By Graham Torrie

Written an astonishing 414 years ago, Charles Butler’s book, The Feminine
Monarchie, tells us this about our honey bees: that they labour “under the
government of one monarch, of whom above all things they have a principal care
and respect, loving, reverencing, and obeying her in all things.” All the more
wonderful, then, that we hobby beekeepers are able to produce these amazing
creatures at a time of our choosing, for very little cost and with a modest degree of
expertise. In doing so, we can improve our stocks in qualities such as disease resistance, increase in honey yield, temperament, and reduced swarming.

If this is an area of beekeeping that you’ve yet to try out, you’ll find that it’s one of
the most interesting and rewarding aspects of our craft. To set you on your way,
why not come along to the members’ event at our training apiary at Crathes Castle
at 2pm on Saturday 8 July? See the July ADBKA Newsletter for more details.