One of the first things you will need to get your head around is what type of hive you invest in. Even as you become a more experienced beekeeper and have several years of bee beekeeping and home beekeeping under your belt, you will still need to think about the type of hive you need for your colony (or colonies).
There are many types of beekeeping hives and depending on your use (commercial or personal) and on your individual preference you may lean towards a certain type and style. However, there are approximately 6 beekeeping hives that are the most common and that most beekeepers will endorse.
Types Of Beekeeping Hives
One of the more popular beekeeping hives amongst beekeepers is either the National hive or the Smith hive. They are both square beekeeping hives, which are extremely practical (but not necessarily pretty!).
You will notice that the commercial hive is larger than most, but for the beginner beekeeper you probably want to stay with something small-scale. The WBC beekeeping hive is good for that reason, although most experienced beekeepers do consider it a little “cumbersome”. However, you probably won’t be moving it (much) so that doesn’t matter.
Building A Beekeeping Hive
In my book “Beekeeping Made Easy”, I show you how to build a beekeeping hive from scratch. You really don’t need much (some wood and basic tools) and it’s a very simple and easy to use hive… perfect for the beginner that doesn’t want to invest too much into a beekeeping hive when starting out.
