Linda Hunt gave a lively and interesting talk at St Luke’s Church hall. While judging took place for the June Table Show, Linda entertained the members sharing how she got interested in the hobby and what she has learned so far.
Linda first became interested when she visited the Norfolk Show in 2016 and met members of the Norfolk Bee Keepers Association. In 2017 she took a short course in bee keeping at Easton College and became a member of the Norfolk Bee Keepers herself.
In her talk Linda shared some highs and lows. She spoke of disappearing bees and lost hives from her early attempts at the hobby. Bees can struggle to find food, be attacked by predators such as the veroa mite and the Asian hornet and of course sometimes simply fly away.
Over the past few years Linda has widened her knowledge. She explained some of the lifecycles of the bees in the hive such as the workers and the queen. She went on to describe how different types of pollen change the smell, colour and texture of the honey which the bees produce. Linda also brought examples of the hives and frames that she uses.
With a nod to the fact members were at a gardening club meeting, Linda ended her talk by giving examples of flowers which are particularly bee friendly at different times of year. She ended the talk with a question and answer session.
