What does it mean to "super" a beehive?

"Supering" a beehive refers to the practice of adding an additional hive box, known as a super, specifically for the purpose of honey storage. As a beehive approaches the honey flow period, beekeepers provide extra space for the bees to store excess honey. The super typically contains frames that can hold the honeycomb, allowing bees to expand their storage capacity and manage surplus honey effectively. This is crucial for maximizing honey production while ensuring the bees have adequate room to work as the colony grows.

In this context, the other options do not accurately describe the act of supering. Cleaning the hive pertains to maintenance tasks unrelated to expanding storage. Reducing the number of bees does not correspond with the goal of supering, which is to accommodate more bees and their honey production. Monitoring bee health is important for overall hive management but does not involve the physical addition of space for honey storage. Therefore, adding a super is distinctly about providing room for the bees to store harvested honey.