Editing Beehive (section)

== Modern hives ==
[[File:2530 NRCS projects (39135370222).jpg|thumb|A beekeeper inspects a [[hive frame]] with a [[honeycomb]] showing capped honey and brood cells. The modular design allows for easier management and non-destructive harvesting of honey and beeswax.]]
[[File:Beehives in the mountains of Bosnia.jpg|thumb|Beehives in the mountains of Bosnia]]
The earliest recognizably modern designs of beehives arose in the 19th century, though they were perfected from intermediate stages of progress made in the 18th century.

Intermediate stages in hive design were recorded for example by Thomas Wildman in 1768-1770, who described advances over the destructive old skep-based beekeeping so that the bees no longer had to be killed to harvest the honey.<ref>Thomas Wildman, [https://books.google.com/books?id=CCZAAAAAcAAJ&pg=PR1 ''A Treatise on the Management of Bees''] (London, 1768; 2nd ed. 1770).</ref> Wildman, for example, fixed a parallel array of wooden bars across the top of a straw hive or skep (with a separate straw top to be fixed on later) "so that there are in all seven bars of deal" [in a {{convert|10|in|mm|adj=mid|-diameter}} hive] "to which the bees fix their combs".<ref>Wildman, op.cit., 2nd (1770) ed., at pp. 94–95.</ref> He also described using such hives in a multi-story configuration, foreshadowing the modern use of supers:  he described adding (at the proper time) successive straw hives below, and eventually removing the ones above when free of brood and filled with honey so that the bees could be separately preserved at the harvest for the following season.  Wildman also described<ref>Wildman, op.cit., 2nd (1770) ed., at pp. 112–15.</ref> a further development, using hives with "sliding frames" for the bees to build their comb, foreshadowing more modern uses of movable-comb hives.  Wildman acknowledged the advances in knowledge of bees previously made by [[Jan Swammerdam|Swammerdam]], Maraldi, and [[René Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur|de Reaumur]] – he included a lengthy translation of Reaumur's account of the natural history of bees – and he also described the initiatives of others in designing hives for the preservation of bee-life when taking the harvest, citing in particular reports from Brittany dating from the 1750s, due to Comte de la Bourdonnaye.

In 1814 [[Petro Prokopovych]], the founder of commercial beekeeping in [[Ukraine]], invented one of the first [[beehive frame]]s which allowed an easier honey harvest.<ref>[http://beekeeping.com.ua/html_en/prokopovych_en.html Petro Prokopovych] {{webarchive|url=http://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/20110929150104/http://beekeeping.com.ua/html_en/prokopovych_en.html |date=2011-09-29 }} Beekeeping in Ukraine, accessed May 2011</ref><ref>[http://apimondia2013.com.ua/the-host/20-facts-on-beekeeping-in-ukraine 20 Facts on Beekeeping in Ukraine] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110811144450/http://apimondia2013.com.ua/the-host/20-facts-on-beekeeping-in-ukraine |date=2011-08-11 }} Apimondia 2013, accessed May 2011</ref>

The correct distance between combs for easy operations in beehives was described in 1845 by [[Jan Dzierżon]] as {{convert|1.5|in}} from the center of one top bar to the center of the next one. In 1848, Dzierżon introduced grooves into the hive's side walls replacing the strips of wood for moving top bars. The grooves were {{convert|8|x|8|mm|abbr=on}}, the spacing later termed [[bee space]].
Based on the aforementioned measurements, August Adolph von Berlepsch (Bienezeitung May 1852) in Thuringia and L.L. Langstroth (October 1852) <ref name="US Patent|9300">{{US Patent|9300}}</ref> in the United States designed their own movable-frame hives. Langstroth used, however "about 1/2 inch" ({{cvt|.5|in|disp=out}}) above the frame's top bars and "about 3/8 inch" ({{cvt|3/8|in|disp=out}}) between the frames and hive body.<ref name="US Patent|9300"/>

Hives can be vertical or horizontal. There are three main types of modern hive in common use worldwide:
*the [[Langstroth hive]]
*the [[top-bar hive]]
*the Warre hive

