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.
What is a GrowGrip?
A GrowGrip is a low-cost, reusable plant holder used for deep water culture (DWC) applications in hydroponic and aquaponic growing. GrowGrips are designed to replace common plastic net pots and grow plugs. They are ideally suited for growing leafy greens, such as lettuce, in home and commercial applications. GrowGrips are made with a recyclable, food-grade, UV resistant low-density polyethylene foam, the same material used to package many common food products.
Why use GrowGrips?
[1] Super Light Weight: GrowGrips weigh less than one gram each, lighter than all other grow plugs. Compared to a 2" net pot with gravel, they are 50 times lighter. If you had a raft bed that holds 36 plants, it would reduce the weight of each raft by 3.7 pounds (1,700 grams).
[2] Reusable: After harvest, GrowGrips can be used repeatedly. We believe our product to be more environmentally friendly than the manufacturing of rock wool, a non-biodegradable product, and more earth conscious than the mining of peat from valuable wetland areas.
[3] Recyclable: GrowGrips are recyclable and can be added to recycling programs accepting standard #4 LDPE plastics.
[4] Disease-Resistant: Soil, peat, and rock wool mixtures can harbor many types of plant disease. Because of the inert properties of GrowGrips, disease is resisted. To sanitize, simply wash GrowGrips in a mild bleach solution.
[5] Chemically Inert: Use GrowGrips and know your water chemistry will not be affected. Our product is chemically inert, unlike peat plugs, which are highly acidic. Switch to GrowGrips and stop spending money combating the acidity of your system water altered by the use of grow plugs.
[6] Affordable: GrowGrips are slightly higher in price than grow plugs, but after a few uses, the return on your investment has paid off. After that, it's more money in your pocket every time you use a GrowGrip.
[7] Gripping Power: Imagine having the option to carry a raft of lettuce vertically. With the grabbing power of GrowGrips, net pots, plants, media, and plugs no longer come tumbling out as rafts are handled. Now there is no more awkward horizontal balancing of rafts while maneuvering in and out of DWC beds.
[8] Proudly made in the USA: The entire GrowGrip product is manufactured in the United States. Not only does this allow us to closely monitor quality control, it also helps slash overseas shipping costs, keeping the overall cost affordable to our customers.
Other options:
Learn more: How to Select a Bee Smoker
