Very sad to see this article today...
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2013/jun/13/honeybee-colonies-england-winter?commentpage=1
Thursday, 13 June 2013
Tuesday, 11 June 2013
Visiting the Apiary
Today I made my first visit to my local beekeeping association's apiary. They were a really friendly and welcoming group who were keen to teach me all about bees and give me hands on experience.
I would definitely recommend to anyone who is thinking of keeping bees to get in touch with their local association. It seemed that even experienced beekeepers were still encountering new problems and helping each other work out theories on what could be causing them.
The Beehaus seemed to interest a lot of the members, although they do already have one other member who uses one.
It was reassuring to hear that they thought a new beekeeper could manage starting a first hive with a swarm. I will be registering my interest in one and keep my fingers crossed that one will come up near me.
We looked in three of their hives, one was a recent swarm, and the other two were daughter and parent colonies that had been artificially swarmed. We didn't spot any of the queens but did see sealed queen cells in one of the hives.
I'm even more eager to get started with my own bees now, although I am wondering whether to relocate my hive, better to do it now rather than when it's occupied!
I would definitely recommend to anyone who is thinking of keeping bees to get in touch with their local association. It seemed that even experienced beekeepers were still encountering new problems and helping each other work out theories on what could be causing them.
The Beehaus seemed to interest a lot of the members, although they do already have one other member who uses one.
It was reassuring to hear that they thought a new beekeeper could manage starting a first hive with a swarm. I will be registering my interest in one and keep my fingers crossed that one will come up near me.
We looked in three of their hives, one was a recent swarm, and the other two were daughter and parent colonies that had been artificially swarmed. We didn't spot any of the queens but did see sealed queen cells in one of the hives.
I'm even more eager to get started with my own bees now, although I am wondering whether to relocate my hive, better to do it now rather than when it's occupied!
Getting started
I first became interested in beekeeping when my daughter signed us up for a beekeeping course at her school. That was in 2009 and at the time she was an eager year 7 keen to be involved with setting up the school's first hives. We started that winter and by spring we were ready to get hands on as the first hives arrived on the school grounds. Sadly our involvement was short lived as we had decided that we would move to Devon that summer, some 200 miles away.
Several years later and my interest in bees has been rekindled. It is however possibly one of the worst years to set up a new hive due to bad weather and a late spring. it's delayed the bees and my nuc may not be ready until July. In the meantime I'm reading up on all things bees in preparation.
Once I had decided to take the plunge, one of the most difficult decisions was which hive to buy. Although I love the aesthetics of a wooden hive I was interested in the Beehaus by Omlet. http://www.omlet.co.uk
For me the main advantages of this hive were:
- A comfortable working height
- Ability to divide hive into two, to manage swarming etc.
- Well insulated - warmer in winter, cooler in summer
- Allows the colony to grow without being housed in a double brood box
I've read both positive and negative reviews of the Beehaus but in the end I have decided to give it a try.
It arrived last week and is ready and waiting for the bees.
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