Vineyards as sites

[Poly Hive]

Apart from OSR when pondering a site there are two things to bear in mind.

One is that your bees are going to cover up to one and a half miles out from the site.

The other is that the only way to check a site is to put bees on it as Manley famously said.

I once discovered a flow on an OSR site that caught me out but over the next 5 years from that problem I took close to a ton a season from it. Never did find the source and dear me did I do some looking. So never say never.

PH

 

[Mint Bee]

local vineyard sprays on a regular basis through the season. It has had hives slightly away from the vines for a number of seasons but from casual observation the number has decreased and they never seam to have many supers on during the summer.

There is a good range of forage around the outskirts of the vineyard and beyond, but they are penned in on 2 sides by sharply rising ridges. Could be this limits accessible area. lots of dandelions when not mowed. I don't know the beekeepers or how they keep their bees, its just my observation. Whilst there is public access, concerns have been raised over spray drift by dog walkers and neighbouring residents that I know

 

[Angularity]

Now that would be an excellent location.

Provence is lovely, but you can’t beat Calvados. Wonder if it goes with honey?