July 2023 The Lost Gardens of Heligan We have just completed the finishing touches to the Free Living Bee Project at Heligan. The Latvian Log hive has now been occupied by a swarm of bees who are busily developing the nest in preparation for the coming winter. The image shows the bees propolising the outer extremities of the comb. You will also notice we've put some straw in the base of the cavity to reduce the initial volume of the nest area. The Observation hut has now got its interpretation panels in place providing both a safe place for families to observe the comings and goings of the b ..read more

The Lost Gardens of Heligan The mention of honeybees often draws people's attention, almost as if some kind of inner connection exists. Unfortunately, many believe these honeybees live in boxes on the ground managed by beekeepers running around in funny white suits. In reality, a honeybee's natural habitat is far removed from this. ​ Education plays an important role in changing this commonly held perception. The NBKT is very fortunate to be collaborating with one of Cornwall's top visitor attractions, the Lost Gardens of Heligan, UK. to help achieve this goal. ​ The Lost Gardens of Heligan a ..read more

Jonathan Powell - Natural Beekeeping trust These thoughts were inspired by Prof Scott Gilbert’s talk given to the Arboreal Apiculture Salon #20 and, on the same day, a visit to the free-living bees at Blenheim Palace. One of the first pictures inside a Blenheim tree nest . Photo (c) F Salbany What do we know about the alchemy of honey making? Do the bees make honey? The conventional view is that collected nectar is first stored in the bees’ honey crop - a sort of stomach. Here the invertase enzymes cleave the nectar's sucrose molecules into simple sugars, glucose and fructose, and this is the ..read more

Jonathan Powell - Natural Beekeeping trust These thoughts were inspired by Prof Scott Gilbert’s talk given to the Arboreal Apiculture Salon #20 and, on the same day, a visit to the free-living bees at Blenheim Palace. Blenheim Tree Living bees. Photo (c) F Salbany What do we know about the alchemy of honey making? Do the bees make honey? The conventional view is that collected nectar is first stored in the bees’ honey crop - a sort of stomach. Here the invertase enzymes cleave the nectar's sucrose molecules into simple sugars, glucose and fructose, and this is the beginning of the ripening pr ..read more

"The main idea behind my book Treatment-Free Beekeeping is that all chemicals aimed at poisoning the target organism, most commonly Varroa, circumvent natural selection, thereby postponing the coadaptation of the honey bee with that organism, a process involving natural selection. This is discussed in greater depth in the book." David Heaf, Criccieth, David Heaf methodically established the case against the treatment of bees in his new book. As David points points out in the article: "Chemicals used as acaricides (miticides) are in various degrees damaging to bee health. This applies as much ..read more

Bees working propolis (video by Alasdair MacKenzie) Dear bee friends and supporters of the Trust We are pleased to be in touch again after a long time with a few bits of information about our work that may be of interest to you. One of Jonathan Powell’s pursuits during “lockdown” was the construction of a bee-centred hive from pallet wood, This attracted a fair amount of interest in the bee community, not least that of Northern Bee Books who will shortly publish Jonathan’s how-to guide as a small booklet on August 3rd. We feel that this latest addition to the range of hives available to suppo ..read more

Dear Friends and Supporters In our last newsletter we indicated that we were embarking on a new project. Our decision to create a new website with a large collaborative element with regard to its content has now come to fruition, and we are pleased to present ,freelivingbees.com,,. In recent years many people in diverse parts of the world have directed their endeavours towards creating or facilitating habitats for honeybees. Our regular “Arboreal Apiculture Salons” have served to bring together admirers and supporters of the honeybee who share an interest in providing bees with places to live ..read more

“Humanity is at a crossroads, a literal tipping point. If we are to transform, if we are to step off the path to our own destruction, we are going to have to consent to letting go of all that we have created thus far.” Zach Bush Dear Bee friends and Supporters of the Trust So much has changed in our world since spring this year! The decision to cancel our conference, envisaged for late August at Dartington Hall in Devon was not taken lightly. Indeed, it has left us rather dispirited for some time, and at a loss for words. So we’re happy to be in touch again to share with you some of our and o ..read more

https://youtu.be/cvowyTgTlE0 We often get asked at the Trust - "Can you make a hive from wooden pallets?" Keen to take up the challenge, Trustee Jonathan Powell has produced a booklet showing how you can build the ultimate pallet hive. The Booklet is available from Northern Bee Books and major online bookstores. The Lock Down Pallet Hive - Price £9.95 Available August 16th 2021 ISBN: 978-1-914934-14-8 Text, Graphics and Photos: Jonathan Powell Published by Northern Bee Books 2021 Northern Bee Books, Scout Bottom Farm, Mythomroyd, Hebden Bridge, HX7 5JS (UK) www.northernbeebooks.co.uk Tel: +44 ..read more

Dear friends and supporters of the Natural Beekeeping Trust, We hope this finds you warm and well as we look ahead to a busy 2020. Upcoming Talk Trustee Heidi Herrmann is speaking at Mystics and Scientists 2020. Re-Enchanting the World: Consciously Connecting with the Deep Wisdom of Nature April 17 - 19 - Horsley Park, Surrey The Arboreal Apiculture Salon We have made available the recordings of the Arboreal Apiculture Salon in podcast/streaming format so that those who cannot attend the live stream can also hear the events. You can li first two are up on the Salon web page, or you can subscr ..read more