When I start back to the beginning of January it seems so long ago but in many ways it’s flown by, we seem to have been very busy throughout which is great… and slightly scary as this is supposed to be the quiet part of the year!
One of the highlights was going to a Midlands and Northern Bee Farmers Association meeting at Thornes, a beekeeping shop near Grimsby. It was great to catch up with other bee farmers and compare plans for the coming season. Going to Thornes also gave me the opportunity to get the beeswax foundation (Thin beeswax sheets that the bees use to start their comb off) and the frames that slot into the hive. One of the big jobs now is assembling all 2,500 of them and building the hive boxes that the frames will go in to!
The most exciting part of January was without doubt welcoming Misha to our small team! Misha has joined us through the Bee Farmers Apprenticeship scheme aimed at bringing younger people into the beekeeping industry.
At this time of year most of our jobs are indoor be it jarring honey or doing the woodworking but any chance to get out with the bees Misha takes and we’ve been able to do a few checks on the hives to make sure they have enough food and add fondant (basically like fondant icing) which is an emergency feed which should keep the bees going until the first flowers start in the Spring.
I’m hoping I can persuade Misha to write a little piece in the blog in the coming months as I think many readers will be interested in learning about routes into bee farming!
Valentines day is fast approaching so I just want to mention a couple of gifts we have. First is the Valentines day Hamper which contains a heart shaped jar of honey, a honey and oatmeal Goats Milk Soap (With label that can be planted and grows wildflower seeds!) a honey dipper and a full packet of wildflower seeds, all neatly packaged ready for gifting!
If you’re after just something a little quirky for a bee enthusiast why not adopt a bee for just £1.90 and get an adoption certificate to download and gift!
Thank you as ever for your support by reading our blog, liking and sharing us on social media, ordering from our website or buying from our stockists. As a small business we really do appreciate all of the support especially during difficult times.
We aren’t going to be attending any markets in February but orders can be placed online and sent out. We will be back at our normal markets in March!
Matthew Ingram
Holt Hall Apiary
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