Transferring a colony from a natural log in to a box should be a last resort. Most log hives we see are still in good condition. The only reason you might transfer a colony out is if the log is rotten and falling apart or if a tree lopper has cut straight through the colony. Sometimes trees that have been cut down will make great natural log hives in the garden.
There are no rules or laws preventing colony transfers from logs so it all comes down to opinion.
We’ve seen plenty of reckless practices of colonies being transferred out of perfectly good logs purely for the purpose of demonstrations at workshops. Attendees are told that the hive will die unless it’s removed but the log will be in good solid condition and a chainsaw is needed to open it up.
It’s not uncommon for these colonies to be naturally small and the move can be very destructive and high risk for the colony. There’s plenty of reports of these colonies dieing after the transfer.
Another reason these transfers are done is to sell the colony at a higher price once it’s in a box. This is all disguised around the “saving the bees”. Logs can be bought by the trailer load for $200 each and then sold at $600 in a box.
You could try to do an “eduction” or budding hive from the log. This can create a new colony in a connected box but won’t remove the colony from the log. This method needs to be monitored closely though as there is a risk of killing the mother colony.
I have a few natural log hives, some that are very solid, some large and some very tall and skinny so I assume the cavity inside is very small. I think they look good in the garden and don’t see any reason to transfer the colonies out.
I have a couple skeleton logs that are held together with duct tape. One log is so bad that you can see through it and even though the colony has built structures that fully surround it and secure it, I think this one would benefit from being transferred in to a box.
