Bee Hives on Allotments

[einsteinagogo]

Hi, I was going to move some of my Hives, onto an Allotment Site, not actually on my allotment plot (alhough in our Tenancy Agreements) it does state we can keep Bees, as well as Chickens and Rabbits. (so If it was another allotment holder, there's not much we could do, and hope they would use common Beekeeping sense).

But on the un-used border, which exists outside the allotments, between rabbit proof fence, and existing hedge-row, which beyond the hedge-row is OSR, and potatoes etc (another field of some sheep).

The Hive entrances would be located towards open fields, as to not cause flight paths over allotment holders plots.

Several committe members (to which I am one), were happy about Bees, but now one committe member is concerned about the "Risk" and Liability of the Association, that we may get sued, if someone gets stung!

I have asked/contacted ALL Allotment Holders, and/are in favour, and no-one has sites any dislike to bees/wasps, e.g. has severe allergic reations to bee stings, that they know off...

I did explain, the risk is no greater, than selling Eggs, to allotment members from the Allotment Chickens! with Risks of Salmonella! (I would think higher of giving someone upset stomach!) than a bee sting!

what are your thoughts.....

 

[MuswellMetro]

Hi, I was going to move some of my Hives, onto an Allotment Site, not actually on my allotment plot (alhough in our Tenancy Agreements) it does state we can keep Bees, as well as Chickens and Rabbits. (so If it was another allotment holder, there's not much we could do, and hope they would use common Beekeeping sense).

But on the un-used border, which exists outside the allotments, between rabbit proof fence, and existing hedge-row, which beyond the hedge-row is OSR, and potatoes etc (another field of some sheep).

The Hive entrances would be located towards open fields, as to not cause flight paths over allotment holders plots.

Several committe members (to which I am one), were happy about Bees, but now one committe member is concerned about the "Risk" and Liability of the Association, that we may get sued, if someone gets stung!

I have asked/contacted ALL Allotment Holders, and/are in favour, and no-one has sites any dislike to bees/wasps, e.g. Has severe allergic reactions to bee stings, that they know of...

what are your thoughts.....

if you are a member of a BKA associated to the BBKA then you have £5m public liability insurance for such event as being sued ( unlikely to succeed anyway), it would be you not the allotment society that would be the defendant as you are in control of the bees (in As much that wild animals can be controlled LOL)

I came across similar problems, after five years i nearly gave up but eventually their AGM approved bees on the site ( 300 10 poles plots but only allowed 3 beehives... I gave up as another plot holder want bees on there, but is not a BBKA member, came to me asking for support...soory not my problems and you are not in my BKA otherwise i might be more helpful

ask the farmer if you can put them at the field edge for a couple of jars of honey and B**gger the committee.....

 

[einsteinagogo]

Yes, I'm BKA associated to the BBKA!

I did mention, it would be "me liable" and not the Association, but member still stated that was rubbish, and it's a lot of hassle!

I'll have to get the details on Insurance, print out to read to member!

 

[Heather]

The person stung would need to prove it was from your hive-- with OSR nearby there will be many bees from lord knows where..

There is always one who bangs the health and safety drum- tell him not to dig in the soil - may get Clostridia or Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome

If you have majority support then go for it- be very aware of swarm control- and sell them discount honey (making sure they know of the reduction)!!!

 

[beebreeder]

Hi, I was going to move some of my Hives, onto an Allotment Site, not actually on my allotment plot (alhough in our Tenancy Agreements) it does state we can keep Bees, as well as Chickens and Rabbits. (so If it was another allotment holder, there's not much we could do, and hope they would use common Beekeeping sense).

But on the un-used border, which exists outside the allotments, between rabbit proof fence, and existing hedge-row, which beyond the hedge-row is OSR, and potatoes etc (another field of some sheep).

The Hive entrances would be located towards open fields, as to not cause flight paths over allotment holders plots.

Several committe members (to which I am one), were happy about Bees, but now one committe member is concerned about the "Risk" and Liability of the Association, that we may get sued, if someone gets stung!

I have asked/contacted ALL Allotment Holders, and/are in favour, and no-one has sites any dislike to bees/wasps, e.g. has severe allergic reations to bee stings, that they know off...

I did explain, the risk is no greater, than selling Eggs, to allotment members from the Allotment Chickens! with Risks of Salmonella! (I would think higher of giving someone upset stomach!) than a bee sting!

what are your thoughts.....

This has been discussed at lengh on here before, personally I have had to help a lady move her bees from an allotment for 2-3 years all was ok then one year after the rape had finished and the bees were a little tetchy, one or two got stung and the change of attitude was virtually instant and she had a letter from the allotment association asking for the bees to be removed within a week and she had no fallback site.

