Court Lane Allotments

Honey Bees: It’s rather (s)warm, isn’t it?

Last modified on 2011-04-27 12:53:12 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

Due to the exceptionally dry and warm Spring weather (according to the weathermen it’s been the driest since the 1953), like other bee colonies in the region, some of the allotment bees have begun to swarm. We had a routine visit on Monday from Julian Routh, a colleague from Sutton Coldfield and North Birmingham Beekeepers who is also a Seasonal Bee Inspector. He was very impressed with our bees and stated that wanting to swarm was the sign of a happy, healthy bee colony.

Swarming is the term used to describe the normal method by which honey bee colonies reproduce. The bees start by raising new cells with queen larvae in (these will form a new colony in the original hive). Then the original queen and up to 50% of the flying bees take off and form a swarm. A large swarm will make a considerable amount of noise as it is flying around and can be quite a frightening sight to the non-beekeeper. It is no small wonder that people are frightened, as there is little in the media to familiarise everybody with honey bee swarms, so that they will not be alarmed when a swarm does occur. The so-called ‘killer bees’ (or more correctly, Africanised honeybees) beloved of movie-makers DO NOT OCCUR IN THE UK.

Although people may think swarms are terrifying, in fact the bees are normally very docile and do not sting unless severely provoked. Even if bees land on you, they will simply fly away again if you let them. I remember Julian telling us a story of his young daughter in the middle of a swarm wearing only a light summer dress, being completely unharmed. This is because bees normally sting only in defense of their home – and a swarm does not have a home to defend. Their main concern is to stay together, protect and guide their queen, and get to the new home. If they get caught in your hair or clothes it is possible they may sting you but in general they are not after you. If bees land on your hair, do not flap at them or try to brush them away – you will rub them into your hair and they will then sting! Just keep your hands in your pockets and let them fly away when they are ready. Please do not try to swat them – bees like slow movements, so move slowly and calmly. Here is a video of a swarm showing how calm the bees are when swarming.

Lin and Ming with assistance from Julie, Rob and Leo managed to recapture both the Court Lane swarms. But as Winnie the Pooh says, “you never can tell with bees” and one of the swarms has since taken exception to the nice new home we provided for them and absconded. The other swarm is already settling in to their temporary new home and is drawing out comb for the queen to lay in.

As well as our own bees, Court Lane Allotments are in an area of Birmingham where there are many beekeepers, several of whom may have bees swarming at present. If you see any swarms of bees at the allotments, the best thing to do is step slowly and calmly away from the area. Try not to shout or wave your arms about as the bees may perceive this as threatening behaviour. Please do contact Lin (plot 45) and Ming (plot 14), the Court Lane Allotment Beekeepers, who are used to handling swarms and will come and deal with the bees. If we are not around, then either Julie or Ken have our contact details.

We are also happy to talk to any plot holder about what is happening with the bees, at any time, and welcome interested observers when we are carrying out beekeeping duties.

As the bees are very active at present there is always a slight risk of being stung. This is what to do if that happens.

• Firstly, immediately scrape out the sting using a sideways action with a fingernail. This stops any further bee venom being injected into the wound.

• Retreat away from the area as bee stings exude a pheromone which may attract more bees. If possible wash the area to remove the pheromone smell and to clean the skin to prevent bacteria entering.

• If possible, apply a thin smear of Antihistamine cream to the affected area. There is a tube of Antihistamine Cream in the portacabin, by the sink, which can be used to treat any type of insect sting.

• The area around the sting may swell up or itch for a day or two, so continue with the Antihistamine until it lessens.

Tales of bees and honey

Last modified on 2011-04-25 12:57:43 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

On Saturday 21st August, I was amongst the plot holders and visitors to Court Lane Allotments who were treated to a fascinating talk on bees by Julian Routh of Sutton Coldfield and North Birmingham Beekeepers’ Association.

Julian is a Master Beekeeper and has kept bees for over 30 years. He also gives lectures on beekeeping as well as judging Honey Shows and was recently co-opted to the Education and Husbandry Committee of the British Beekeepers’ Association.

He gave a brief desription of other pollinating insects such as bumble bees, solitary bees and wasps, before going on the describe the lifecycle of the honey bee, the yearly cycle of what goes on inside a honey bee colony and then how beekeepers interact with them to manage a colony of bees throughout the year. He then invited everyone to have a closer look at the observation hive and described to us what was going on. As a newly qualified beekeeper, it was useful to have an update in a nutshell and I hope it was of interest to those who wanted to know more about these fascinating insects.

Not many people know that when honey bees swarm they are actually at their most docile. Beekeepers have been known to put their bare hand into a swarm of bees without harm (though it not advised for an untrained person to attempt to do the same). Julian told us of his daughter who, as a small child, would fearlessly help him with beekeeping tasks, wearing only a summer dress and a beekeeping veil.

He also went on to describe the wonderfully named “waggle dance” whereby a bee returning from foraging will inform other bees of a nectar source by dancing in a figure of eight pattern. Research has been done to establish that the angle of the waggle run on the face of the honey comb has been shown to equate to the angle of the food source in relation to the sun. The speed and length of the waggle run determines how far away the food source is. This is something I’ve been reading up about recently, having seen bees doing it in my own garden hive.

He explained how honey bees concentrate nectar into honey by evaporating water out of it. The evaporation also helps to regulate hive temperature and humidity. The bees achieve this by fanning their wings to extract moisture from the air in a way not dissimilar to an air conditioner. I have just completed my first honey harvest from my hive at home and any honey the bees now collect, up until the end of the season, will be for them to use as their winter stores.

Before the talk, Julian had a tour of our Court Lane Allotments apiary enclosure and was very complimentary. He said it had obviously been developed with the utmost concern for the safety of both bees and plot holders and we have “an ideal set up”, which is a credit to Court Lane Allotments and our qualified beekeepers. For those of you who haven’t yet taken the opportunity to have a closer look, each hive faces a slightly different direction so that the bees won’t get confused as to which hive is theirs and there is plenty of space to work around each hive. The tree belt behind the apiary provides shelter from easterly winds. I asked Julian about the number of colonies we have at present, as I had recently been informed that a plot holder was concerned about the welfare of the bees. He commented that we have space in our apiary for up to 8 hives if we want, but Ming and I told him we were quite happy with the 4 colonies we have at the moment, which should produce some lovely honey for Court Lane Allotments next year.

Julian is very happy to discuss any further questions that anyone  may have about our Court Lane Allotment bees and beekeeping in general. Anybody wishing to ask questions can contact Ming (plot 14) or myself (plot 45) or comment on this site, and we will be very happy to discuss bees. In fact, we have already been approached by one of the Court Lane plot holders who is interested in learning more about beekeeping.

Many thanks to Julian for volunteering to share with us, free of charge, his time and expertise.  Those attending the talk were well provided for with free refreshments and lovely cakes baked and donated by volunteers. Any donations received went to the charity Bees Abroad which the Beekeeping Association supports.

Below is an edited video of Julian’s talk and here is the direct link to the YouTube video. Apologies for the poor sound quality.