OK you decide today is the day to visit your apiary. Before you leave home, bee suit, wellies and gloves, kit hive tool or multiples of, Queen catcher scissors and marker pen, of course, no one would ever forget their smoker (duh done that too) fuel and lighters… oh yes always take spare hive parts and a big roll of duck tape. Yup check list complete off you go…oops go back collect the bucket of soda wash, bucket for scraps and spare nitrile gloves for each hive. Now you are sitting comfortably I can begin the real reason for this message, please read to the end you might find it helpful.
I noticed the legs on two wooden hive stands had rotted and the hives were unstable, that’s OK I thought I have a metal mesh top table that will make a great hive stand. A three mile drive home get the table in the van and back to the apiary oh yes that is so much better, transferred the hives to the new table and go home feeling pleased with myself. The weather had been dry for ages but now the rain had arrived, we had flooding on the roads. Just by chance a honey bee was in my porch, I swear it said “the bees need you”…I get to the apiary and horror awaits…my metal table had sunk into the softened earth, two top heavy hives had tumbled to the floor and the sections parted to reveal frames and about 60lbs of honey….of course I had to be somewhere in an hour…I reset the table and supported it against sinking again, pleaded with the bees to leave me alone to rescue them and reassembled them on their table, gave each hive 6L of syrup, the bees very quickly settled down and were doing well on my last inspection…bee prepared for anything when you turn up to bee keep!

Peter Kirkup

Asian Hornet Co-ordinator