Following the successful tour of Thornes Beehives in July, West Wolds U3A were offered the opportunity to attend an ‘Introduction to Beekeeping’ morning by Thornes own Apiarist Sasha. Due to holidays and clashes of dates, a select band of 8 attended on 14th August. Starting off with an introduction on the history of beekeeping, the different types of bees and terminology, we got down to the serious business of beehive types and their construction, bee life cycle and the types of bee in a hive and their function, the waggle dance, hive health, treatments and feeding, and the beekeepers year.
After a coffee break with delicious cakes provided yet again by Sandra, we donned our Bee suits causing some amusement as we looked like astronauts on a space walk and went outside to open and inspect some of the hives on site. It was very interesting to see in real life all we had learnt about; spotting the different types of bee, inspecting the frames for signs of health, checking the cells for eggs and grubs, and watching the Queen. It is easy to see how this hobby can become addictive, as we all thoroughly enjoyed our morning.
Another of these Introductory Tours will be arranged in April next year; please look out for sign-up sheets at the General Meeting from February onwards.
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