Divider Board (Intermediate Floor)
Lexikon
A divider board is a flat panel the size of the box that is placed between two boxes and separates them from each other.
A divider board is a flat panel the size of the box that is placed between two boxes and separates them from each other. Depending on the design, it has its own entrance, a built-in bee escape or a mesh screen.
The most common use is at harvest. A divider board with a built-in bee escape is placed under the honey super the day before extraction. The bees move downward and do not come back, so by the next morning the honey combs are largely free of bees.
The second important use is the interim nucleus. Here a unit with brood and bees, given its own entrance above the divider board, is placed on top and rears its own queen while making use of the warmth of the colony below. This lowers swarming mood while multiplying colonies at the same time.
Third, the divider board serves for uniting. Two units are placed on top of each other separated by newspaper or a mesh screen and slowly grow together. Anyone working with divider boards should make sure they sit flat, otherwise the bees find a way around and the separation has no effect.