We last went to visit the bees at the School Apiary on Langney Marsh in August, and we braved the breezy conditions today to go and see how they were getting on. The water was high in the lakes, and there were lots of birds on and around on the water. Swans, geese, ducks, and gulls and a snipe zig-zagged away as we made our … Continue reading Spring Check of the West Rise Bees
Wow – what a difference a day (or two) makes. A few days ago my bees were flying, and I was even able to put together a video post for my patrons as I headed down to the apiary to check the entrances and inspection boards. Bees cluster up together to keep warm in the winter, and it’s important that they aren’t disturbed at this … Continue reading Bees in a Snowy Winter
We have had a lot of rain, stormy weather, and low temperatures here in the south east over the past couple of weeks so apart from strapping down the hives against Storm Bella, I’ve not been over to the apiary. It was cold and damp today, but I wanted to have a look at the inspection boards on the hives that have them to see … Continue reading Midwinter Apiary Visit
Today, Paul and I took a trip to check on the West Rise Junior School Apiary on Langney Marsh. Breezy but warm, we took the scenic (but buffalo-free) route to the bees, taking in the swans flying overhead, a female kestrel hunting, and some young moorhens preening on a raft of pondweed. We passed what had previously been a scrape – shallow body of water … Continue reading Autumn Check on the Marsh
Lockdown restrictions and social distancing have made it a bit challenging to visit the bees at West Rise Junior School’s Bee Sanctuary. Normally at this time of year we would be in the throes of BeeFest, the annual celebration of not just bees, but simply being outdoors and appreciating nature – a mandate which the school joyfully embraces to great effect. Last time, we had … Continue reading High Summer at the School Apiary
One can never tell how many swarms there are going to be for any given season, and I was surprised to see so many people on the Association’s list…swarms are deemed the sign of “failure” and bad management, yet here are tens of people wanting them to repopulate their apiaries after losing colonies over winter. Perhaps we should appreciate this swarming impulse and wholly natural … Continue reading Swaaaarms
I wanted to go and see that the Warré hive was getting on ok and hadn’t been knocked over again! A glorious day at the Marsh, with the usual compliment of geese, a heron, corvids and starlings. Naturally I forgot my binoculars, but the birdlife was abundant. Lots of hawthorn out too – great for bees and pollinators of all species. We arrived at the … Continue reading Hive check at Langney Marsh
I have been waiting for a suitable opportunity to go and check the bees on the Marsh, and the need for this was hastened by my getting a message to say that one of the hives was leaning at rather an angle as the livestock had managed to get in to the apiary… On arrival it was clear that the straps had saved the Warré … Continue reading School Apiary Check
I received a top bar hive from a friend of mine who I met at the Barcombe Eco Fair; Caroline is another natural beekeeper and wanted someone with the same beekeeping ethics to have her cedar top bar, as she works mainly with Warrés. It has an inspection window (which I know are rather controversial) and as many people come to natural beekeeping having seen … Continue reading Baiting the other hives
Today’s weather was finally good enough for us to visit the bees on Langney Marsh. We also wanted to see if our tarp experiment had vanished in the floods, so Paul and I headed down under blue skies and a brisk and chilly breeze to see what was going on in the apiary. We saw a heron, geese aplenty, and a few swans. Numerous gulls … Continue reading Marsh bees, and Bee Lining
