Today I split a hive that was making swarm cells on the bottom of the frames throughout the hive.This was a beautiful queen they just made the past few month and I saw her all plump and large just last month.
So I looked all over the hive for her to save her into the nuc, but although I spent over an hour looking at all frames in the hive, I never saw her. So I just did a split giving the nuc several queen cells, pollen frames and honey.This is a 5 frame medium nuc and I gave the hive 2 supers.
The hive sits on a bottom board, 2 – 5 frame supers on top of that, then the inner cover and then the telescoping cover.
I propped the top cover open a bit to help with ventilation, as we are having high 90’s, low 100’s right now. But I noticed they are bearding on the outside.
I placed the nuc on top of the parent hive because I really did not know where to place it. Also I thought this would be good for drifting.
So my questions are as follows:
1. What do you think about placing the nuc on top of the other hive?? See photo 
2. Is there anything more I can do for ventilation for this little nuc?
3. How will this little nuc keep themselves cool if all the foragers go back to the parent hive??? How will they get water??
I appreciate all the help from all of you.
How to Split a Hive
Method 1: This is the method to use if you are able to buy a queen or capped queen cell from another beekeeper, or have already raised a queen or a capped queen cell yourself.
Note: Make sure that both halves of the split have eggs and young larva. This way no matter what happens to the old or new queen, both your old and your new hives will be able to raise a new queen.
1. Inspect your beehives. Chose the strongest one for splitting. Make sure it has at least 9 or 10 frames covered with bees and brood. It also needs some honey, pollen, a good laying queen with at least 2 frames of eggs and open brood. If you have kept good records you should be able to easily know which hives are strong.
2. Place a nuc box with 4 empty frames of good comb or wax foundation next to the hive to be split. If you do not have a nuc box you can use a standard 10-frame box with base, lid, and 10 empty frames of comb or foundation.
3. Open the hive to be split. Carefully inspect each frame, making sure you do not take the queen when you shift frames to the new hive. If you see the queen, it is a good idea to put her and the frame she is on out of the way (in an empty nuc box) until you have transferred the frames to the new nuc, or hive box. You want to take 1 frame of honey and pollen, 2 frames of capped brood and 1 frame of eggs and open brood.
Step 1. Put the honey and pollen frame along one side of the nuc.
Step 2. Next to it put 1 frame of capped brood.
Step 3. Put in the frame of open brood
Step 4. Add the 2nd frame of capped brood.
Step 5. Put the lid on the nuc box.
4. If you removed the frame with the queen on it, you can put her back into the old hive now. Push all 6 of the full frames into the middle of the hive. Put the 4 empty frames on the outside. Put the lid on.
5. Slide the hive along the hive stand until there is room for the nuc to sit in its place.
6. Slide the nuc into the space left by the original hive. This is so that many field bees will go into the nuc or new hive, instead of all of the field bees going back to the old hive.
7. It is a good idea to add more bees to the nuc or split because many of the bees may return to the old hive. You can do this by shaking, or brushing the bees from one or two frames into the nuc before closing it.
8. Leave the nuc without a queen for 24 hours.
9. Introduce a caged queen, or insert capped queen cell.
http://www.schoolnet.net.sb/courses/beekeeping1.0/how_to_split_a_hive.htmlFeed them sugar water for about two weeks. Put a feeder in front about 50 ft. away.
