BeesMAX runs a honeybee lunch club for the tenants at Bourne Business Park. Staff from the various companies meet us every month at the BeesMAX hive, joined by staff from other companies on site at the Park.
The lunch hour is very precious to staff, and we make good use of the time as staff have a relaxing and informative time away from the office, in nature, and with total distraction from the rest of the day.
During the summer months just gone, the single hive on the grounds of Bourne Business Park was separated into three separate hives. In October, we returned to check on the bees and invited employees from Bourne Business Park to come along and observe. Nicolas Cappuyns, Veronique Bradley and Jane Armour joined us for a very interesting lunch hour.
Nicolas, Veronique and Jane watched from a safe distance whist I opened each of the hives and checked on the bees. The bees had happily made themselves at home in the new hives and were producing good amounts of honey.
The bees had sealed the polystyrene lids of the hives with propolis*, so the lids fit snugly and would control the temperature inside. I added some jars of sugar water infused with garlic (a natural antibiotic) to the hives to help the energy levels of the bees, now that less nectar is available locally and also to protect the bees against pests and disease.
I also brought along some of our delicious honey for sale.
If you’d like to visit the hives at Bourne Business Park, please message me below. You will need to register your interest.
* propolis or bee glue is a resinous mixture used by honeybees as a sealant to plug unwanted open spaces in the hive. Honeybees produce this glue by mixing saliva and beeswax with exudate gathered from tree buds, sap flows, or other botanical sources.
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