From A to Bee (31 page)

It started as a normal Wednesday evening session with the Reigate Beekeepers but it soon turned into all-out war with the bees. I learned some very valuable lessons! Beware of a windy night, especially if you are checking a colony without a queen.

  I was with my regular group of six, checking over our hives, and it had started well. We were a little worried about the weather as it looked like the heavens would open at any moment. Still, we knew we had a good-tempered set of hives, though we couldn't account for the other twelve hives on the apiary. I was also told the weather, and in particular a colder and windier evening like tonight, can do funny things to even the calmest of hives.

  We took off the top supers of the first hive and had got down into the first set of frames when the wind picked up out of nowhere. It was like a mini hurricane centred over our two hives. This, along with the slightly cooler temperature this evening, meant the bees were not happy.

  We should have realised something was slightly amiss before we even started. Maggie, one of our mentors, had already been stung standing about fifty metres from the hive – I even saw the bee hit her fringe. The bee obviously decided she quite liked it and so buried itself ever deeper. Having got smacked out of the fringe during what I can only describe as an elaborate dancing move from Maggie, she went again but decided that the longer hair at the back was a better place to nestle. Despite Maggie's best moves, she got stung.

  We should therefore have realised that some of the hives would be feisty but I am not sure we were ready for what was about to happen. Once we had taken out a few of the frames it really struck us that something was just not quite right. Firstly they were really, really angry – there were plenty of kamikaze bees flying into our veils – and secondly we actually lost count of the number of queen cells we had seen. This meant only one thing as we were certain we hadn't seen any eggs; the queen was no longer there and they were madly trying to raise a new queen.

  This would account for the temperament issues but as we worked further through the hive, it turned into a war. Everyone kept on getting stung. Andrew took one on the finger then, almost immediately, Richard took one on the wrist. Then, as Andrew was checking some of the frames (we all took it in turns) he was stung again on the thumb but this time it must have hurt – I think I learned some new words! It was mid inspection, a frame of bees in Andrew's hand, and as he started an unrepeatable diatribe, the whole world went into slow motion when his hand that was stung instinctively left the frame. The entire frame of bees began to swing wildly and was being held by one hand. The hive tool flew through the air at the same time and landed about six feet away and you could almost see what was going to happen next… Fortunately Andrew gathered his composure before the frame dropped to the floor, spraying thousands of already angry bees everywhere. We quickly closed the hive up and for the second time in a couple weeks I cut an inspection short.

  All was not lost, however, and we reduced the number of queen cells down to what we think are a few good ones. This meant that the colony may have a fighting chance of getting a half decent queen rather than taking a chance.

  Fortunately, the other hive was a breeze but it was interesting having the kamikaze bees from the previous inspection still dive-bombing twenty minutes later. They obviously have a better memory than we all thought.

  A pint was needed after this evening session, if only to look at all the war wounds and for Chris and I to gloat over our successful escape as we were the only ones in our group not to have been stung. Lady Luck was obviously with us tonight.

Now my bees are settled in the hive, it is essentially a waiting game to see what they can produce by the end of the season. I have noticed a distinctive shift in my attitude towards the bees. This journey all started with the setting of an aim to get a jar of honey and, if I am honest with myself, the caring aspect of looking after the bees came second. I knew they were in trouble but I was selfish in thinking the honey was what mattered.

  I feel like I have changed. I have realised just how obsessive beekeeping can become and it is so obvious how fraught their situation is. When you consider that a third of our dinner plate is pollinated by the bee (though this is any sort of bee, including both honey and solitary bees; which as their name suggests live on their own but are prolific pollinators) you realise just how important they are to our survival. When you consider that a beehive of bees would visit several million flowers in one day and one person can only pollinate thirty trees a day it puts it all into perspective. Without bees our food options would dramatically decrease. This is not something I think any of us would like to see and as a result I just feel the need to talk to everyone about it and share my new-found knowledge.

