22 October 2018 The annual honey survey by the British Beekeepers Association (BBKA) shows honeybees survived the difficult climate this year and produced a crop of honey a third bigger than last years. The results show that the honey crop was, on average, just over 30lbs of honey per hive, or just under 14 kilos … Continue reading BBKA – 2018 Honey Harvest is third bigger than last years
We have a winner – or two!
A very good first ever honey show for Lytchett Bay Apiaries, and I won what I considered to be the creme-de-la-creme, first prize for my honey in the Commercial Section. I got two First places for honey, a second for honey, a second place for Honey cake, a second for photography, a third place for … Continue reading We have a winner – or two!
Use Honey first for a cough, new guidelines say
New guidelines for doctors from the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) say they should tell patients to use honey first when they have a cough. This is based on 3 studies that showed honey reduces symptoms by 2 points on a 7 point scale. Honey and over-the-counter medicines should be the first line of … Continue reading Use Honey first for a cough, new guidelines say
Autumn Jobs
By now, most beekeepers will have finished the harvesting of the honey, unless they get a second honey flow from plants such as balsam and heather. The Ivy will start to flower soon, and provide more nectar, but it is a very bitter honey and many don't take it but instead leave it for the … Continue reading Autumn Jobs
2018 Vintage
After extracting the first batches of honey last week, I gave up waiting for my jar order to arrive, and bottled what honey I could with the jars I still had in stock. When my jars (finally) arrive, I will decant the honey from the storage buckets into the jars and put my "Honey for … Continue reading 2018 Vintage
Wet Supers & Jars of Honey
I went around 9 hives today, carrying out inspections and placing wet supers back on the hives for the bees to clean, and hopefully refill with honey. A wet super is the term used for a super full of frames that have had the honey extracted from them, and have remnants of the honey still … Continue reading Wet Supers & Jars of Honey
Extraction Day
It was another hot day, but slightly cooler than of late - 'only' 26° C, and as I have all but run out of supers, I had to do some extracting so I had some supers I could put back on the hives. Extracting is a hot, sticky process however much you prepare. I donned … Continue reading Extraction Day
Another Busy Few Days
I've had a couple of busy days again, nipping round all my apiaries to put clearer boards on hives so that I could remove some honey supers. I took supers off from two sites today, and put the clearer boards on at a third. I will be taking the supers off from the third site … Continue reading Another Busy Few Days
Harvesting Honey
How to Harvest Honey Ethically? I do not favour taking all the honey from the bees. Harvesting honey from a beehive should only be done when the bees have surplus. Beekeepers do not normally get a harvest of honey from new hives their first season, but there are exceptional colonies and exceptional nectar flow years … Continue reading Harvesting Honey
Heavy Flow
We have had a week now where the temperatures are 30°C or so. This has sent the bees into overdrive, with lots of Blackberries and white clover to forage on, and they are filling supers really fast. https://youtu.be/-tq2tX5aJXI Almost all my hives have 3 supers on now, and 2 of those are virtually all capped … Continue reading Heavy Flow