I'm not a beekeeper

[Tudorboards]

Hi there, I wonder if you guys in the know can throw a few ideas at me.

There is the possibility later in the year that I will be purchasing a 1.5 acre woodland which lies at the bottom of my garden. I'm buying it simply to keep it tidy and enjoy walking around it and it will keep me busy when I retire pruning trees, making birdboxes and other stuff that people do in the woods (steady!)

Other than a natural bark footpath created by the previous owners the woodland has been pretty much undisturbed with plenty of ash and oak trees dwarfed mostly by Holly. Half the woodland is so boggy you can't walk on it. It will fill your wellies up and that area is covered in thorns and brambles which eventually leads to a pretty fast-ish moving stream.

Behind the wood is more woodland for miles. The only human interaction this wood will get will be myself, my daughter and my 2 labradors. There even hasn't been any foxes or rabbits around. Perhaps it's quite hard to reach as you'll have to go via the stream, bog and thorney woodland. Well we've never seen anyfoxes or rabbits so far. In the spring you'll hear the woodpecker and at night the owl.
There are wildflowers in the summer but not loads. The only way into the wood is at the bottom of my garden, there is no vehicular access. My garden is quite big, as are the 7 other gardens which back onto the front of the wood, the other 3 sides is all marshland and more woodland.

At the far right corner of the wood (so about a 1 minute walk from the access point at the bottom of my garden) there is a flat open patchy area where the previous owner fiddled about making fires, storing logs and composting stuff.
This open area won't really be walked on much by us and as it's around 15m x 15m it would be a good place to have some beehives. Again I have no idea if it's a suitable area or how many hives you could put on there. Near that corner are the bottoms of all the long gardens to the right of my house so plenty of flowers for the bees to eat. Actually do they eat flowers? Ha ha, you can tell I'm clueless.

So now the beekeeping questions bit... Don't get annoyed at my questions!

My house is a semi detached, no access to the garden except through my garage, you can just about squeeze a lawnmower past my car in the garage and the garage wall. How often would the beekeeper visit the hives? I'm quite a private person and what I don't want is giving someone my garage key and they are going in and out my garage all the time, scratching the corner of my car, into the garden, into the wood, walking dirt back into my side passage (that sounds rude!) etc etc.
Would it be once a week, once a month to visit the hive?

Let's say it all works out and there is going to be 4 or 5 hives in that said corner of the wood. Will there be bees flying all around the wood and getting everywhere? Will the neighbours moan about the sudden influx of bees, will there be swarms? (Don't forget I'm Mr clueless so don't go mad!) Will they (the bees) be saying "Hey this is our wood now" and start stinging me, my daughter and my two labs? Can wasps kill the bees and take over the hives and then we've now got a major wasp problem?

Right, I'll stop rambling on now but I guess you've got the idea summarised in one sentence below.

Private guy who understands the importance of bees and his offering a portion of his wood for hives but doesn't want people randomly going in and out of his premises all the time and doesn't want to be stung every 5 mins

Thanks, be kind!

 

[Erichalfbee]

Private guy who understands the importance of bees

I think this is the essence of your post...correct me if I'm wrong.
In which case the most important bees are the ones that aren't honey bees, the solitary bees and bumblebees. Honey bees are not endangered except perhaps from beekeepers. Would you give a thought to creating a wild haven where wild things can live?

 

[Ian123]

I would suggest only offering the place to any beekeeper if you can sort independent access not relying on you being in or disturbing you. With hives placed in the woods you and the neighbours I doubt will even no they are there. Ian

 

[Tudorboards]

I think this is the essence of your post...correct me if I'm wrong.
In which case the most important bees are the ones that aren't honey bees, the solitary bees and bumblebees. Honey bees are not endangered except perhaps from beekeepers. Would you give a thought to creating a wild haven where wild things can live?

Hi thanks for your reply. Pretty much half of the wood is a wild haven, I'm already thinking about a load of wildflowers in that one corner as we won't be walking near there, cheers

 

[Erichalfbee]

Hi thanks for your reply. Pretty much half of the wood is a wild haven, I'm already thinking about a load of wildflowers in that one corner as we won't be walking near there, cheers

Then as Ian says, you need independent access

 

[Newbeeneil]

I agree with Dani and Ian,
Even though the place sounds idyllic for the bees, a bee keeper would be a pain to you and if it was me I wouldn't look at it with a barge pole as I require 24/7 unhindered access to my hives!
Make it a special place for you and the local nature, then just take a deck chair and sit quietly in that place you were thinking of having bees. Just enjoy what you see and hear in that space.
Good luck.

 

[pargyle]

Have a look at the Bumble Bee Trust... there are loads of bees other than honey bees that are really in decline, honey bees are pretty well catered for in the UK. You can create a lot of habitats that will suit soloitary bees and bumbles and even some wasp species that are endangered.. Lots you can do outside of honey bees without the need for a beekeeper.

https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/
Or... stick around, learn a bit and become a beekeeper ... get hold of a copy of Bees at the Bottom of my Garden by Alan Campion and have a read. Under a tenner on ebay ...

