I presume you have to fill a honey chamber with honey you buy from the super market.

I've spent hundreds of pounds on honey extraction equipment and haven't an ounce of honey to show for it, a pull cord that gets around the issue, I'd buy one.

Also, the inside of that transparent chamber will be covered in enough crap to scare the children. It's a fine idea I guess for people who are going to throw it out the moment somebody comes out with a pretty iLionCage.

There's somebody in my beekeeping magazine that has an indoor hive and they did a year long photo session on it, some months you can't even see in at all, if I find the article again I'll scan it in, it's kind of interesting.

great mousepad m8

Easily one of the best threads I've ever read. Keep it up!

Myself and the fam live in London and we have 2 allotment plots where we grow organic vegetables plus another plot which is a fruit tree orchard. My dad keeps banging on about getting a bee hive and setting it up at one of the allotments, but we've kept putting it off. Aim is to move out of London at some point in the near future. Makes much more sense to have the hive once we are out in the countryside.

Urban honey wins a lot of awards, particularly London honey. The reason appears to be the massive diversity of plants available, lots of boxes in windows, cut flowers for sale, that sort of thing.
Fruit tree orchards make excellent monoculture honeys, like heather honey, or orange blossom honey, depends what you grow, but that stuff fetches a higher price, although I think you have to have it analysed for 85% mono to be allowed to label it as such.

In an allotment, your main trouble will be neighbours and poachers. It only takes one knob who doesn't know the difference between a bee and a wasp and your hive is full of four star, but if you talk to the other allotment neighbours you will probably find they are mad keen for you, and not them, to put a beehive on there. They're really a lot less trouble than you'd imagine, just make sure it's facing an area nobody needs to stand in on a hot day between 11am and 4pm, because they're frickin intimidating in hot weather.

As for moving it later, loads easier than I imagined, especially a National Hive. Get one sooner rather than later, because I suspect you'll just wish you had, I certainly do.

My Tiny Tove mousemat is the envy of engineers everywhere. Feldge had it made for me, back when she felt like she had to put effort in. Ahhh... those were the days....

Could not be more impressed with this thread. I started reading it before lunch, and close to an hour later, I still hadn't eaten anything.

I'm probably going to call you BeeGod from now on. I figured I'd inform you, so in the future when I say 'Hey BeeGod', you know to respond.

[23:48:05] Gavjack Bunk > it's always a struggle for people to buy me stuff for christmas
[23:48:14] Gavjack Bunk > Now they can just buy me anything to do with bees


it's not furry when it has got wings

I'm not wearing that. Solid Gold Guarantee.

It doesn't even have a protective hood and veil...