Langstroth Hive Introduction

The Langstroth hive is the most popular hive due to its simple design and ease of hive management. The three main parts of the Langstroth hive are the telescoping lid (with inner cover), the hive body (filled with frames), and the bottom board.

The hive bodies come in two widths which are 8 frame and 10 frame. This indicates how many frames you can fit inside the box. There are three depths which are deeps, mediums, and shallows. Deeps are typically called "brood boxes" because this is where the bees raise their brood (babies). Mediums and shallows are typically called "supers" because this is where the bees will store honey. Some beekeepers such as myself will use mediums as both brood boxes and supers.

The bottom of a hive sits on a bottom board. Some bottom boards are just a solid piece of wood however the most common is the screened bottom board. This board has a screen portion and allows the beekeeper to add a solid board underneath if desired. In Dallas Texas my bees get sick when I add a bottom board under my screen. For this reason I prefer the screened bottom board. I do use the board for testing hives for mites which is why the screened bottom board is so useful.

The Langstroth hive has simple wood frames which the bees build comb onto. The beekeeper can easily remove the frames to check the bees' health and remove honey. These frames can be foundationless (allowing the bees to build 100% of the comb) or wax/plastic foundation where bees build onto the pattern provided.