laurence edwardsOwner at Black Mountain Honey

Calm Your Bees: Discover New Genetics for Peaceful Colonies

21 Sept 2024 · 1 min

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In this segment, Laurence Edwards advises beekeepers dealing with aggressive colonies to replace their bees with calmer genetics rather than attempting to breed calmness from a few existing hives. He explains that selecting from only two or three colonies is unlikely to yield significantly gentler bees, and recommends acquiring proven calm strains such as Buckfast or AMM. By introducing these genetics, beekeepers can work closely with their bees with minimal risk of violent attacks, experiencing only occasional stings while handling the bees in a relaxed manner.

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If you've got bees in your garden and every time you go near them they sting you, you need to change your bees. You're not going to be able to select from what you've got to try and get them calmer. People will tell you that you can, but if you've got 2 or 3 colonies, there's no way that you're going to stumble upon some really nice genetics by selecting from your own. So go out and get yourself some good genetics. It can be Buckfast, it can be AMM, it can be whatever you want, but just go and try something new, because if you do, you'll be able to do this, which is get right up close and personal with your bees. With no risk that the bees are going to violently attack you. You might get the occasional sting, but as you can see here, these bees are very, very chilled out.