Brood Chamber
Lexikon
The brood chamber is the part of a hive where the colony's actual nest is located: this is where the queen lays her eggs, where the larvae grow, and where the bees store pollen and part of their stores in the immediate vicinity of the brood.
The brood chamber is the part of a hive where the colony's actual nest is located: this is where the queen lays her eggs, where the larvae grow, and where the bees store pollen and part of their stores in the immediate vicinity of the brood. In modern box hives the brood chamber usually consists of the bottom one or two boxes, with the honey super above.
The clear separation of brood chamber and honey super is of great importance for everyday work. Only if the beekeeper knows where the eggs, open brood, and capped brood are can he correctly assess the state of the colony, recognize swarming fever, or treat specifically against the Varroa mite. Many management systems therefore use a queen excluder between brood chamber and honey super, which lets workers through but prevents the larger queen from moving up into the honey super.
A common misconception among newcomers is the idea that the brood chamber must always keep a fixed size. In fact, its extent adapts considerably over the course of the year: in spring it grows with the strength of the colony, and in late summer it is made smaller again by reducing the space, so that the colony can form its winter cluster over a manageable area.