Apiary
[AY-pee-er-ee]
Part of speech: noun
Origin: Latin, 17th century
1.
A place where bees are kept; a collection of beehives.
Examples of Apiary in a sentence
"The apiary was less than a mile away from a rose garden, which gave the honey a floral aroma."
"It takes a full day to inspect and maintain my apiary."
About Apiary
Anywhere that bees are kept, or a collection of hives, can be called an apiary. The word comes from the Latin for "bee," which is "apis." In the 17th century, this word was "apiarium," but today it's been shortened to "apiary." An apiary can be as simple as a box in your backyard, although beekeeping is not simple.
Did you Know?
A professional beekeeper might call their collection of hives an apiary, but "apiary" is just a fancier word for a place where bees live. In the wild, an apiary might be a hollowed-out log, or a rocky overhang. However, most wild honeybees don't form hives like their domesticated cousins. Wild species tend to be solitary creatures who lay eggs in nests with a ball of nectar and pollen. These eggs then develop and hatch on their own.