 

[MuswellMetro]

This has been discussed at lengh on here before, personally I have had to help a lady move her bees from an allotment for 2-3 years all was ok then one year after the rape had finished and the bees were a little tetchy, one or two got stung and the change of attitude was virtually instant and she had a letter from the allotment association asking for the bees to be removed within a week and she had no fallback site.

well i managed to get a empty hive on my allotments site, but had no bees to put in it, so just waited for the complaints.....two allotment holders got stung by my bees that weekend (Phantom Bees LOL...one had the body of the bee that stung him...a bumble bee....i played a trick and took ten drone in a jar...took them out and put some in my mouth....see they are tame bees...but vowed never to put bees on that allotement and gave up my plot....i'll even name them "muswell Hill Golf Course Allotments Blake Road N11"

 

[fiftyjon]

One of my apiary sites is the local allotment which I also have a plot. We are self managed and all were in favour of having bees, some were concerned about swarming and stings others were very keen. My bee hives are fairly low profile no one can see they are there (they are behind a wooden 6 foot fence that looks remarkably like the side of a shed) and most people do not know where they are and that's fine by me.
I try not to do any manipulations when there are lots of allotment holders around and keep my activities there fairly low profile.
It is a very productive site for honey and the drones in the area seem to be good for excellent matings, so I would rather not lose it.

I have a few other sites to move the bees should there be a problem but thankful there has been any yet.

They did require me to have insurance, the BBKA is sufficient and the chairman is very supportive which does help tremendously.

 

[alanf]

Locally, the council is supportive of bee hives on the allotment sites they run. But they prefer apiaries to be established and maintained by the BKA. There are hives on other plots, they predate any recent policy. There may also be nothing to stop any tenant putting bees on their plot. All the 'policy' has been in response to enquiries, it's not written in the tenancy agreement.

From the council point of view it gives them one organisation to talk to. If a beeekeeper is out of their depth or becomes a disease risk it's the association who are expected to sort it out. The council also get reassurance that beekeepers are carrying insurance at the same time as reducing risk by not having hives against public paths etc. The arrangement works as long as the BKA are willing to manage sites, but it does reduce freedom for individuals to place hives anywhere they have access to. Recent establishments have been welcomed by other plot holders. There's a lot to gain in having resident pollinators, while biting and stinging insects are just part of being outside.

 

[alldigging]

Do a risk assessment.

There's one in the back of the 'bees in the city' book - or probably online somewhere.

If you've got insurance, been on a course and provide emergency contact details for another beekeeper in your absence then you've got that side of things covered.

If your risk assessment shows that you have eliminated risks - netting fences at the right height to drive bees up, etc

 

[user 6228]

Do a risk assessment.

There's one in the back of the 'bees in the city' book - or probably online somewhere.

If you've got insurance, been on a course and provide emergency contact details for another beekeeper in your absence then you've got that side of things covered.

If your risk assessment shows that you have eliminated risks - netting fences at the right height to drive bees up, etc

To combine to Bee colonies you have a piece of newspaper between them to stop fighting.

To combine a Bee colony and an Allotment Gardener colony you have a piece of risk assessment paper to stop the Allotment Gardener colony attacking the Bee colony
where do you put the paper?

 

[psafloyd]

Hi, I was going to move some of my Hives, onto an Allotment Site, not actually on my allotment plot (alhough in our Tenancy Agreements) it does state we can keep Bees, as well as Chickens and Rabbits. (so If it was another allotment holder, there's not much we could do, and hope they would use common Beekeeping sense).

You should get this formalised now to avoid confusion later if you intend to keep them there.

Our allotment leases excluded all livestock (despite statutory allotments allowing chickens and rabbits –*but OK as the foxes would have a field day). This was changed, but council insisted on public liability cover (may even have said BBKA membership).

Heard rumour of them stipulating minimum of the basic but that may be their own direct-let sites.

However, if on the committee, you should work out what the minima should be, because if there are none and another holder takes on bees because they're allowed to and they have no cover, your own BDI will be invalid.

Worth considering how it could affect you as well as others when thinking about these things. I have three beekeepers on one of our sites and though I know two have insurance (members of my own division), I am desperately trying to track down the third to see if he is covered a) for our own liability and b) for my members who may find their BDI is worthless if there was an outbreak.

 

[Little John]

I gave up as another plot holder want bees on there, but is not a BBKA member, came to me asking for support...soory not my problems and you are not in my BKA otherwise i might be more helpful

From time to time people ask me why I'm not a member of a BKA - well, that's precisely why - the 'them and us' attitude which they tend to foster ...

