Author Archives: Emily Scott

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About Emily Scott

I am a UK beekeeper who has recently moved from London to windswept, wet Cornwall. I first started keeping bees in the Ealing Beekeepers Association’s local apiary in 2008, when I created this blog as a record for myself of my various beekeeping related disasters and - hopefully! - future successes.

Spring seems far away

Posted on January 24, 2011 by Emily Scott

The apiary snowdrops had progressed a little further in their journey up and out of the earth this weekend, but it was a bleak damp day for us beekeepers to be huddling round our cups of tea. No bees were … Continue reading →

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January’s bees are flying

Posted on January 15, 2011 by Emily Scott

Visited my bees for the first time since mid-December to wish them Happy New Year. To my surprise, they popped their heads out of the hive to see me (or, more likely, to poo) and were flying all over the … Continue reading →

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Module 6 here I come

Posted on January 8, 2011 by Emily Scott

I’ve taken the probably over-ambitious decision to take the British Beekeeping Association’s Module 6: Honeybee Behaviour written exam in March. I have about 9 weeks left to revise, which I’ll need because when I downloaded a past exam paper this … Continue reading →

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New varroa treatment

Posted on December 23, 2010 by Emily Scott

The Guardian reported yesterday on some promising sounding new research into a way to make the varroa mite self-destruct. The treatment involves introducing harmless genetic material which encourages the mites’ own immune response to prevent their genes from expressing natural … Continue reading →

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Giving acid to bees

Posted on December 11, 2010 by Emily Scott

Oxalic acid time at the apiary today. Oxalic acid is a naturally occurring acid that’s one of the beekeeper’s best weapons against the evil varroa mite – it burns their feet and they drop off the bees! We do this … Continue reading →

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Christmas candy

Posted on December 5, 2010 by Emily Scott

Today I popped down quickly to see my bees, or at least their hive. With the drop in temperature the apiary was completely still, with no bees flying at all that I could see. The snow’s melted by now, so … Continue reading →

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14/11/10

Posted on November 14, 2010 by Emily Scott

Finally put my mouseguard on: Now only bees or creatures the size of bees can get in. Hopefully a little mouse hasn’t crept in there already. Had a look at my varroa board, which I last checked two weeks ago. … Continue reading →

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Bee news

Posted on October 26, 2010 by Emily Scott

There’s been quite a bit of bee related news in the papers this week, some good, some not so good… The bad news Climate change and deforestation in Ethiopia means rare sweet white honey is growing scarce. It will be … Continue reading →

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Starting beekeeping – a practical checklist

Posted on October 10, 2010 by Emily Scott

Yesterday I went to a Ealing beekeepers association session. We were working through a ‘Starting Beekeeping – Practical Checklist’ produced by the BBKA following requests by beekeepers teaching beginners. There are eight sections to the checklist: Background, Manipulation, Basic disease, … Continue reading →

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Michaelmas daisies, bees’ feet and pheromones

Posted on October 3, 2010 by Emily Scott

Another wet, damp day at the apiary yesterday. But my little bees were still out in force, carrying back swollen pollen baskets filled with a bright yellow and golden pollen. I asked John Chapple what they might be finding, and … Continue reading →

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