All a-buzz at The Ritz

THE RITZ LONDON has joined the effort to save our honeybees, with the installation of three colonies on its roof. The five hives are sustainably made from pinewood and named for the iconic hotel’s signature suites: the Piccadilly, Prince of Wales, Green Park, Royal and Arlington. They each house 60,000 Buckfast bees from a farm in Surrey.

The Ritz is next to Green Park and the bees are able to buzz about the flowers and gardens of Buckingham Palace, Clarence House, St James’s Park, Hyde Park and the Mayfair squares and private gardens within a six-mile radius. The hotel’s roof garden contains aromatic herbs and flowers, including lavender, thyme and rosemary, as well as an apple tree. Designated beekeepers (from internal staff) have been specially trained in conjunction with the London Bee Keeper’s Association.

The gentle, highly productive Buckfast bees will earn their keep by producing honey that will be used throughout the hotel’s bars and restaurants. Ritz honey, which will appear in two annual harvests in spring and September, will contain subtle hints of London’s trees, including limes, horse chestnuts, sweet chestnuts, apples, pears, plums, willows, hollies and wild cherries. Sophie Perks