Frame (beehive)
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A frame in a beehive is the structural element that holds the honeycomb or brood comb. The removable beehive frame was invented in 1814 by Petro Prokopovych. A Langstroth hive contains between 8 to ten frames. Ten frames are spaced 1 3/8 inches (34.9 mm) center to center.
The correct distance between combs in brood chamber had been described as 1 and ½ inches from the center of one top bar to the center of next one by Jan Dzierzon. In 1848 Dzierzon introduced grooves into the hive’s side walls replacing the strips of wood for hang top bars. The grooves had been 8 x 8 mm – exact average between 1/4 and 3/8 of an inch, which is range recently called bee space. His design quickly gained popularity in Europe and North America. On the basis of the aforementioned measurements, August von Berlepsch (May 1852) in Thuringia and L. L. Langstroth (October 1852) in the United States designed their frame-movable hives.
A Langstroth hive contains between 8 to ten frames. Ten frames are spaced 1 1/2 inches (38 mm) center to center.
The top bar length is 19 inches (48.3 cm). The depth of the frame varies. Frames are made from wood or plastic.
Specialty frames such as cell bar frames are used to raise new queens.
[edit] Source
- The hive and the honeybee, Dadant, 1971.