Most hives have been optimized for ''Apis mellifera'' and ''Apis cerana''. Some other hives have been designed and optimized for some meliponines such as '' [[Melipona beecheii]]''. Examples of such hives are the Nogueira-Neto hive and the UTOB hive.<ref>[http://web.science.uu.nl/sommeijer/hive/hive.pdf UTOB hive] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100923015329/http://web.science.uu.nl/sommeijer/hive/hive.pdf |date=2010-09-23 }}</ref>

===Vertical hives===
==== Langstroth hives ====
[[File:1911 Britannica - Bee - Langstroth Hive.png|thumb|Langstroth hive]]
{{Main|Langstroth hive}}

Langstroth hives are named for Rev. [[L. L. Langstroth|Lorenzo Langstroth]], who patented his design in the United States on October 5, 1852.<ref name="US Patent|9300"/> It was based on the ideas of [[Johann Dzierzon]] and other leaders in apiculture. It combines a top-worked hive with hanging frames and the use of [[bee space]]s between frames and other parts. Variants of his design have become the standard style of hive for many of the world's beekeepers, both professional and amateur. Langstroth hive bodies are rectangular and can be stacked to expand the usable space for the bees. They can be made from a variety of materials, but commonly of timber. The modern Langstroth hive consists of:<ref>Langstroth Hive: {{cite web |url=https://www.perfectbee.com/your-beehive/beehives-and-accessories/langstroth-beehive-in-detail/ |title=A Detailed Look at the Langstroth Beehive - PerfectBee |access-date=2018-01-23 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220102024/https://www.perfectbee.com/your-beehive/beehives-and-accessories/langstroth-beehive-in-detail/ |archive-date=2016-12-20 }}</ref>
* Bottom board: this has an entrance for the bees.
* Boxes containing frames for brood and honey: the lowest box for the queen to lay eggs, and boxes above where honey is stored
* Inner cover and top cap providing weather protection

Inside the boxes, frames are hung parallel to each other. Langstroth frames are thin rectangular structures made of wood or plastic and typically have a plastic or [[wax foundation]] on which the bees draw out the comb. The frames hold the [[honeycomb]] formed by the bees with [[beeswax]]. Eight or ten frames side by side (depending on the size of the box) will fill the hive body and leave the right amount of bee space between each frame and between the end frames and the hive body. With appropriate provision of bee space, the bees are not likely to glue parts together with propolis nor fill spaces with [[burr comb]]{{snd}}although the dimensions now usual for top bee space are not the same as those that Langstroth described. Self-spacing beehive frames were introduced by Julius Hoffman, a student of [[Johann Dzierzon]].<ref>The ABC & XYZ of Bee Culture, Forty-First Edition, published by A.I. Root Company pg. 265</ref> Langstroth frames can be reinforced with wire, making it possible to spin the honey out of the comb in a centrifuge. As a result, the empty frames and comb can be returned to the beehive for re-filling by the bees. Creating a honeycomb involves a significant energy investment, conservatively estimated at {{convert|6.25|kg}} of honey needed to create {{convert|1|kg}} of comb in temperate climates.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.public.asu.edu/~spratt1/Assets/Publications/Pratt%202004.pdf|title=Collective control of the timing and type of comb construction by honey bees (Apis mellifera)|author=Stephen C. PRATT|publisher=[[Arizona State University]]|year=2003|access-date=2011-11-28|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120315093104/http://www.public.asu.edu/~spratt1/Assets/Publications/Pratt%202004.pdf|archive-date=2012-03-15}}</ref> Reusing comb can thus increase the productivity of a beekeeping enterprise.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aces.uiuc.edu/vista/html_pubs/BEEKEEP/CHAPT6/chapt6.html|title=Miscellaneous Techniques in Beekeeping|publisher=[[University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign]]|access-date=2011-11-28|url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111020061118/http://www.aces.uiuc.edu/vista/html_pubs/BEEKEEP/CHAPT6/chapt6.html|archive-date=2011-10-20}}</ref>

