Rename the hives: Unit, kindness, melody and freedom

As is custom on our Apiary, called no swarms we prisoners of the names of places, we caught them in – but only in the first year.  If they get through the winter, they are given new names – which are all virtues.  We started with faith, hope and charity.  The only one of the original registry hives, we started with five years ago is faith.  And she has re-queened at least twice.

So on Sunday, we set to the Apiary, that there was enough food in the hives after all the recent cold weather — and to remove any hives, who had not made it through the winter.  There were two such hives: Joy and confidence.  Joy went queenless in July and I re-queen not here, because we had so many hives with so!  Confidence was very weak at the end of the year-and I was not surprised to find an empty hive.  But what a surprise to me was that the Trust had quite poor Woodpecker damage around entrance …. which will require some woodwork to boycott.

So we now have seven hives!  New names are with bold.  Old hives are in italics.

Unit – probably strongest hive creation for all.  Caught the day before the wedding of the owners of the land, where we caught in swarm!

Kindness -good swarm trapped in a hedge beside local cricket pitch from a local village starts with the letter "K".

Melody -very black bees – possibly from the church bell tower in local city starts with the letter "M".

Harmony-imported from Essex two years ago.  Joy was her sister, but the joy was not through the winter.  Oh Joy!

Faith – (good old faith!)  Longest surviving the hive, have re-queened her with a thoroughbred from Western 4 years ago!)

Grace – also fully buzzy – but not as strong as freedom.

Liberty -strong but still quite buzzy!  Could be an old Queen, since this was swarm from the local Golf course (beginning with the letter "L"), which later triggered a violation on the same George bush about a week later!  We gave cast to a beekeeping friend – and it also has over wintered well.

Start this year with seven hives is a record and a nice position in have gone to a hive this time two years ago.  We have a number of friends who ask for bees, so I expect that we will go a couple of them as the weather becomes warmer.