The Beekeeper
Hi, I'm Matt, and welcome to Actual Honey! I've kept bees for 4 years.
My first experience with bees, beyond seeing them out and about on flowers, was a taster day with the Harrogate and Ripon Beekeepers Association (HRBKA) back in 2018. A morning crash course in bees, hive structure and bee biology left me enthralled by how complex these seemingly simple creatures really are.
In the afternoon we put on bee suits and visited the association's apiary at RHS Harlow Carr. I'll admit I had some trepidation about being surrounded by thousands of flying bees, but I found it mesmerising: the sound of their wings, and their focus on their work. They weren't interested in us at all.
The story so far
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2018
A taster day with the HRBKA at RHS Harlow Carr.
My first look inside a hive! -
2022
The HRBKA’s two-year beginners’ course: a term in the classroom, then a summer in the apiary at Fountains Abbey. At the end of it, my first hive.
The bees in their winter cluster -
2023
Completed the course in April and flew solo. The bees built up well and hauled in the nectar that became the very first batch of Actual Honey.
Batch 1 of Actual Honey -
2024
Passed the BBKA Basic Assessment, collected my first swarm (which became hive two), harvested Batch 2, and started volunteering as an assistant tutor on the beginners’ course.
The future residents of hive two -
Today
Ten hives across two apiaries, at Marton-le-Moor and Kirk Hammerton, and talks on beekeeping for local groups.
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Next
The theory exams and the General Husbandry assessment, working towards becoming a Qualified Beekeeper, while helping to train new beekeepers and spreading the word about local honey and protecting pollinators.
Looking for a speaker for your group?
Talks on beekeeping