It is important for any beekeeper to understand the structure and construction of the hive in order to effectively manage the bee apiary. One of the most common questions is how many bee families are in one hive and how many bee families live in one hive. In this article, we will take a closer look and explain why only one bee colony lives in one hive.
The bee family: structure and role
A bee colony is a complex social structure that includes a single queen, worker bees and drones. The queen lays eggs, worker bees perform various tasks (collecting nectar, guarding, caring for the brood), and drones participate in the fertilization of the queen. An important feature of the bee family is that it works as a whole, each bee has its own role and task.
Why does only one family live in one hive?
- Natural Instinct: Bees are territorial by nature and defend their nest from other bees. The presence of two queens or families in the same hive will lead to conflict, which will weaken the hive and may lead to the death of both families.
- Structure of the hive: The hive is designed for one bee family. It has only one queen, which lays eggs in specially designated cells. Attempting to house two colonies in one hive will result in chaos and reduced bee efficiency.
- Hive management: It is much easier for beekeepers to manage one colony in one hive. This makes it easier to control the health and productivity of bees, as well as to carry out the necessary preventive and curative measures.
What happens if two queens appear in the hive?
Sometimes it happens that a second queen can appear in the hive (for example, when replacing an old young queen). In this case, the bees themselves solve the problem: most often a duel between the queens takes place, and only one survives. Thus, there is always one queen and, accordingly, one family in the hive.
Exceptions and special cases
Although the standard practice is to keep one colony of bees in one hive, there are special methods that allow temporary coexistence of two colonies. This may be necessary for accelerated colony growth or other specific purposes, but such methods require a high level of experience and control on the part of the beekeeper.
For such cases, APIX hives have a special slot for a partition that divides the hive in half, as well as two flight exits, which enables the beekeeper to safely keep two families in one hive.
This option is used for small families during wintering, thus improving the thermal regime of the hive and reducing feed consumption during wintering and spring development. As soon as the bee colony becomes larger, they are settled in a hive prepared in advance.
If you are looking for reliable and durable beehives, pay attention to the offers from the Arich company. You can buy beehives on our official website at affordable prices.
