Choosing a Bee Hive

There are many different regional bee hive designs with even more variations.

As with every aspect of keeping bees, to say there is more than one way of doing things is an understatement so the choice is mainly a matter of personal taste.

The British National standard bee hive is the most commonly used bee hive in the U.K. by both hobby and professional beekeepers. It is designed to be the easiest to use in practice with many books written about its use. It also has the widest variety of equipment available making it the most versatile. The National standard bee hive is the most widely recommended bee hive.

The W.B.C. bee hive is the original, iconic British beehive design dating as far back as the 19th century.

It has a double wall design with an outer case and inner boxes which is considered less easy to use and less practical for some.

The boxes are different to a National standard bee hive but it uses the same National bee hive frames.

The Top Bar hive is an alternative method of keeping bees without frames or foundation.

It is a primitive method of management though by its nature it is considered less easy to use and less practical for some.

• It is not uncommon for colonies to fail during winter so if you only have one colony you will have to find a replacement in the following year if you want to remain a beekeeper.
• It would be very bad luck to lose all colonies in winter so surviving colonies can be "split" in the following year to make up the loss.
• Many problems in one colony can be solved if access to a second colony is available.
• Much more will be learned by having at least two colonies to compare.

Our advice is to start with a National bee hive as a first bee hive then have a W.B.C. bee hive as a second hive if that is what you fancy, the frames are interchangeable, or a top bar hive which requires no frames anyway.