Beeshack started as a hobby some six years ago with one hive, now there are 65 hives located all over the Liverpool area. The honey yield this year was just on half a tonne. This was double that from the previous year. All profits are reinvested year on year to purchase more hives and equipment.
In the third year of my beekeeking a local college approached me, keenly interested in using my apiary as a facility for training our future beekeepers. Projects funded by the Big Lottery and Social Housing Groups with a particular focus on integrating local communities and improving wellbeing have now seen the successful training of many new beekeepers. I am very proud to be part of such valuable projects that support the future of beekeeping. These projects continue to thrive. I am now a sessional tutor for the college that approached me, sharing my passion with the next generation of beekeepers.
Society has become increasingly aware of the importance of bees on our survival and with that knowledge there has been an expansion in the requirement for more hives. Numerous community groups have approached Beeshack to manage hives at a variety of settings. However, as I manage Beeshack from home space to work and store equipmnent is now at capacity.
Beeshack is asking for funding to rent a work shop/ small industrial unit. This will be used to make and store beekeeping equipment for resale to local beekeepers. Not only would funding help the expansion of a micro business, it would also be investing in the survival of the honey bee, so vital to our environment and food production.
The busy beekeeping season begins in March and slows down towards the end of August. September to November is spent preparing for winter, promoting the best chance for the bees survival through the cold winter months. During the quieter months; December-February much time is spent making equipment in readiness for the spring, this continues throughout the year as replacement and expansion of hives is necessary.
In return for funding Beeshack pledges are as follows:-
Wildflower Honey Bee Seed Balls; a blend of seeds perfect for pollinators. You will receive two packs, one for a sunny and dry area and another for a dappled and shaded area. Each pack contains 20 seed balls, each seed ball will have a mixuture of 70 - 100 seeds. (full instruction on how to sow are enclosed in each pack)
Drone: 2 x 227g jars honey at the end of the season
Worker: 4 x 227g Jars of honey two at the end of June and two at the end of September
Queen: All the honey from the hive (there may be two harvests of honey in a year, one being end of june and second being end of September.) All the honey will be extracted, filtered and jarred in sizes tailored to your specification. Would this offer meet one of your green credentials.
Beekeeping Experience: Two hours of practical beekeeping, getting to know the basics of how a colony works as one untit, opening the hive, lifting out frames, identifying eggs, lava, capped brood, queen, workers and drones. At the end of the session you get to take home a jar of the Liquid gold, honey.
You can gift this to a friend or family, voucher will be sent in the post, to be used during next season.