The Year of the Bee (Part Two) – New Bee Arrivals
The farm has been on a massive improvement project in relation to our bees. The first wave of improvements is summarised below and included in our first bee blog.
- Primarily to improve access of beekeeping activities for the people we support.
- Role out the training of staff and volunteers in beekeeping.
- Increase the number of our hives and thereby honey produced. Honey production is one of our primary activities, which can be accessed by all the people we support.
- Improve our honey production areas.
New Bees on the Farm
With the help and support of Sunlight Bees (Helen and Ang) we have introduced a new nucleus of bees to our hives.
Swarm
We had a small escape of bees, they swarmed and ended up some way away. We were notified about where the bees were and with the help of Port Sunlight Bees and we managed to collect most of the bees. Below is some information about Swarming bees from the British Beekeepers Association website. It is important to remember that swarming bees are not usually dangerous and the bees are usually looking for a new home or reproducing.
- Swarming is a natural process. It is the colony reproducing by the old queen leaving with some of the bees. They leave their hive and find somewhere to hang in a cluster until the scout bees decide on their new home.
- Most swarms occur on warm sunny days from May to the end of July usually between 11am – 4pm.
- Often there is a peak on a fine day after poor weather when temperatures approach the high teens.
- A real honey bee swarm can be extremely dramatic involving many thousands of bees in a large noisy cloud However, they normally settle into a cluster within 15 minutes.
As beekeepers we do everything to avoid our bees swarming and we monitor our hives regularly for signs that this might happen. If swarming behaviour is noted then preventative measures are put in place – but sometimes this is not always effective. If you see any swarming bees, please contact the British Beekeepers Association.
New Hive Boxes
The people we support have been busy making and painting new hive boxes.
The farm has its own wood workshop, which can be used for community or personal projects. Our prices are very reasonable and all work is supervised by time served and other experienced staff and volunteers. If you have a project you need help with, please contact Suanne.
Here are the new hive boxes in place.