The sizes of hive bodies (rectangular boxes without tops or bottoms placed one on top of another) and of internal frames vary between named styles. A variety of approximations to [[Langstroth hive|Langstroth's original box and frame sizes]] are still used, with top bars some {{cvt|19|in}} long<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.thorne.co.uk/frames-foundation/frames/langstroth-frames/langstroth-jumbo-frames-packs-of-10.html | title=Langstroth Jumbo Frames - packs of 10 }}</ref> or a little more.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://dorchesterandweymouthbka.com/hive-sizes/ | title=Hive Sizes | date=29 March 2020 }}</ref> However, this class of hives includes several other styles, mostly used in Europe, which differ mainly in the size and number of frames used. These include:
* '''[[BS National Beehive]]''': This smaller version of the Langstroth class of hive is designed for the less prolific and more docile Buckfastleigh bee strain, and for standard dimension parts. It is based on square boxes ({{cvt|18+1/8|in|disp=or}} side), with a {{cvt|8+7/8|in|adj=on}} standard/brood box and shallow, {{cvt|5+7/8|in|adj=on}} Supers typically used for honey. The construction of the boxes is relatively complicated (eight pieces), but strong and with easy-to-hold handles. The boxes take frames of {{cvt|17|in}} in length, with a relatively long lug ({{cvt|1+1/2|in|disp=or}}) and a comb width of {{cvt|14|in}}. 
** '''BS Commercial hive''': A variation with the same cross-sectional dimensions as a BS National hive (18 in x 18 in, 460&nbsp;mm x 460&nbsp;mm), but deeper brood box ({{cvt|10+1/2|in|disp=or}}) and supers intended for more prolific bees. The internal structure of the boxes is also simpler, resulting in wider frames ({{cvt|16|in|disp=or}}) with shorter handles or lugs. Some find these supers too heavy when full of honey and therefore use National supers on top of a Commercial brood box.
** '''Rose Hive''': A hive and method of management developed by Tim Rowe, it is a variation on the BS National hive. The Rose hive maintains the same cross-sectional dimensions as the National hive (18 in x 18 in, 460&nbsp;mm x 460&nbsp;mm), but opts for a single depth box of {{cvt|7+1/2|in}}. The single box and frame size are used for both brood and honey supers. Standardizing on one size reduces complexity and allows for the movement of brood or honey frames to any other position in the hive. A queen excluder is avoided, allowing the queen freedom to move where she wants. Boxes are added to the hive above the brood and below the supers. The colony can expand during a large nectar flow and retract to lower portions of the hive as the colony shrinks in the fall. When collecting honey, brood and honey frames can be relocated up or down the hive, as needed.
** '''Smith hive'''
* '''German Normal''': German normal measure (DNM): mainly used in central and northern Germany. Of which Frankenbeute, Segeberger, and Spessartbeute are variants.
** '''Zander''': Developed by Enoch Zander, mainly used in southern Germany
* '''D.E. hive''' Designed by David Eyre
* '''Dadant hive''': Developed by [[Charles Dadant]] (developed in the US in 1920 from the Dadant-Blatt hive)
** '''B-BOX''': Developed by the Italian company Beeing for urban locations and uses Dadant frames
* '''Hyper Hyve''': Designed by Mike James and incorporates an insulated hive with integrated monitoring.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Keplar|first1=Travis|title=The New Modern Smart Hive|url=https://www.weknowsolar.com/post/smart-insulate-beehive-w--monitoring|publisher=Electric & Young|access-date=3 September 2020|archive-date=28 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200928143249/https://www.weknowsolar.com/post/smart-insulate-beehive-w--monitoring|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==== Warré hives ====
[[File:Ruche-populaire.jpg|thumb|100px|Warré Hive]]

The Warré hive was invented by the village priest [[Émile Warré]], and is also called {{lang|fr|ruche populaire}} ('the people's hive'). It is a modular and storied design similar to a Langstroth hive. The hive body is made of boxes stacked vertically; however, it uses top bars for comb support instead of full frames similar to a Top-Bar Hive, as a general rule. The popularity of this hive is growing among 'sustainable-practice' beekeepers.<ref name="Warre">Beekeeping For All - Abbé Warré</ref>

The Warre hive differs from other stacked hive systems in one fundamental aspect: when the bees need more space as the colony expands, the new box is "nadired"; i.e., positioned underneath the existing box or boxes. This serves the purpose of warmth retention within the brood nest of the hive, considered vital to colony health.<ref name="Warre"/>

