How useful is having a square hive REALLY?

[Tom Bick]

Hello everyone

The British National hive is square, i.e. just as wide as it is long, i.e. 460 mm x 460 mm. The corresponding Dutch hive (that uses the same frames) is not square. I am about to build my own hive, and the final question is whether to make it square or not. So my question is: how useful is it REALLY for you to have a square box instead of a rectangular box?


Thanks
Samuel

The footprint of the hive and subsequent boxes are square, but the hive changes height throughout the year, so the hive is far from square.

 

[ugcheleuce]

The footprint of the hive and subsequent boxes are square, but the hive changes height throughout the year, so the hive is far from square.

Do you mean "the hive is far from cubic"?

 

[Tom Bick]

I suppose if you wanted to measure it in a cubic form then you could but the hive should be thought of in a vertical structure and not what footprint it has. It matters not what shape you make your hive providing the volume can change to the needs of the bees and inspections are not so difficult to make the design pointless.