LJ

 

[thorn]

As MuswellMetro said, it is unlikely that anyone would sue either you or the allotment committee if they got stung. I've tried in vain to find such a case, be it successful or unsuccessful. A claimant would need to prove whose bee it was that stung them, and that the defendant was negligent in allowing his bee to sting its victim. It would be an uphill task.
In 40 years I've never even been consulted about a bee sting (although the leading case on compensation for flea bites is one of mine, and I have taken on bed bug cases too).
Believe it or not, even before the pernicious changes of 1 April, lawyers required at least a 65% chance of success before they would take on a case on a "no-win, no-fee" basis, as no-one likes to do a lot of work when it's unlikely they'll get paid.
What's more, it would need the claimant to suffer a severe reaction to beat the small claims limit of £1,000, below which he would not recover his costs in any event. That said, a serious reaction would make the case more attractive to a lawyer, if only for the publicity.

 

[Bob Bee]

Hi, I was going to move some of my Hives, onto an Allotment Site, not actually on my allotment plot (alhough in our Tenancy Agreements) it does state we can keep Bees, as well as Chickens and Rabbits. (so If it was another allotment holder, there's not much we could do, and hope they would use common Beekeeping sense).

But on the un-used border, which exists outside the allotments, between rabbit proof fence, and existing hedge-row, which beyond the hedge-row is OSR, and potatoes etc (another field of some sheep).

The Hive entrances would be located towards open fields, as to not cause flight paths over allotment holders plots.

Several committe members (to which I am one), were happy about Bees, but now one committe member is concerned about the "Risk" and Liability of the Association, that we may get sued, if someone gets stung!

I have asked/contacted ALL Allotment Holders, and/are in favour, and no-one has sites any dislike to bees/wasps, e.g. has severe allergic reations to bee stings, that they know off...

I did explain, the risk is no greater, than selling Eggs, to allotment members from the Allotment Chickens! with Risks of Salmonella! (I would think higher of giving someone upset stomach!) than a bee sting!

what are your thoughts.....

Been doing this for a couple of years, no problems, good to have a formal letter stating you're a BKA member with liability insurance We have 3 beekeepers sharing the space and a letter agreeing to treat at the same time (varoa) and that we will remove any colonies that cause serious problems. Everybody is supportive because we are at least 50mtrs from anyones plot and have a similar flight path arrangement. Good luck.

 

[AndyJThompson]

I kept my 2 colonies of bees on an allotment for the first 2 years everything was fine. All parties were very happy for there to be bees pollinating their crops and positive images for the local press. Last year was a very different thing all together my bees were very tetchy to say the least (weather playing a big part), old allotment holders were complaining of pinging and occasional stings, one chap in his 70s needed a trip to A & E after having a bad reaction. He had no choice but to decide to hand his notice for the allotment that he held for 30 years. I tried to reassure him and said there maybe a chance they was not my bees and he could get stung in his own garden, but he said the proximity to the hives could only increase his chances of getting stung (I had to be honest and agree). The owners of the allotment didn't ask me to move them they enjoyed the continued positive press. In the end I decided to move them and since that point have found no permanent home for them hoping the next week will see a change in this. The man who was giving up still keeps his allotment now the bees are gone. So in my opinion while its going well there is only positives but can so easily go very wrong I would give the opinion that no bees should be kept on allotments. Due to the fact they are a wild creature and their temperament can change depending on many factors in their surroundings.

 

[psafloyd]

Due to the fact they are a wild creature and their temperament can change depending on many factors in their surroundings.

I would argue that bees on allotments are fine, but you have to be be prepared to move them, as you would from anywhere there may be an increased risk of harm.

 

[MandF]

So in my opinion while its going well there is only positives but can so easily go very wrong I would give the opinion that no bees should be kept on allotments. Due to the fact they are a wild creature and their temperament can change depending on many factors in their surroundings.

This kind of attitude does irritate me. Why assume the bees/allotment holders will come into conflict? Put the bees there, put measures in place to screen them, and have an alternative location if things do go wrong.

If we all refused to try things that could end up going wrong, we'd all be sitting round in caves still.

Plenty of people keep bees on allotments.

 

[thisgardener]

we used to keep a couple of hives on our allotments, alls well until someone gets stung and you will be surprised how quickly peoples views then change. we moved ours off the plots to stop the bees getting blamed for every horse fly bite wasp sting etc.
I personally would not entertain an allotment apiary again, never had as good a crop of runners since tho

 

[AndyJThompson]

I agree with you MandF to as certain degree but if i was to be asked i can only go by personal experience as this is what makes us all who we are and in my humble experience i would recount my own story and recommend not to site on an allotment. But saying that if i was looking for a point of view i wouldn't only go by one persons point of view but a few points of view.

 

[clv101]

It's very hard to find the 'ideal' site. Especially for people living in cities. Allotments are better than most urban gardens and a lot of people do keep bees on allotments without issues. I'd say allotments are ideal, but they can work and for many people are the only available option.