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DeeBee

New Bee
Joined
Apr 29, 2012
Messages
12
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Location
Southern Lincolnshire
Hive Type
None
I am thinking of keeping Bees and I need to test the water so I joined your forum for advice. I live in a small Lincolnshire town only 200 meters from the countryside, mainly wheat fields. There is an abundance of gardens with flowers all around me and my garden, though small, is well protected from winds and south facing. Next month we have an agricultural show where Beekeepers from the Peterborough area will be in attendance, I have contacted them and will meet them with a view of joining their Beekeeping Association.
I attach a rainy photo of my garden and am thinking 'is this too small' for keeping Bees? Perhaps you could advise me please. Thanks in advance DB.
 
I wouldnt keep bees there as limited room and close to neighbours.
 
Sadly, I think that it is too small and enclosed an area. The bees need somewhere that they wont feel disturbed all the time.
Do join your local association and maybe you could keep a hive on another members apiary?
 
Afraid I agree. Checking on their progress would be very hard without upsetting the neighbours. Find a BKA with an apiary where you can learn about bees and maybe keep your first ones. Then, when you make some contacts you might find somewhere to keep your bees.

Alternative is to move house. In the meantime why not make a solitary bee house or three. Fascinating in their own way.
 
I have seen bees in smaller spaces so I think you can keep bees in your garden but there are a few factors to consider.

As the garden is smallish then the hive will need to be turned so the entrance faces one of the fences or hedges. The bees will then tend to fly up and over the fence rather than straight across your lawn. The issue is what is on the other side of the fence and will you neighbours be happy with bees flying over the fence?

On the right of your picture the garden behind looks as if it has tall shrubs/bushes behind the hedge and if this is so then a hive facing that trellis is one option. The other is the bit we can't see, which is round to the left behind your shed/summerhouse and underneath the big tree. So long as it is not damp there and it gets a bit of sun each day that could be the best place.

A more radical option would be to raise the hive and put it on top of your shed - but access will be difficult unless you build a platform and the hive would of course be visible to all and sundry and every time little Tommy is stung by a wasp it will be your bees which are at fault.

Another option is to put the hive inside the shed with the entrance cut in the wall and facing the back fence. This would be a bee house and they are a well established way of keeping bees, especially in parts of Europe. A big advantage is you can inspect your bees even when it is raining but there would be a few modifications needed to be done to the shed, for example modifying the windows so bees which come into the shed when you inspect can escape.

So, I think it is very possible but you would be well advised to find an alternative site just in case you need to move the bees at some point if they become troublesome.
 
If the bees are having an "off" day then that garden could well be unusable.
 
Have you thought about getting an allotment? You may still have problems with siting a hive there but at least you wouldn't have to worry about your neighbours children. You would also have the option to grow herbs and flowers for the bees and they would have the other allotments to forage and pollinate too.

Something to think about?
Ziggy
 
If the bees are having an "off" day then that garden could well be unusable.

I agree,but not so much the size of the garden being a problem,more the close proximity of the Neighbours,could perhaps buy the neighbours a bee suit each,or ask them nicely not to use their gardens during daylight hours,or to use the door of the house just over the fence.
 
I have been trying for nine years to get an allotment but no go even though we live in the country. I attach some photos taken from upstairs. The fence behind my property is a public right of way footpath (dirt path) about 3 meters wide, runs all the way to the countryside 300 meters. Im making excuses here its just not practical is it?
 
Hi DeeBee,

Shame about not being able to get an allotment, I've seen hives set up in smaller gardens - there was a video on utube - however I agree that your garden really doesn't seem practical. How well do you know the local landowners? That wheat field 200 yards away may not have any forage but it could probably house a hive and the bees would still have the gardens to come back to but without the poblems.

My plan b if anything went wrong at home is a sheep farm, no forage, but only a mile from home. I'd have to protect the hive from the sheep but what's a few pallets and fence posts?

Good luck
Ziggy
 
I kept bees in my garden for a season but ended up having to move them. They did not cause any problems but they could have easily. I think I was being a bit blind as to what could happen. Try and get an out apiary to site your bees on. Bees can turn nasty with just the weather, end of a flow being queenless and so on.
 
Don't be discouraged. You just need to find an alternative site, a lot beekeepers outgrow their original site and need to find other spaces. Time to start chatting to local farmers & other landowners, many are keen.
 
Join an association - they may help you with a solution - my association allows members to keep their bees at the association apiary for a nominal charge or maybe someone will be able to point you to an out apiary.
 
Join an association - they may help you with a solution - my association allows members to keep their bees at the association apiary for a nominal charge or maybe someone will be able to point you to an out apiary.

Thank you thats a brilliant idea! The beekeeping association I am thinking of joining have invited me to come and take a look over some garden set ups in the area. This could be the right thing to do, I will ask, thank you, DB
 
I would have to agree with the route of joining local bka and finding somewhere (either association apiary or other landowner) as being the best choice. You could try to keep bees in your garden however most people recommend having at least 2 hives (this really helps when you need to donate a frame of eggs / caped brood or whatever from a strong hive to a weaker hive) and in my experience 2 hives quickly becomes 4 ... 6 .. 12!
 
Or talk to a local farmer about keeping them in a corner of a field. Best is a dairy / sheep farmer rather than arable (pesticide). And you'd need to fence off the area. Several beekeepers close to us do that.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I have looked after a hive in a garden with a similar size to your garden for a disabled friend of mine and it can be done but not without its problems.

It does give me no end of stress I just keep thinking what if, what if, but it gives my friend and his wife immense pleasure and as it’s a wbc hive looks great so I keep going.

What you have to do is keep the most gentle bee available from a reliable breeder (not easy when you don’t know) and even consider re-queen each year then have a beekeeping buddy that can remove frames of brood and bees when the colony gets to big basically they get a nuc minus a queen to keep the hive manageable and not to big.

If you have a mentor then that will help as you will make mistakes and the bees can at times be very unforgiving at times.

I recommend you join your local association and get experience of the bees and observe their flight paths from a hive as we are talking 100’s if not 1000’s of bee movements in a few minuets at busy times and they can dominate your garden.

You will also be recommended to have a plan B so if you have to move them sap you can and an association again can help on this.

I would say that if you go for it after one season and you are hooked you will be looking for an out apiary and keep your garden for the odd nuc.

Good luck
 
I have looked after a hive in a garden with a similar size to your garden for a disabled friend of mine and it can be done but not without its problems.

It does give me no end of stress I just keep thinking what if, what if, but it gives my friend and his wife immense pleasure and as it’s a wbc hive looks great so I keep going.

What you have to do is keep the most gentle bee available from a reliable breeder (not easy when you don’t know) and even consider re-queen each year then have a beekeeping buddy that can remove frames of brood and bees when the colony gets to big basically they get a nuc minus a queen to keep the hive manageable and not to big.

If you have a mentor then that will help as you will make mistakes and the bees can at times be very unforgiving at times.

I recommend you join your local association and get experience of the bees and observe their flight paths from a hive as we are talking 100’s if not 1000’s of bee movements in a few minuets at busy times and they can dominate your garden.

You will also be recommended to have a plan B so if you have to move them sap you can and an association again can help on this.

I would say that if you go for it after one season and you are hooked you will be looking for an out apiary and keep your garden for the odd nuc.

Good luck
Thank you Tom that sounds like a good plan. I will keep viewing the forum so as I dont look stupid when I go and visit the association members.
I will need a suit for my 'hands on' visits where do you all get your stuff from?
Regards DB.
 

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