neighbours liveing next door who are not happy

[rae]

I think the case highlighted upthread was a massive neighbour dispute involving ABH as well as bees. The neighbours were also stung repeatedly, not the case here.

I think you are on strong legal ground if no one has been stung, or there is no actual (as opposed to perceived) problem. The problem is, can you guarantee that this will always be the case? If the bees are good tempered, and you are a good beekeeper, then you are probably OK. I know that I'm not good/experienced enough to keep a full colony in a garden. A nuc, maybe....

 

[ryan_220]

Yer we will see i guess i will see what they say in a fue days and no doubt it will all come out in the wash. Just seams a but unfair as my three hive always keep away for there garden 99.9% of the time. kind of wish i did not bait this swarm of bees. Anyone have a clue what type they are ?

Anyway a pic of the said swam

 

[Mersea Bees]

Neigbours

Reading this post makes me feel very lucky in that my nearest neigbour is about a mile away but also very cross that people can move in to a house or area and quite aggressively complain about something they know little about...
In some way you would prefer them to come and talk to you rather than complain and you would be able to sort some thing out.....

I also have a pub and have had new neigbours which have just moved in right next door and keep complaing to the council the pub has been there since the 1800s they have been there a month and have more say than us...


I feel for u..... Good Luck!!!!!


GRRRRRRRRRR i am beginning to hate people........lol

 

[MJBee]

I would move them as soon as possible and replace them with EMPTY hives, then when your miserable neighbours come to complain you can say "bees, what bees"

 

[Roy S]

My hives or back yard is hardly a state and is inclosed at the bottom of the garaden with woodn 8ft fence around them takes me 5mins a colonie so i hardly take forever. I think your missing the point my bees dont go in there garden. Its only because the feral swarm i got swarmed as i faild to catch the queen in time my hives all three or them are never a problem.

I didnt say YOUR hives or back yard/garden were a state, just an observation on some I HAVE seen!!!

I think YOU are missing a point here, you are keeping bees that you cant guarantee will not sting anyone, you dont know if anyone is hypersensitive to stings. You also state that they dont go in your neighbours garden?? how do you guarantee that?

I'm not siding with your neighbours, just pointing out that not everyone is enamoured by our wonderful creatures, and in urban situations the one thing you CAN guarantee is that bees can and will be unpredictable. If you have neighbours that are unhappy with the situation....sadly they will win. Unless you can win them round, but I wouldnt hold my breath.

At the end of the day is it worth the grief? an out apiary is the best solution.

 

[jezd]

I didnt say YOUR hives or back yard/garden were a state, just an observation on some I HAVE seen!!!

I think YOU are missing a point here, you are keeping bees that you cant guarantee will not sting anyone, you dont know if anyone is hypersensitive to stings. You also state that they dont go in your neighbours garden?? how do you guarantee that?

I'm not siding with your neighbours, just pointing out that not everyone is enamoured by our wonderful creatures, and in urban situations the one thing you CAN guarantee is that bees can and will be unpredictable. If you have neighbours that are unhappy with the situation....sadly they will win. Unless you can win them round, but I wouldnt hold my breath.

At the end of the day is it worth the grief? an out apiary is the best solution.

Finally some sanity in this thread, we dont have a right to keep bees and in urban areas its never easy. Your neighbours reaction seems reasonable given that they are not his bees and its your activity causing him/her to worry.

Not siding honestly, but beekeepers have a responsibility and some responses in this thread remind me why problems occur (ie got tell them to f*&K off).

Good luck sorting things out, 99% of people do work on the jar of honey approach from what I have seen (never work for me mind lol).

Jez

 

[Widdershins]

Hi Ryan, I really feel for you. I can see both sides of the argument but disputes with neighbours can be difficult particularly when feelings are running high. Try and talk to them and take a jar of honey as a peace offerring. Tell them that you are looking for somewhere to re-locate your hives but explain that this has to be 3miles away in the interim. Suggest that they might like to look in a hive and see what is going on. Borrow a suit and give them a tour. Explain bees don't want to sting as they will die. Give them a can of insect bite spray just in case. Turn on the charm. If you have patience read the fable of 'The Rich man and the Tanner'. The patience of the tanner overcomes the rich mans wishes because eventually he tires of moaning about the tanner's business.

Think this is the way to go - can't you try and educate them? Surely the little ones are doing Bee related subjects at school? (I know most of them round this way are at the moment!) Maybe give them some comb to look at, offer to show them the bees?
I think you need to calm the situation down, rather than inflame it.

Having said that, everyone should always have a Plan B (..and C, D, E etc!) purely for this reason.

I always look at someone getting stung by my bees, as a waste of a bee.

 

[Teebeeaitch]

The situation where someone complains to the council should be straightforward. Importantly, there is no specific legislation to prevent you keeping bees. However, there is legislation should they cause a statutory nuisance to your neighbours. (EPA 1990 S.79) Perceived nuisance would not be good enough. Council officers would normally try to resolve any such complaint informally. This would probably be a standard letter asking you to consider what actions you could take to resolve the problem. They should not informally suggest you stop keeping bees. It would be down to the complainant to gather evidence to make a case. The best grounds from the complainants view would be nuisance from spotting or if the siting of the hive was so bad that the flight path was a real & obvious problem. Swarming from the odd hive would not be considered a nuisance unless it became excessive. As swarming is of limited duration, it is unlikely to be considered a statutory nuisance in its own right. All said and done, you have to live with your neighbours so try to be nice.

 

[Mike a]

I agree with the last three posts.

