Source:  NCSU COOPERATIVE EXTENSION, 10/30/20


Introduction
Beekeeping is a very enjoyable and rewarding pastime that is relatively inexpensive to get started. Moreover, it’s a hobby that can eventually make you money! The following is a primer on how to start your first hive and begin keeping bees.

Beehive Equipment
The minimum amount of equipment you will need to become a beekeepers is one complete 'starter’ hive, which consists of a bottom board (the hive “floor”), a hive body (the main box) with 10 frames (on which the bees build wax comb), an inner cover (the hive “ceiling”), and a lid (the hive “roof”) (Figure 1). A colony of bees can live very successfully in such a hive and can store enough honey for its own needs. They may quickly out grow this space, however, and produce a swarm (where approximately half of the bees will fly away to start a new colony). To keep the bees from swarming, and to harvest their surplus honey, you will likely need additional hive equipment. But if you don’t want to collect honey, then a starter hive is all the equipment you will ever need.

Most beekeepers are not content with watching half of their bees fly away, and so they will try to prevent this from happening by furnishing more hive space in the form of additional boxes, called 'supers,’ on top of the original box. This gives the colony more space to grow and the bees more room to store honey. If you wish to remove honey from the hive, adding supers is a necessity.
We recommend that a first-time beekeeper start with two full beehives. That way, you will have a minimal frame of reference to compare your new colonies and to develop your management techniques.

In addition to furnishing a beehive, you will also need some other equipment. There are three items that are required to safely work a beehive: a smoker (to pacify the bees and reduce their defense response), a hive tool (to pry apart hive equipment and frames), and a veil (to protect the head and face). Beginners often feel more comfortable with the extra protection of a full-body beekeeping suit and gloves, but eventually they are not necessary if the bees are handled properly.

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