THE GOOD LIFE

Ideas and advice for would-be smallholders in the country and the city

I’m a real ‘wannabee’. I’ve attended a course and been an apprentice to a beekeeper. I’ve written a book about wild bees and honeybees. I even play with my parents-in-law’s hive when we visit. Yet I don’t feel quite ready to keep my own bees. Life is abuzz at the moment – family, farm, full-time job – and I know I couldn’t give the bees the time they deserve. But that doesn’t mean we can’t have honeybees on the farm. Last year, I became a bee landlord. I told a few people that we had space for a hive and, within a few days, I met Polly. After a wander around the fields, Polly found the perfect spot for her Buckfast girls – at the end of a copse, out of the wind but with plenty of sunshine. It was also away from the chaos of the farmhouse.

A few days later, the bees were in situ and it didn’t take them long to find the blossom and flowers on our land. Polly didn’t take any honey that season – she thought it was better to let the bees settle in – but this summer, I’m

Sally and her family share their plot with sheep, horses, chickens and the odd peacock. Maintaining a vegetable garden, orchards, fields and a wild pond, Sally has perfected the art of smallholding on a budget (sallycoulthard.co.uk)

LOCATION

The Vale of Pickering, North Yorkshire

PLOT SIZE

12 acres EXPERIENCE

Sally has been running her smallholding since she moved to Yorkshire 11 years ago

looking forward to a jar or two of our very own homegrown honey.

If you’ve got a corner of land or garden spare, you could consider renting it out to a beekeeper. Your local beekeeping chapter can often pair ‘wannabees’ and beekeepers (search the British Beekeepers Association at bbka.org.uk). You could also advertise your land on a community noticeboard or in a local newsletter. If you live in a city, Urban Bees (urbanbees.co.uk) might be able to help, too.

Most contracts between beekeeper and landowner are informal, while ‘rent’ is typically a jar of honey per hive per year. Not all land is suitable – keepers will usually be looking for somewhere with plenty of local forage. They’ll also want to see whether the bees might come into contact with agricultural sprays. As the landlord, get the details in writing – including times you’re happy for the beekeeper to visit and whether they have public liability insurance.

So far so good at the farm, however.

It’s been such a sweet success, there are even murmurings of a second hive…

If you’ve got a corner of land or garden spare, consider renting it out to a beekeeper