==== WBC hives ====
[[File:Wbchive.JPG|thumb|upright|100px|WBC hive]]
The WBC, invented by and named after [[William Broughton Carr]] in 1890, is a double-walled hive with an external housing that splays out towards the bottom of each frame covering a standard box shape hive inside. The WBC is in many respects the 'classic' hive as represented in pictures and paintings, but despite the extra level of insulation for the bees offered by its double-walled design, many beekeepers avoid it, owing to the inconvenience of having to remove the external layer before the hive can be examined.

==== CDB hives ====
[[File:Apiary at the edge of the wood - geograph.org.uk - 870950.jpg|thumb|upright|CDB hive]]
In 1890, Charles Nash Abbott (1830–1894), advisor to Ireland's Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction, designed a new Congested Districts Board (CDB) hive in Dublin, Ireland. It was commissioned by and named after the [[Congested Districts Board for Ireland]] which provided support for rural populations until its absorption into the Department of Agriculture.<ref>Roe Valley Beekeepers Association - CDB Hive -http://www.rvbka.co.uk/cdb-hive.html</ref>

==== AZ hives ====
One of the most famous Slovenian beekeepers was Anton Žnideršič (1874–1947). He developed the AZ hive house<ref>AZ standing for Alberti-Žnideršič; it was a development based on the "Blätterbeute" of Adolf Alberti.</ref> and hive box widely used today in Slovenia.

===Horizontal hives===
These are single, long, boxes, with the bars hanging in parallel. The hive body of a common style of horizontal hive is often shaped like an inverted trapezoid, but it may be rectangular in cross-section and able to accept normal frames.<ref name="TBH Bee Culture"/> They have movable combs and make use of the concept of bee space.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Wyns |first1=Dan |title=Top Bar Hives |url=https://beeinformed.org/2014/11/25/top-bar-hives/ |website=Bee Informed Partnership |access-date=18 February 2020 |date=November 25, 2014}}</ref> They were developed as a lower-cost alternative to the standard Langstroth hives and equipment. They do not require the beekeeper to lift heavy supers when the hive is inspected or manipulated. They are popular in the US due to their alignment with the organic, treatment-free philosophies of many new beekeeping devotees in the United States. The initial costs and equipment requirements are typically much less than other hive designs. Scrap wood can often be used to build a good hive. Horizontal hives do not require the beekeeper to lift super boxes; all checks and manipulation can be done while lifting only one comb at a time and with minimal bending. In areas where large [[terrestrial animal]]s such as [[honey badger]]s and [[bear]]s present a threat to beehives, single-box hives may be suspended out of reach. Elsewhere, they are commonly raised to a level that allows the beekeeper to inspect and manipulate them in comfort.

Disadvantages include (usually) unsupported combs that cannot be spun in most [[honey extractor]]s, and it is not usually possible to expand the hive if additional honey storage space is required. Most horizontal hives cannot easily be lifted and carried by one person.

==== Top-bar hives ====
[[File:Ruche horizontale dans un jardin.JPG|thumb|Top bar hive]]
{{main|Top-bar hive}}

Horizontal hives often use top-bars instead of frames. Top bars are simple lengths of timber often made by cutting scrap wood to size; it is not necessary to buy or assemble frames. The top bars form a continuous roof over the hive chamber, unlike conventional frames which offer a bee-space gap so that the bees can move up and down between hive boxes. The beekeeper does not usually provide foundation wax (or provides only a small starter piece of foundation) for the bees to build from. The bees build the comb so it hangs down from the top bar. This is in keeping with the way bees build wax in a natural cavity.<ref name="TBH Bee Culture">{{cite web |last1=Carr |first1=TJ |last2=Bradford |first2=John |title=Standard Top Bars For The Beekeeper |url=https://www.beeculture.com/standard-top-bars-for-the-beekeeper/ |website=Bee Culture |access-date=18 February 2020 |date=January 28, 2016}}</ref>

