Any bee keepers on here? We're thinking of keeping some in our new garden and wondered what experiences people have had.

I don't but i'd like to. I take it you've seen this:

Beehaus

Looks like a good way to start.

£500 for a hive is really taking the p!ss

Mike – there's a guy on the road to Scorton from Middleton Tyas that's set up hives for a few people locally
I can't remember his details but if you want to go looking it's not far out of Tyas on the right – you can see the hives from the road

My father-in-law knows him but he's in Australia for the next few months but I'll ask the missus to ask him when she phones again

BTW – given that my daughter went back to college today, haven't you got other work to do? 😉

This will happen Bee keeping

Our chickens live in a coop made from old concrete shuttering, so I don't think we'll be taking the Omlet route for the bees 🙂

Thanks for the local lead uplink. There's a Tees bee keepers group locally, and my wife met the mum of someone we went to school with in town who keeps bees, and I think we're going to go and see those.

First lesson in 5 minutes 🙂

Join the local Beekeepers Association, you'll get all the help, knowledge and possible access to cheap kit.

Beginning of last year I got a compost bin for the grass cuttings to save me having to go to the tip as often and because the local council say no to putting garden waste in the bin. Anyway it's now full so I opened the slidey door thing at the front and started to dig what I was hoping to be good compost out.
Disappointingly it hadn't really rotted down and was just like dry grass. But more relevantly to this thread, it was alive with bees. The bees must have made a little hive/nest/home whatever in my compost bin. So I put the sliding panel back in place and went away to think about what's the best thing to do.

I'm still thinking! I might just leave it indefinitely and start taking the grass to the tip again. I don't want to disturb the bees, especially as we are often told nowadays bees are dangerously low in numbers.

Bee-hugger?!

Bankster you're a right proper gentleman. And here's something which I'm sure will appeal to your Bee-hugging instincts :

If you get some, you have to train them to sit on your face in an enormous buzzing yellow beard.

Our neighbours bought a hive a few months ago and then had their bees (apparently the friendly Italian variety) delivered last week. Not sure what their plan is – I'll ask them when they get back from holiday next week.

All I know is the bees are suited to whatever their objective is, and they're protecting the clover in the garden because the bees really dig it.

Can get back to you if you want to know more.

SM

There are courses near us. However all the beginners courses are booked up.
Please let me know how you get on Mike? I'm really interested in this myself.

Bankster-you are doing the correct thing leaving them. We have a long stretch of long grass in the garden ( we call it our wild spot), there is a bees nest in there, so I can't cut it back.

We have 8 hives all full of bees and no fuggin honey yep another bad year

As said above join your local bee keeping assosation , our local group in taunton had over 70 beginners this year compared to about 18 last year so it is getting a bit popular thanks to the low key news reports. which makes keeping a hive or 4 in the garden alot more acceptable.

As for hives we have bought from "real cedar" on ebay for about £120 and they are superb quality (cedar)and alot cheaper than anyone else. Do NOT buy a plywood hive they do not last.

give it a go but you do need help from others and yes they do sting but you get used to it or die 😈

Just seen this, sorry I'm late. We have two collonies.

you really need to do a fair bit of study/training to be OK at keeping them. Best time to get a collony is May/June so now would be a good time to train for 2010. Where in the UK are you?

C

As per comments above – I would also highly recommend Bill Hooper's text on the subject

The advice given above is mostly correct. My recommendations are:
1) Join a local association – check on the BBKA website for more information:BBKA Association list
2) Register for a course – most of them run over the Winter but as Bunnyhop says they are likely to be booked up. Ours in Surrey is 10x oversubscribed!
3) Attend a local taster session – likely to be in April/May next year as most beekeeping associations will be in the final stages of getting their colonies sorted for the Winter.
4) Don't buy the Beehaus. Overpriced and not very practical for the sort of activities you need to perform on a colony during the season. Also I believe that the BBKA don't approve of it because of concerns about how ill suited it is for beginners.
5) Look out for your local association's honey show – likely to be sometime in October.
6)If you are in the South then go to the national honey show in Weybridge at the end of October.
7) If you decide to keep bees expect to spend around £300 – £500 getting kitted out with equipment, suits etc.
8)Best way to get hold of bees is to try and get a swarm, typically via your local association. Or you can buy a nucleus colony from one of the bee breeders for £100-£150. Ideal tme to get bees is May but you may have to wait for a couple of months depending on demand in your area. Judging by the number of people registering for courses demand will be very high next year.
9) Spacewise – plan on a hive requiring about 6 x 8 feet of space in your garden. Of which allow 6 foot in front of the hive needs to be clear as this is their flight path. If you don't have space you will probably be able to get a site in somebody's garden or a local farmer's field. We currently have 10 or so sites being offered in our area.

Personally I would avoid swarms if possible. They may be a cheap way of getting into it but you can never be sure of provenance or disease. The queen is likely to be old with reduced egg production and that is why she swarmed in the first place! So for a beginner I would recommend purchasing a nucleus from a good source.

This should arrive in its nucleus box which you can then use in subsequent years.

From what i've learnt from mr and mrs saladdodgeer i can state one thing.

A colony is for life and not just for a status, they take alot of work and commitment.

More replies! Thanks everyone.

There's going to be a fair bit of work needed in the new house (new roof, rewiring, etc…), so we're probably not going to be getting any bees till 2011 or so. At least, if I have my way; I'm also trying to fight off suggestions of goats and a Donkey… We'll be doubling our chicken numbers in the spring, and that'll be enough for me.

We've found that we actually know someone who keeps bees, so we've got some good advice to hand.

Thanks again for the replies.