Bees.
Any keen Dr Who fan will be aware that bees are disappearing. No-one actually knows why, there are plenty of theories, Cellphones, Temperature change, Disease, Mites, Poor pollen quality or pollen and nectar scarcity. (http://www.ars.usda.gov/News/docs.htm?docid=15572)
Then we saw an episode of Hugh Fearnley-Whitingsall's 'Spring at River Cottage' in which he was talking about bees and in particular comparing honey produced by bees from Hackney in very built up east London to the honey he produces in the middle of Rural Dorset. I had never imagined that keeping a beehive in your back garden, or on the garage roof in suburbia was an option.
(Credit to the photographer - I stole this photo from another blog - http://williams-bees.blogspot.com/ I thought it was too good not to. I noticed he hasn't updated it for a long time.)
That got us thinking... and now, several months, lots of books and websites and few Bee Club meetings later there is a hive ready for us to pick up from Bucklands Beach.
The Question is, 'Are we ready for the bees?'
Its exciting and a bit scary. The Hive we will be getting is a new colony with a new Queen so there aren't that many of them at the moment and we probably won't get honey from them this year, we may even have to feed them if they can't get themselves sorted out before winter and the nectar slows right down or stops flowing.
Since starting to read about bees I am totally fascinated by the way they all work together in the hive, collecting pollen, nectar, propolis and water for their community. The way they communicate, keep house, what affects their moods.
The thing I'm looking forward to most is watching them....that's right just sitting and watching them come and go, the guards on the door, bees fanning to keep cool and waft the pheromone smell of their hive out to the foragers so they can find their way home
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