Bees

Years ago we had a swarm visit the place.  It was exciting and a bit frightening.  I called our friend/plumber who has been keeping bees for years and he was out in moments.  I firmly believe that if I called him about a burst pipe, he would told me that he couldn't come up until next week. 

Roll on to this year.  In January, I found this 

I believe it was left by a swarm that found a better place to live.  This means that swarms come by our place on a semi-regular basis. 

I started out by getting some second hand boxes.  A new beekeeping person gave me a smoker.  I joined the local bee keeping association.  Why not?  Annual membership is a bargain at 15 pounds a year.  The bee club is turning out to be a valuable resource! 

For those who know about bees, I bought second hand Langstroth 10 frame boxes.  They seem solid. Each of the four boxes come with a floor and a cover.  I bought them on impulse.  I am keen to take advantage of a bargain.  

Hives in the UK are normally National hives. They are a slightly different size to Langstroth hives. If I had been thinking more sensibly, I would have waited until some second hand National hives were availble for sale.  But I didn't wait, did I?  I am now committed to Langstroth hives. 

I had to order and build the frames to put inside the boxes.  Until they have frames, they're simply wooden boxes aren't they. To save money, I got them unassembled.  I think saving money is going to be a regular theme as I set about kitting up this new hobby.  I built 20 frames, enough to fill two boxes.

Now I'm almost ready, frames (with foundation) ready to go.

I have a bee suit to protect me from stings. The smoker to help keep the bees calm when going near the hives. 

I will  have to feed any bees I get when they first arrive.  You can't just stick the bees in the corner of the garden and let them fend for themselves.  They need to settle in.  I don't want them to starve to death while settling in.

I'm going to get a couple of old wooden pallets to keep the hive off the ground.  Bees don't like damp.  

There is such a learning curve with beekeeping.  I am glad I have a couple of friends who have experience of keeping bees.  I will be plaguing them with questions.

So, I've started the new hobby.  I hope it's fun.