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Very clever.

If the 'half' frames were only honey then there's probably nothing to worry about but it would be an unusual thing to do if those frames were half full of brood and could mean that the brood gets chilled - although, equally, it might not. The other thing is that you have to read the hives and...

I've got one of those in my car! We went out for the day and when we got back to the car there was an empty shell nestling against the windscreen wipers. :eek: The top looked as if it had been neatly cut open so we thought it might have been dropped by a crow or a magpie.

Not many beekeepers visit their hives more than once a week, unless there's a pressing need to do so. Expecting twice daily apiary visits is unrealistic for most beekeepers.

Same here, and they couldn't understand why I wouldn't give them some money to save hedgehogs. I did take the (waste my) time to tell them we have them nesting in our garden almost every year, and that there's a very good hedgehog rescue nearby.

Net curtains from a charity shop. Drape it over the hive(s) rather than trying to form a barrier between the hives and the rest of the vehicle, then any bees that do escape during transit should be kept in the right place.

I've had an email from NBU with the same information

Both poly and cedar hives in the same apiaries where some are in a shadier and damper spot than others.

Mine's a Dadant too, brilliant smoker. I try to burn less-tarry fuel, but there are still tarry deposits. I soak the whole thing in a bucket of washing soda and then rinse in clean water. This doesn't harm the bellows, and it does clean off anything that might have been transferred to them...

There's not much wrong with keeping bees in woodland as long as it isn't too heavily shaded for too many hours of the day. Almost all the colonies I've seen that are in permanent deep shade do less well than those with some sunlight. One I saw last week wasn't active until after midday, and then...

Probably!

It still surprises me how many "friends" ask for honey, then don't have any cash on them. Having got caught out a few times I say I'll wait until they can pay, and the honey goes back into the box.

Please to hear it :)

This summer I was quite shocked to see 8oz of runny honey in an NT gift shop priced at £12.

Yes, leave it on all year round. It will help the bees regulate the hive temperature on hot summer days as well as on cold winter days.

None, I would not buy a swarm of any size.

I don't know about you Finman, but my boots have never yet been stung but if they were then I could clean them as easily as I could clean any other footwear.

:iagree: They're better than wellies because they have reinforced toe caps and are made of leather so the feet don't sweat as much. A bit more expensive though.

"Honey from Webb(s) of Hawkhurst"?

Try joining your local association and then wait for their for sale ads. If you do decide to buy second hand you need to clean everything carefully before using it with bees. Read this from Beebase/NBU "Cleaning and Sterilising Hives" http://www.nationalbeeunit.com/downloadDocument.cfm?id=1069