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 bees in the log hive and to provide some basic educational material.
We took the opportunity to remove the hatch of #1 Eco ~Tree Hive to see how it was progressing. It started off as a small swarm in the spring of 2022 and has since developed into a bustling colony
Simon Kellam
Trustee of The Natural Beekeeping Trust