27th May

We went to the apiary to day to meet our bees for the first time.  They had been given out last week when we were on holiday and checked by the group.  So we lifted the lid on the smaller storage box, and there they were climbing over each other and filling comb with honey and nectar

The problem was no larvae and no queen bee!  We went through the 6 frames and so did the expert and we couldn’t find her, so Mike our main teacher and bee breeder found a new queen for us. She was put in a tiny wire cage sealed in with something like fondant icing and put between the centre frames .  The drones will eat the sugar and let her out, and by then she will have bonded with the others and will mate with them and hopefully stay in the brood box.  Mike said there had been a queen and lots more bees in there, but she has gone out and taken some of the bees with her. So fingers crossed there will be more bees and larvae in there next Friday when we look.