Because the unsupported comb built from a top bar cannot usually be centrifuged in a honey extractor, the honey is usually extracted by crushing and straining rather than centrifuging. Because the bees have to rebuild their comb after the honey is harvested, a top-bar hive yields a beeswax harvest in addition to honey. Queen excluders may or may not be used to keep the brood areas entirely separate from the honey. Even if no queen excluder is used, the bees store most of their honey separately from the areas where they are raising the brood, and honey can still be harvested without killing the bees or brood.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Blackiston |first1=Howland |title=Beekeeping for Dummies |edition=4th |chapter-url=https://www.dummies.com/home-garden/hobby-farming/beekeeping/harvesting-honey-top-bar-hive/ |chapter=Harvesting Honey from Your Top Bar Hive}}</ref>
* '''Cathedral Hive''': Modified top bar. The top bar is split into 3 equal parts and joined at angles of 120° to form half a hexagon.

==== Long box hive ====
The long box hive is a single-story hive that accepts enclosed frames and is worked horizontally in the manner of Kenya/Tanzanian top-bar hives. This non-stacked style had higher popularity a century ago in the Southeast United States but faded from use due to a lack of portability. With the recent popularity of horizontal top-bar hives, the long box hive is gaining renewed but limited utilization. Alternative names are "new idea hive", "single story hive", "Poppleton hive", or "long hive".<ref>John Adams (2010) ''The Success Of The Long Box Beehive In America''</ref>

Variations:
* '''Long Langstroth Hive''': Uses 32 standard Langstroth deep frames without any supers.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://lowtechinstitute.org/2017/03/26/beehives-three-ways-long-lanstroth-layens-and-tragkupa-for-sale-too/ |title=Beehives Three Ways: Long Lanstroth, Layens, and Trågkupa (for sale, too!) |date= March 26, 2017 |publisher= |access-date=15 April 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328050441/https://lowtechinstitute.org/2017/03/26/beehives-three-ways-long-lanstroth-layens-and-tragkupa-for-sale-too/|archive-date=2022-03-28}}</ref>
* '''Dartington long deep (DLD) hive''': Being derived from fixing two Deep National hives back-to-back, the DLD can take up to 21 frames each {{convert|14|×|12|inch}}.  It is possible to have two colonies in the brood box; e.g., "swarm" and "parent", separated by a loose Divider Board, as there is an entrance at either end.  It has half-size honey supers, which take six frames that are lighter than full supers and are correspondingly easier to lift than 12-frame National supers.<ref>Robin Dartington (2000) ''New Beekeeping in a Long Deep Hive''. Bee Books New & Old</ref>  The Dartington was originally developed by Robin Dartington so that he could keep bees on his London rooftop.
* '''Beehaus Hive''': A proprietary design for a beehive launched in 2009 based on the Dartington long deep. It is a hybrid of the top-bar hive and a Langstroth hive.
* '''Layens Hive''': Developed by [[Georges de Layens]] in 1864. This hive is a popular standard in Spain and Romania. It was also popular in Russia during the early 1900s until forced industrialization standardized all apiaries. <ref name="KeepingBeesWithASmile"/>
* '''ZEST Hive''':<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.thezesthive.com/ |title=The ZEST hive |last=Summers |first=Bill |date= |website= |publisher= |access-date=6 April 2022|quote=}}</ref>
* '''Lazutin Hive''': Developed by Fedor Lazutin <ref name="KeepingBeesWithASmile">{{cite book |last= Lazutin |first= Fedor |date= April 2020|title= Keeping Bees with a Smile: Principles and Practice of Natural Beekeeping |publisher= New Society Publishers |isbn= 978-0-86571-9279}}</ref>
* '''Golden Hive''': Ukrainian Hive or Einraumbeute Hive uses Dadant size frames that are rotated ninety degrees.<ref>{{cite book |last= Heaf |first= David |date= 2021|title= Keeping bees simply and respectfully - Apiculture with the Golden Hive |publisher= Northern Bee Books |isbn= 978-1-913811-03-7}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1= Wirz |first1= Johannes |last2= Poeplau |first2= Norbert |date= July 2020 |title= Imkern mit der Einraumbeute |language= German |publisher= Pala-Verlag |isbn= 978-3-89566-402-1}}</ref>