- ONBG (OxNatBees) is an informal mutual support network for beginners and experienced beeks who aspire to practise bee-centric, low intervention, and chemical-free beekeeping in Oxfordshire. To join the group and share ideas, questions, information and experiences, please use this site's Contact Us form.
Next ONBG Meeting
Sunday 27th Oct, Steeple Aston
Twitter: @OxNatBees
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Recent Blog Posts
- Top Bar Hives, warts and all January 4, 2020
- ONBG meeting, October 2019: Hive envy! November 9, 2019
- Convergent theories September 17, 2019
- Learning from the Bees, Berlin – bees au naturel! September 11, 2019
- ONBG+ meeting, August 2019: insulation, cavity size, Golden Hives August 19, 2019
- ONBG meeting, July 2019 – what makes a good hive? July 25, 2019
- At the village fete June 30, 2019
- Learning from the Bees Conference, Berlin June 24, 2019
- ONBG meeting, 15th June 2019 – TBHs, Freedom hives and a surprise swarm June 16, 2019
- Swarm stories June 2, 2019
- Grow, shake or drum? Transferring bees between hive types April 26, 2019
- ONBG meeting, 6th April 2019 – TBHs April 12, 2019
- ONBG meeting, 9th March 2019 – new season, new faces! March 30, 2019
- New adventures March 3, 2019
- Training new beeks March 1, 2019
- Moving hives less than 3 miles February 21, 2019
- ONBG Meeting, 1st Dec 2018 – insulation and instrumentation December 30, 2018
- Learnings from the Learning from the Bees conference November 27, 2018
- Meditations on the Learning from the Bees conference November 8, 2018
- Hive insulation using cork October 27, 2018
Tag Archives: Swarms
Spreading the Bee Buzz #8 – Apis, Bombus, and many more
The latest in our series on beekeeping for a village magazine – written for non-beekeepers, and to suit the broad range of ages and knowledge among the readers. The poor spring seems to have both delayed and reduced the number … Continue reading
Posted in Multi-part series, Publications, Spreading the Bee Buzz, Swarms
Tagged AFB, Bumblebees, Solitary Bees, Swarms
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My first fortnight of beekeeping (and the two-swarm, one-hive mystery)
I had only half-believed that it was possible to attract a swarm. I knew about it in theory, but it just seemed so unlikely that a swarm of bees, with a whole world of hollow-trees and unsealed roof-spaces to call … Continue reading
Catching a swarm
morning – I have aswarm in my garden & am trying to catch it – but need some advice…. – they have gathered at chest height in a bush. Ive put an upside down bucket over the top of the … Continue reading
ONBG meeting & apiary visit, 15th May 2016
14 of us met on a lovely late spring day at Carolyn’s home apiary in Fringford. We started as usual by sitting in a ring and introducing ourselves, our experience and where we live – this latter helps people link … Continue reading
Posted in Apiary visits, Inspections, Meetings, ONBG, Swarms, Warré
Tagged Apiary visits, Inspections, Meetings, ONBG, Swarms, Warré
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Spreading the Bee Buzz #7 – Swarming season
The latest in our series on beekeeping for a village magazine – written for non-beekeepers, and to suit the broad range of ages and knowledge among the readers. Swarming season is coming I was down the allotments the other day, … Continue reading
Making a shook swarm
Although natural beeks employ a low intervention approach, there can come times when some direct intervention may be appropriate. I do not use miticides, rather allowing the colonies to utilise natural selection to find those that have the right behaviours … Continue reading
ONBG meeting, 26th May 2015
A dozen folk gathered after work at Helen J’s to inspect her TBH, discuss swarms and meet other natural beekeepers. The meeting kicked off with a demonstration of how to get a loose swarm into a box for hiving, then … Continue reading
