Bees: The Theory Class

I have been interested in beekeeping for at least 5 years now. Well before we moved to the UK. It simply got put on the back burner. I finally re-gained interest after looking into getting an allotment and noticing someone commenting on bees. The allotments immediately around me don't have any bees, so a quick search on bee groups put me in touch with a local bee association. I went to their 'tester' day to put on the suit, handle a frame, and see the bees up close. It was great and I joined that group right away. This was last Spring or Summer.

At the end of last year, I started receiving the Bee Craft magazine and wondering what I needed to do next. Luckily, an email from the group came out offering the basic theory course starting up in late January/February. I signed up, and here I am.

We have had 2 classes so far. The speakers have been great. They are very personable and knowledgeable. We meet for 3 hours each Saturday with a tea/coffee break in the middle which is nice for getting to know the others in the class.

They are very pro-National hives and have given us lots of information. Not too much mention of Top Bar or Warre type hives. I did learn that National hives are the most popular in the UK, while Langstroth are the most popular in the world, including the US. I'm not sure I know what the difference is - we went through the National hives pretty well, so I just need to read up a bit on the Langstroth so I can understand the differences.

We still have 6 more classes to go before the practical course starts up. I may be in a bit of bind for that one as we will be in US in April. Even so, I am moving forward with purchasing the basics. I'll go over that in the next post.