Lowick Community Orchard and Lowick in Bloom, with support from a Sustainable Development Fund Grant, have bought a community bee hive and bee keeping equipment to help local people learn about bee keeping. Bees will play an important role in pollinating our orchard, and we've under-sown the trees with a grass full of wildflowers which will provide a vital source of nectar and pollen for the new bees.
The Lowick Community Hive is one of three hives at Hunting Hall Farm. The second hive belongs to Philip, a local bee keeper, who has kindly agreed to help us look after our bees. The third is Tom’s 50th birthday present. We're really excited about the new apiary! A huge thank you for the grant, Northumberland Coast AONB SDF!
The community bee hive and Tom's hive came in a kit - so here he is making them in the old tractor house.
Philip at the apiary at Hunting Hall :)
Calming the new bees in the travel box with a smoker
The new bees on a frame that will be put inside the brood box (the big box on the bottom of the hive).
This is the brood box here the bees will breed and live.
Philip putting the lid on the brood box. Once it becomes full and the bees are well established and starting to make honey, another, smaller box will be added on top called a 'super'. The super is where the honey is stored by the bees that we can harvest.
Philip feeding his new bees with a sugar solution to keep them going until they can make enough honey to feed themselves.