You may feel you have the right to do as you please within your garden which is all well and good until there is a complaint or one of their kids get stung and it won't matter if its a wasp or mosquito you and your bees will be blamed.

Would you feel safe inspecting them without a veil or gloves on? I know I wouldn't risk it but your neighbours have no choice.

I have had a few colonies which have become queenless and turned defensive or even aggressive and it is not nice having bees bounce off my veil and following me back to my car after I'm finished.

Sorry, I think you really need to consider your neighbours and move them to an out apiary.

 

[ryan_220]

Well to round this up my grandad said to move them so its the end of it really as its his house and he just does not want the crap from it all.
Which is fair enoth, if it was my house it would be come and have alook failing that fook off lol

But there is light at the end a man i work with one of 4 electrical enginners me being one of them. Has a farm 4 miles away from me and 5-6 from my bees and he is happy for me to move them there. He is out in the sticks with a brook running though it, so with abit of luck it will suit the bees fine.

And thanks for all the comments

 

[steve1958]

Sounds like their new home could turn out to be a Bee Paradise.

I had a minor problem with one of my neighbours a few weeks back.
Fortunately one of our more experienced local association members went and had a chat with them.
He was able to put their mind at ease and give them a contact number should they have any problems or concerns.

Often input from a third party can be of great benefit.
(Worked for me anyway).

 

[Rosti]

Ryan, it sound like you have a good solution, once you have gone through the hassle of moving you may look back on this and decide you and your bees are better off. Good luck. R

 

[thurrock bees]

I would move them as soon as possible and replace them with EMPTY hives, then when your miserable neighbours come to complain you can say "bees, what bees"

i would move them but set up a hive as said above. and when they complain just tell them its been empty for months and watch their reaction.

 

[VEG]

Having kept bees in my front garden for a few years, a few weeks ago they decided to swarm. After seeing this my wife was terrified not for herself but for any passer by that may have got caught up in it. The question to be asked is what would happen if we were living on the other side of the fence knowing nothing about bees?
Many major neighbour disputes start over a lot less and can go on for years.
I have now moved all my hives to my out apiary simply to put minds at ease. I didnt have any legal requirement to move them nor did anyone complain one neighbour actually said it was amazing.
Bees can kill with one sting remember if the person is allergic and some never know they are untill its too late.

 

[Rosti]

i would move them but set up a hive as said above. and when they complain just tell them its been empty for months and watch their reaction.

Now that really is a bait hive with a twist!

 

[ryan_220]

Yep maybe it will be better off for them out the way. I belive from my grandad whoo is very upset about it all. It was the house wife that was "hell bent" that they had to go not so much him. I guess he was the puppet for her. Iam not angery about it just disappointed in all honesty.
My grandad did say that things would never be the same between him and next door and i think it upset my grandad more who is 79 this year which is why iam disappoited about.
Funny thing is he the bloke next door or her has said nothing to me, i will proberly snap if they do and give him/her some verbal abuse " i will feel better after"

But i can see where they are comeing from just seams alittle unfair when they have been there two years. They never said anything about them in this time and they new they where there.

Maybe this is a lesson to some of the new people joining and starting out with bees

 

[grizzly]

Good point Ryan

I had a hive in my garden last year, as well as out Apiarys, my neighbours on one side were really interested and encouraged me, i tried it, it worked quite well, but i got fed up with wondering what was going on when i wasnt around, it was a strong colony, and a couple of times when it was really hot they did go into other gardens after water in ponds, bird baths and leaking hoses etc.

What does tick me off is the media informing people that keeping bees is easy and its a great idea to stick a hive of bees in your garden, because its a recipe for disaster, even the most experienced of Beekeepers are not always able to be one step ahead of the bees.

Im glad i did remove the hive as we have new neighbours with 3yr old twins and a 4yr old, if you have a big enough property enjoy the luxury, but if like me you are terraced, then please rethink your plans, for you, your bees and the health of others.

 

[MuswellMetro]

I would move them as soon as possible and replace them with EMPTY hives, then when your miserable neighbours come to complain you can say "bees, what bees"

yep thats what i did....but i also make a big show of giving honey to other neighbours in the road when we had our street party...oh you dont like Bees do you, when every one was saying how wonderful honey it was

 

[Busy Bee]

Now you have the Bees sorted buy a:-

ROOSTER A BIG ONE!

BUsy Bee

 

[skydragon]

Interesting thread and regarding an important quesion many newbeeks have...can I keep bees in my garden?

I asked myself this question and did some basic research which seemed to say the answer was yes - However, I suggest the answer is...not really.

It's fine whilst you have a hive(s) that are placid and non-agressive - in this case your neighbours will probably not even notice that you keep bees. But if (when) they turn nasty it's not really fair on anyone, including your own familly.

I kept a hive of carnolians at the back of my (very large) back garden and for the first ten months there were absolutely no problems at all, in fact my neighbours were fasinated by them and supported me keeping bees... then the bees changed, became really aggressive and started chasing both my familly and my neighbours. Not just if anyone went near the hive, but anyone walking within 60 - 70 yards got chased. It got to the point that the neighbours just couldn't use their back garden, which just isn't on. So the bees were moved to an out-apriary.

I still have one other hive in the back garden, as it is very docile... but the moment it turns nasty (and I am sure it will at some point) it will be moved straight away.

I love having a hive at the bottom of the garden as it's great to watch and my children love it too. But it has to be a docile hive and you can never guarantee this will stay this way.

So if you are thinking of keeping bees, live in a house next to other houses, you need to consider where you will relocate your bees to when they become agreessive.