Up, up and away
Honeybee colonies are their own masters as I found out a few weeks ago when I bought a small colony home. They had been cut out after a month in a garden wall which was about to be demolished and were healthy and active during the process. However, there were a couple of tell tale signs that made me think that they were planning a move soon.
Read MoreGite traumas
Imagine arriving at your holiday gîte only to find the kitchen full of bees and the cooker covered in honey – this was the welcome facing a family due to arrive at Gavin and Jane’s gite later on today! Jane knew something was seriously wrong when her last guests mentioned that there was honey dripping from the cooker extractor fan after they had used the cooker for a couple of nights, and there were dead bees on the kitchen floor each morning. With new guests arriving in only a few days, something needed to be done quickly.
Read MoreThe trouble with waiting….
I’ve been called out several times this year by families who have bees in their roof or chimney. These can be really tricky to remove and often involve getting in builders and scaffolding to reach the bees safely and repair the area afterwards, which can be costly here in France. Amateur beekeepers like me can’t pull apart houses or clamber up steep roofs (we don’t carry the necessary professional insurances for France) so all we can do is watch and give some advice, and come back later when the site is safe to enter.
Read MoreHole in the wall
I whizzed down to Ruffec last night as I had been called about a swarm (yes a real swarm, not a nest!) that had arrived on Friday night. They were hoping that I’d be able to get the bees out but it soon became clear that the honeybees had found themselves a great new home and removal would not be easy.
Read MoreView from the bathroom!
Honeybees just love the space between windows and shutters here in France, and with many holiday home owners arriving to throw open their shutters with the start of the holiday season, now is the time that new colonies are being discovered.
Read MoreBee removal
We will collect accessible swarms within a 30km radius of Civray (86400) - just call Jon on 0549 971017.
