Home

Putting the Beekeeper and Bees 1st

Welcome to Bee 1st.

February 2024

The shop is closed on 23rd and 24th Feb 2024 as we are at the Beekeeping Show If you’re attending the show please drop and say hello. Chris and Gary 🐝

February and March are the danger months for our bees, the colonies are now growing with plenty of hungry mouths to feed but there is still a shortage of spring forage around. Starvation can be averted by feeding fondant and/or pollen substitute, this will see them through till when the blacktorn and hawthorne come into flower.

It’s been a miserable winter with lots of rain and few really cold spells. Here in North Herts we haven’t seen a single snowflake this year but there are plenty of early snowdrops.

The Asian yellow legged hornets are still the most news worthy item , with 2 nests in London and a nest on the North East coast in Yarm. The NBU have destroyed 72 nests so far this year, with the last one being reported empty in Rye. This means there are potentially hundreds of queens that have gone into hibernation in Kent. We’re hoping there were no other undiscovered nests further north. Only time will tell.

We are pleased to say that after researching the various options available we are now resellers of the excellent Gard’Apis.

The traps have been designed and developed in the field in France by beekeepers. The design has under gone 28 iterations so that it only catches Asian hornet queens and workers. By-Catch is reduced to a minimum by using two different sized nozzles, the red nozzle is used to catch queens in the spring and autumn and the orange nozzle to catch workers during the summer. RRP £23.99 each, bulk discounts available for Beekeeping Associations.

For more information on the Gard’Apis traps then click here

Opening times:-
Wednesdays 3pm till 6pm
Fridays 3pm till 6pm
Saturdays – 9am till 12 noon.

Our address is:-
Unit 1, Green Gates, Lower Titmore Green
Nr Little Wymondley, Herts,
SG4 7JT
What3words = brands.towers.levels

Beginners Kits

Now in stock complete beginners kits, Hive, Suit, Tools and Smokers. Click here for more info

Beginners kits

Call us today to place your order for bee feeds or for beekeeping equipment or hives.

We are your local Agents and Stockists for

E.H. Thorne
Rawlings Jars and Lids
Jars and Lids
Bee Feeds
Medications
Storage Jars and Buckets

Bee 1st – Putting the Bees and the Beekeeper 1st