A professional beekeeper might call their collection of hives an apiary, but “apiary” is just a fancier word for a place where bees live. 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 it has since been shortened to “apiary.” 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.