intrigued by question. i honestly do not know, but can add for context that it is not unheard of in my area (temperate woodland) to have a dozen or more hives cohabiting the same acre. of course the bees are not confined to the acre, but my point is, if competition were a concern, perhaps a counterpoint is how would so many hives in one acre be sustainable?

additionally, many of the colonies are from local swarms. granted, who knows what genetic backgrounds are, but they are "wild" in contemporary terms.

additionally, commercial operations make good money because there are too many flowering things to go around.

would be interested in hearing counterpoints to my counterpoints, genuinely intrigued by question & implications