 

[Tudorboards]

Have a look at the Bumble Bee Trust... there are loads of bees other than honey bees that are really in decline, honey bees are pretty well catered for in the UK. You can create a lot of habitats that will suit soloitary bees and bumbles and even some wasp species that are endangered.. Lots you can do outside of honey bees without the need for a beekeeper.

https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/
Or... stick around, learn a bit and become a beekeeper ... get hold of a copy of Bees at the Bottom of my Garden by Alan Campion and have a read. Under a tenner on ebay ...

I might just do that. Thanks very much for your replies

 

[pargyle]

I might just do that. Thanks very much for your replies

Seems a pity to miss an opportunity when you have such a nice site available ... but be warned ... once you get sucked (or suckered !) into keeping bees ... it becomes an all consuming compulsion. But .. you get a few jars of honey and usually enough to sell a few as well ... you've got the customers available in your neighbours - can't get honey much more local than that !

 

[Cefn Eithaf]

Hi there, I wonder if you guys in the know can throw a few ideas at me.

There is the possibility later in the year that I will be purchasing a 1.5 acre woodland which lies at the bottom of my garden. I'm buying it simply to keep it tidy and enjoy walking around it and it will keep me busy when I retire pruning trees, making birdboxes and other stuff that people do in the woods (steady!)

Other than a natural bark footpath created by the previous owners the woodland has been pretty much undisturbed with plenty of ash and oak trees dwarfed mostly by Holly. Half the woodland is so boggy you can't walk on it. It will fill your wellies up and that area is covered in thorns and brambles which eventually leads to a pretty fast-ish moving stream.

Behind the wood is more woodland for miles. The only human interaction this wood will get will be myself, my daughter and my 2 labradors. There even hasn't been any foxes or rabbits around. Perhaps it's quite hard to reach as you'll have to go via the stream, bog and thorney woodland. Well we've never seen anyfoxes or rabbits so far. In the spring you'll hear the woodpecker and at night the owl.
There are wildflowers in the summer but not loads. The only way into the wood is at the bottom of my garden, there is no vehicular access. My garden is quite big, as are the 7 other gardens which back onto the front of the wood, the other 3 sides is all marshland and more woodland.

At the far right corner of the wood (so about a 1 minute walk from the access point at the bottom of my garden) there is a flat open patchy area where the previous owner fiddled about making fires, storing logs and composting stuff.
This open area won't really be walked on much by us and as it's around 15m x 15m it would be a good place to have some beehives. Again I have no idea if it's a suitable area or how many hives you could put on there. Near that corner are the bottoms of all the long gardens to the right of my house so plenty of flowers for the bees to eat. Actually do they eat flowers? Ha ha, you can tell I'm clueless.

So now the beekeeping questions bit... Don't get annoyed at my questions!

My house is a semi detached, no access to the garden except through my garage, you can just about squeeze a lawnmower past my car in the garage and the garage wall. How often would the beekeeper visit the hives? I'm quite a private person and what I don't want is giving someone my garage key and they are going in and out my garage all the time, scratching the corner of my car, into the garden, into the wood, walking dirt back into my side passage (that sounds rude!) etc etc.
Would it be once a week, once a month to visit the hive?

Let's say it all works out and there is going to be 4 or 5 hives in that said corner of the wood. Will there be bees flying all around the wood and getting everywhere? Will the neighbours moan about the sudden influx of bees, will there be swarms? (Don't forget I'm Mr clueless so don't go mad!) Will they (the bees) be saying "Hey this is our wood now" and start stinging me, my daughter and my two labs? Can wasps kill the bees and take over the hives and then we've now got a major wasp problem?

Right, I'll stop rambling on now but I guess you've got the idea summarised in one sentence below.

Private guy who understands the importance of bees and his offering a portion of his wood for hives but doesn't want people randomly going in and out of his premises all the time and doesn't want to be stung every 5 mins

Thanks, be kind!

 

[Cefn Eithaf]

You don't give your whereabouts but I would recommend that you contact your local Wildlife Trust and ask them for advice. They can provide bird/owl nesting boxes, seeds, plants etc free of charge. Also a work party to improve the woodland, if you wish. They will then leave you alone. Google "Wildlife trust"

 

[enrico]

Bird boxes will attract tree bumble bees that will nest in the boxes during the summer. Beekeepers have quite a bit of equipment and heavy boxes that need moving in and out of vehicles. Hence the need for some sort of access at least every week and yes, you will get swarms. Sounds a lovely spot, leave it like that!

 

[user 819]

Any beekeeper will want unopposed access at all times.

 

[The Poot]

You could always become the beekeeper.....?