  On Saturday I took my parents up to the hives to show them what I had been working on for the last six months. I have to say, I think they were impressed but I couldn't really tell as I was just talking at them for about half an hour about how amazing bees are. That distant look in their eyes had appeared and so I felt it was time to stop. I sat them down behind the hives and got them to watch the bees flying in and out of the hive for ten minutes. Needless to say, they enjoyed the first ten seconds but I think that was it.

  I did the same with Jo and Sebastian today. I could have stayed there all day watching the bees. I think Jo now has a quiet fascination with bees (given the level of knowledge she has gleaned from my endless ramblings, which I hear when she is recounting my new-found passion to friends and family). A twenty-one-month-old is not quite as enamoured by bee flight paths as a grown man, but he did pick some peas for the first time and seemed to enjoy them. One of my dreams was to have an allotment so that he could understand where food comes from. Lovely to witness him take the first steps of discovering the origins of food. I felt quite proud.

  We also went to the Hampton Court Flower Show this morning and I found myself judging all the gardens by the number of bees in residence and making notes on any flowers to which bees took a particular interest. I left thinking I had lost my mind!

  I got more concerned however, when I discovered I actually wanted to have a discussion about washing-up gloves. Having undertaken a successful stealth mission to take them out of the kitchen on Saturday and gotten away with it, I had decided that washing up gloves were the way forward but I wasn't convinced that yellow was the right colour, especially with the khaki bee suit.

  Having posted a blog article about the best colour washing-up gloves for beekeeping, I then entered into a conversation about the matter. Who would have guessed it would be so topical? People said that bees love the colour blue and so you should avoid the blue and purple gloves as the kamikaze bees could start up again. The general consensus was that yellow was the best colour. Damn.

  When I reflect on a day like today and realise that I have discussed rubber gloves and their effect on bees and judged a flower competition by the number of bees in residence, I have to reflect on how beekeeping has changed me. I would sincerely love to get a jar of honey this year but the overbearing feeling I have now is the well-being of the bees. I want to ensure they are well looked after and that everyone I know sees them for what they are; a minor miracle of an insect and one we should all be aware of and looking out for.

Will I actually make any honey?

  Recently I have been starting to have some doubts and when I did the inspection on Saturday I was very aware of the lack of stores being built by the bees. If they are not building enough stores then there may not be enough for winter, let alone a jar for me.

  The Beehaus bees were put in quite late and though they are now covering eight frames I am aware that they will want to cover the rest of the brood box before going up into the supers. I am very doubtful this is going to happen and this was confirmed by Adam when he saw a video of the hive. I have to say I wasn't expecting to get any from this hive so I am just going to concentrate on getting them through the winter and give them as much feed as possible.

  The National hive stands most hope as the frames are fully drawn now but they have only just started on the supers. They have drawn out a small section on most frames with a little bit of honey deposited but this isn't nearly enough for the one jar of honey.

  They have some great stores in the brood box which is good to see and positive for the winter but I am worried the honey flow has well and truly stopped.

I'm feeling a bit frustrated about the lack of activity in the hives last week but I know I shouldn't. I have also been conscious that all the books suggest you check the bees every seven days. Today is the seventh day but I didn't get a chance to check them. I don't suppose it is too much of a problem as we are out of swarming season but I still feel like I have a responsibility there to keep an eye on them and make sure they are all right.

  I must be feeling guilty subconsciously as well because last night I started sleep-talking. This is something I have done since childhood but thankfully I no longer sleepwalk. Last night I excelled myself and even managed a full-blown conversation with Jo. The topic was bees and not just any old bees but swarming ones. Apparently I was advising Jo that we had to be careful to keep them away from the hedge. Once I had given my pearls of wisdom I apparently just turned over and went back to sleep.

  Thinking ahead to tomorrow, it is a really important inspection in my mind. The weather has been good and so I am really hoping that the bees have had a good spell this week and have drawn out more comb and deposited some honey. It's funny, several times this week I have found myself thinking about the bees and wondering what they were up to, nervous about the next inspection and whether they have been successful for me. I cannot imagine ending this year saying 'and so I ended the year with nothing'. Not really the outcome I would want.