[beesontoast]

Hi all, my name is Phil Chandler and I had better declare a 'special interest' right up front: I would like to know more about beekeeping on allotments.

I am a director of "Friends of the Bees" - a charity being set up to protect and conserve bees in the UK and to promote more natural beekeeping practices. We have been asked to advise a local council on how best to allow beehives onto allotments, and while we have compiled some guidance notes on the subject, we would like to hear from anyone who has experience of actually keeping bees on allotments - good or bad.

[Aunt Sally]

It's such a good idea we've made a new forum for "Other Livestock" and this topic kicks it off

[richyrich7]

Yes smashing idea, I asked but am not allowed as someone may get stung and the society/council get sued 

[Foxy]

hello beesontoast! we are hoping to keep bees next year, just hardlandscaping a terraced area for them. Aiming to go to bee school first though.

[too many girls]

love the name beesontoast my dad won't let me keep bees as he say's they'll sting the horses, i told him i'd keep them on the other side of the farm and he said "they do fly you know"

[Aunt Sally]

One of my allotment friends has 6 hives but he keeps them usually in orchards.  I asked him about keeping them on allotments and he said the problem is take off space.  The bees take off at low level and very slowly climb which means if there are people around they keep getting hit by fast, low flying bees.  The bees don't sting but it does upset the people they fly in to 

[peapod]

love the name beesontoast my dad won't let me keep bees as he say's they'll sting the horses, i told him i'd keep them on the other side of the farm and he said "they do fly you know"

  Your dad makes me laugh..hes sussed you!

[richyrich7]

One of my allotment friends has 6 hives but he keeps them usually in orchards.  I asked him about keeping them on allotments and he said the problem is take off space.  The bees take off at low level and very slowly climb which means if there are people around they keep getting hit by fast, low flying bees.  The bees don't sting but it does upset the people they fly in to 

   I think I read somewhere if you put up a tallish fence or similar around the hives it makes the bees fly higher ?

[Aunt Sally]

   I think I read somewhere if you put up a tallish fence or similar around the hives it makes the bees fly higher ?

Thanks for that Rich. I'll tell my friend next time I see him.

[richyrich7]

We have a enviromental house in Leicester full of eco things one thing that sticks in my mind was their bee hive it was inside a 6 foot square box made of 6' fence panels with a few perspex peep holes, you can get right up to the fence and watch the bees from the safety of the "other side" and the bees fly up and over your head 

[beesontoast]

I have a feeling that there are quite a few myths about bees that need to be busted!

First of all, I have yet to hear of a successful case where someone has sued a beekeeper just for being stung. There may have been such a case, and if there has, I would like to hear about it, but getting stung by bees, wasps or ants is an occasional hazard of walking around outside - you can't expect to blame somebody for it.

It is true that if you hive honeybees close to ground level - something they almost never do themselves in the natural world - their flight path can cause concern to passers-by. The answer is to build a fence around the hives, so the bees have to fly up above head height before they cross any paths.

Swarming is the other piece of bee behaviour that people seem to worry about. The  fact is that when bees swarm, the only thing on their mind is finding a new home. It is very rare to be stung by swarming bees - I have put my hand inside a clustered swarm many times without getting stung.

[SnooziSuzi]

Yes smashing idea, I asked but am not allowed as someone may get stung and the society/council get sued 

How would they know if the bee was yours?  would they ask it as it's in it's final death-throws :blink:

[Kate and her Ducks]

I would love to keep bees and almost ended up with some this year kind of accidentally! Love helping my Mum with hers and looking forward to when I can fit in bee school and have my own. I am also trying to educate my friends about them as a number have expressed a lot of concern about coming to my house if I have bees! Don't want to end up a Billy-No-Mates!

[beesontoast]

love the name beesontoast my dad won't let me keep bees as he say's they'll sting the horses, i told him i'd keep them on the other side of the farm and he said "they do fly you know"

One of my apiary sites has two strong hives next to a paddock with three lively horses. None of them has been stung - or if they have, they kept it quiet!

You wouldn't want horses and beehives in the same field, as horses' curiosity would undoubtedly result in conflict, but otherwise they seem to tolerate each other.

[SMD66]

Maybe , (may-bee) you ought to ask people on the allotment what they think and if anyone is allergic to bee stings.  They may bee fine with it if you offer them some honey.  I read that the best time to check the hive , (which apparently has to be done  a few times a week eps at 1st to check for queen cells) is on a fine evening, this is the time when most gardeners are at work on the allotment so there maybe a risk there.
Good luck, hope you get to put a hive somewhere, we need bees!