Hello from a locked down rainy Wales 😁

[Nick Lang]

Hello to everyone.....my first post.....so I thought I would keep it simple and just say hello

Been contemplating starting bee keeping....haven't any bees yet...but am getting ready...making preparations to get some in the spring next year

 

[Erichalfbee]

Hi Nick from Mid Wales
Have you ordered bees for next year?

 

[E&MBees]

 

[Nick Lang]

Hi Nick from Mid Wales
Have you ordered bees for next year?

Nope....not yet

 

[Spikedog]

Hi Nick, best from wet and very windy (storm) Ireland ... Some of my bees may blow your way ....

 

[HughMann]

Hello from wales here as well. Get some swarm traps up in spring - get local bees!

 

[Murox]

Hello and welcome

 

[Erichalfbee]

Nope....not yet

Then you should get cracking and order yourself a nice nuc of bees from a reliable supplier, before they run out of overwintered colonies. If you don't want to go down the Buckfast and Carniolan route most suppliers will have mongrel bees for sale that they have bred. Free bees from somebody else's swarmed colony are fun and most of us are addicted to attracting one every year but they will be an unknown quantity.

 

[Nick Lang]

Then you should get cracking and order yourself a nice nuc of bees from a reliable supplier, before they run out of overwintered colonies. If you don't want to go down the Buckfast and Carniolan route most suppliers will have mongrel bees for sale that they have bred. Free bees from somebody else's swarmed colony are fun and most of us are addicted to attracting one every year but they will be an unknown quantity.

I have been looking about....I'm probably going to get a nuc of Buckfast to start with....I would like to do the swarm trap thing...but I don't want to get overwhelmed too soon.....we are rural...and I usually get about four or five wild bees nests on my property each year

 

[Erichalfbee]

I have been looking about....I'm probably going to get a nuc of Buckfast to start with....I would like to do the swarm trap thing...but I don't want to get overwhelmed too soon.....we are rural...and I usually get about four or five wild bees nests on my property each year

Some members on here can get pretty heated about Buckfast/Black bees. You get what suits you to start with and as your experience grows you can make a more informed decision about what sort of bee you want to keep. My first new bees were Buckies. I keep all sorts now.
At least with an overwintered nuc you have a ready made small colony.

 

[Pembroke]

Hi Nick, join your local association if you haven't already. Information on WBKA local Associations – Welsh Beekeepers' Association to find it. Loads of local advice available and probably someone selling nucs of local bees.

 

[Austin]

Hello from wales here as well. Get some swarm traps up in spring - get local bees!

Hello Hugh, I too am a relative ‘learner’, I’ve never heard of ‘swarm traps’ - can you enlighten me, please? I live in Normandy.
Austin

 

[pargyle]

Hello Hugh, I too am a relative ‘learner’, I’ve never heard of ‘swarm traps’ - can you enlighten me, please? I live in Normandy.
Austin

This will tell you more than a post ... swarm traps are usually called Bait Hives: This is the definitive work on them written by Tom Seeley ....

https://ecommons.cornell.edu/bitstr...ves for Honey Bees.pdf?sequence=2&isAllowed=y

 

[Erichalfbee]

I always put two up. One in the garden on the potting shed roof and one on the field shelter near the apiary. Always successful

 

[Nick Lang]

I always put two up. One in the garden on the potting shed roof and one on the field shelter near the apiary. Always successful

So do you end up with two new colonies every year then??

 

[Erichalfbee]

So do you end up with two new colonies every year then??

Yes.
I give bees away though. Though not always the caught ones.
Some years ago when I got into trouble one of the forum members here gave me a nuc
Since then I try to do the same.

 

[Newbeeneil]

I put bait hives in all my apiaries. They are useful as an early warning to see if any of my hives are contemplating swarming. If there is interest at a bait hive from scouts I make sure that they are not from one of my hives by being extra vigilant during the inspections. If they aren't mine then it's free bees

 

[mbc]

Shwmae Nick,
Best way to start is to find someone competent nearby and getting the same kit and bees as them, maybe even ask if you can shadow them for inspections for a season. Your local association should be able to offer pointers.

 

[E&MBees]

Yes.
I give bees away though. Though not always the caught ones.
Some years ago when I got into trouble one of the forum members here gave me a nuc
Since then I try to do the same.

Something I aspire to doing, after I was so kindly helped this year.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Something I aspire to doing, after I was so kindly helped this year.

Yes Emily
It’s a good thing to do.
We all help each other.
We may argue and stamp our feet at times but we are a community not just a forum
A family if you like.