The Basic Components of the Honey Bee Hive
The honey bee hive consists of several boxes that are named after their colony use versus simply the size.
The most common naming convention among beginning beekeepers is simply a brood box and a super. The brood box is the box where the queen lays her eggs (the “brood”) and the super box is where the remaining worker bees place the honey stores. So, you may also hear them called honey supers.
The more experience beekeepers tend to use the size and function in their names, so you may a “deep box” or “deep brood box”, which refers to the box as before where the queen lays her eggs.
Super boxes for the Langstroth hive come in 3 sizes:
- shallow ask known as
- medium also known as an Illinois Super
- or the no longer commonly use Wisconsin Super
Then we have top and bottom boards that also come in different variations:
Top boards with inner and outer covers, used mostly up north and Migratory Top boards more commonly used in Florida since we don’t have a huge temperature differential that causes condensation inside the hive.
Bottom boards can be solid or screened. The screened bottom board is known to be used in the control of the varroa destructor mite.
Then we have frames and sometimes we have foundation.
Unassembled wood frames. Sold in quantities of 10 and includes 10 top and bottom bars along with 20 end bars. These have both a grooved top and bottom bar and are meant to be used with plastic foundation. Nails/staples/foundation not included. Sold in multiples of 10.
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Assembled frames are an intermediate option between plastic and “wire and wax”, these frames feature a traditional wood frame with wax coated plastic foundation. Completely assembled and ready to go. Sold in multiples of 10.
For assembly, we recommend drilling pilot holes prior to nailing to prevent splitting. (nails not included)
Assembled hive bodies may require 24-48hr notice for pick up at the farm. Please eMail us or call 239-443-5597 to order assembled hive bodies.
Size Chart:
| Deep | fits 9 1/8" frame | fits 9 5/8" box | size 8 3/8" and 81/2" x 16 3/8" | Deep Deep Super Hive Body Brood Box Brood Nest |
| WI Super | fits 7 1/4" frame | fits 7 5/8" box | size 6 1/2" and 6 5/8" x 16 3/8" | Uncommon Size 3/4 Super Wisconsin Super |
| IL Super | fits 6 1/4" frame | fits 6 5/8" box | size 5 1/2" and 5 5/8" x 16 3/8" | Medium Super Illinois Super Modified Super Dadant Super Most common size for Honey Super |
| Shallow Super | fits 5 3/8" frame | fits 5 11/16" box | size 4 3/4" x 16 3/8" | Shallow Super Often used for Cut Comb |
Quantity: Ten (10) Frames
Farm Pick Up cost: Free
Farm Pick Up by Appt: Curbside | by Appointment | Thurs-Fri 11am-7pm and Sat 9am-12:30pm (In-Store Coming Soon)
Pick Up at Gulf Coast Beekeeper Meetings | Charlotte, Collier or Lee: Free
Charlotte: 1st SATURDAY of each month
Collier: 2nd TUESDAY of each month
Lee: 3rd TUESDAY of each month
Other options:
Learn more: How to Select a Bee Smoker
