am too close to the old location the home bees will fly 
> back home and weaken the new colony... > So how do I move them 
> without loosing bees?

Terrain may make a difference, but the locations are close enough that 
drifting back  will normally be a problem if there bees are flying freely 
and working flows.

You could take a test nuc over there and see how many drift back, 
either by population estimation or marking bees.  What you learn today 
may not be true tomorrow, though.  You could also put some bait feed 
there and see if any bees show up, then mark them.  There are lots of 
possibilities.  Do you have wild bees around?  Neighbour beekeepers?

If you can contain your bees in the hives after moving for three days, 
there should be no problem, but there is the loss of flying time and 
also the risk of suffocation if not done properly.

If you can count on three days of unbroken rain, that will work, but who
can trust the weather?

> The other thing I am wondering is when to move them.  Should I 
> leave the splits together with the other hives until the queens are
> fertilized or should I move them as soon as the splits are done?  

How many drones do you have?  You need a hundred or more for each 
queen, considering that some you count are too old, some are too young, 
and some will be shooting blanks.  Can you count on them staying with \
your splits? More is better.

On the other hand, splits can be robbed by strong local colonies under
some circumstances.  If the conditions encourage robbing, though, you 
are likely splitting at an inopportune time.

> If I move them as soon as the splits are done I do not need to worry 
> too much about the home bees ... they will be gone anyway but 
> fertilization may be more of a challenge perhaps?

Agreed.  

             ***********************************************
The BEE-L mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software.  For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html

Guidelines for posting to BEE-L can be found at:
http://honeybeeworld.com/bee-l/guidelines.htm