Apiary Diary—Autumn 2024
Updated: Oct 24
A busy year
Much has happened this year, and we now manage colonies across four apiaries—in West Oxford (our base), Cumnor Hill, Hogacre Common (SW Oxford) and University College (Central Oxford).
The start of the year was challenging, as we lost several colonies during the extended wet winter. However, the summer saw more swarms than usual, helping us to re-stock, while nectar was more plentiful.
The swarm pictured here had been resting for a couple of days before being reported to us. The headstone is in the Australian section of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery in Botley, and commemorates a young airman lost during WWII.
Many beekeepers reported very low numbers of wasps this year (they predate on honeybees), and fortunately there were no credible sightings of the much-feared Asian hornet in our area (it seems to be mostly confined to SW England and certain port towns...for now).
Winter talk
In February, a quiet month in the beekeeping calendar, we were invited to speak at Club 57—the gardeners’ club run by Nicholsons, the environmental design specialists—at the Barn near North Aston.
On a wild and windswept evening, the enthusiastic audience braved the elements to learn about bees' life in and outside the hive, approaches to beekeeping, and the importance of pollinators and how we can respond to the envrironmental threats they face.
Hogacre Common Apiary—a new lease of life
Hogacre Common (just downstream of us) is a wonderful community-run charitable project. Its volunteers have taken on disused University land to demonstrate how it can be repurposed to encourage biodiversity, and it serves as a model for low-carbon living and the effective use of natural resources. As well as a productive market garden, orchard and hay meadow, it hosts an apiary, established on natural beekeeping principles, which we now manage, together with volunteers.
When we responded to a call for help last spring, the apiary was clearly in need of attention. With some TLC it has been rejuvenated; this summer saw its first honey harvest for some years, and we are mentoring new and less experienced beekeepers there.
During our first visit, we found five (of eight) hives inhabited, which was encouraging. However, hibernating mice had caused internal damage, as had the weather externally, and overgrown bramble had created trip hazards on the rather slippery decking (not ideal when workin among beehives!).
The apiary has several very different styles of hive—Warré, horizontal top bar, WBC and Langstroth. However, some appear to have been cobbled together from different parts, so getting things to ‘fit’ can be challenging. As well as mouse damage, we encountered broken hive parts, and cross-combing (when bees build honeycomb at an angle difficult for the beekeeper to handle).
Our efforts to fix the issues were rewarded when two of the empty hives attracted new swarms in the early summer. Normally, new colonies might come from swarms we catch locally, but it’s especially pleasing when they move in of their own accord!
The exising older colonies were given additional hive space as they grew, and by the end of the season we had seven (mostly) strong hives, well stocked with honey stores to see them through the coming winter and spring.
In October we installed mouse guards across the hive entrances to prevent damage again this winter. We also repaired weather-damaged hive parts, and renewed any Warre hive “quilts” past their best to protect the clusters through the months to come.
University College—bees for biodiversity
In July we installed our first hives within an Oxford college—University College, which actively promotes biodiversity and supports wildlife initiatives. The colnies came from our West Oxford apiary, and now occupy a secluded corner where had stood an ancient chestnut tree (sadly, it had to be felled, but the college gardeners did an excellent job in preparing the area, as the pictures below show).
It has been a privilege and a pleasure working with the College, whose staff are immensely helpful and supportive, and we are looking forward to further projects with them. This year Univ celebrates its 775th anniversary, and we hope that the bees will remain industrious members of the college community and a focus of interest for students, staff and visitors for many years to come!
Courtesy of Thomas Bartlett Courtesy of Thomas Bartlett
Installation of the beehives at University College, Oxford
--new life replacing the removed chestnut tree
Mark, Botley Meadow Bees, October 2024
Comments