I hope no one is losing bees due to the flooding.
Hard to move hives in 3 feet of water.
Moved five hives with bees in to our dry orchard from Lerryn this morning, the river Fowey was flooding the poor bee-keepers apiary with 2 foot of water and rising, apparently the next high tide would have completely flooded them.
A fortunate contact via the Lerryn Women's Institute that Doris knew, as she had offered her Land-rover with snorkel that can drive through 6 feet of water! to help anyone who needed help. Apparently the lady bee-keeper had to move her bees at least 3 miles or they would have all flown back home.
A pedigree of Cornish Black Bees, so Sarah says.
The girls were out flying in the sun just now and they could be seen in a cluster on the frames with a mirror through the open mesh floor!
We now have bees and a sympathetic mentor, we have to give them back when the spring eventually comes, but we have also been promised some nukes? of bees that will fit in the National hives we already have for around May.( how much should we pay for them? local chap in Bodmin, local bees, seems he wants to swap some Land-rover bits and pieces with Doris)
But as for now we are beekeepers at last!
Totally off topic, but has anyone seen any newt spawn yet? ( one of my Bristol Freshwater Biology undergraduates has chosen UK newts for her dissertation)
Bees at last so excited -Every cloud has a silver lining they say!