Since 2015 we have had hives on land near Keston in the London Borough of Bromley.
By 2018 we had enough hives and enough bees to yield a surplus. The second ‘crop’ was taken off in August and extracted by the wonderful people of Bee Collective (Bee Collective London) under the supervision of Caroline. This honey has been on sale since September.
The photo shows the Keston apiary in April 2018, at the beginning of the season with the long winter grass.
As we head towards winter the hives have been fed and we will soon be taking steps to protect them from wind, woodpeckers and mice.
The text and pictures below show the development of the apiary since it started….
At the time of writing (early March 2016) it is still cold. The bees will not fly much until the temperature rises above about 12 degrees Centigrade.
There are many woodpeckers in the area who are known to peck their way into beehives when other supplies are low. So the hives are covered in netting at the moment to discourage them.
When honey is available we will look for stockists in the local area.