Hive 07 · MallowQueen seen
Quiet confidence.
Seven frames of compact brood, polished cells at the centre, queen moving east. No charged cups.
- Temper
- 2 / 5
- Stores
- 31.4 kg
- Mites
- 0.7%
North Somerset · since 2018
Read the living hive.
A field collective tending twelve colonies, one wild orchard, and the old intelligence carried between bee, bloom, and weather.
23.6°flight weather
12 colonies~486k bees06:14 first flightSW 7 wind
Sun through veil mesh
at Bramble Bank, 07:42
01 · Colony in motion
Live comb.
Every cell below has a job. Watch workers raise the rim, stock it, and seal it—one choice at a time.
simulation live
The bright edge is not decoration. It is today’s construction front.
Frame 07A · east face · 34.8°CWorker agents choose unfinished cells, raise their wax rims, fill them with brood, pollen, or nectar, and cap mature cells. The smoker control slows their movement and building rate.
Tap or click a cell to read its state. With the canvas focused, use the arrow keys to move between cells and Escape to close the cell passport.
Cells raised000
Foragers active18
Colony statepurposeful
Work at edgerim + provision
brood pollen nectar capped
02 · Translate the waggle
A direction
made of dance.
Inside the dark hive, vertical means “toward the sun.” The angle of the waggle gives bearing; its duration gives distance. Move the signals and follow her instruction.
THE RULE
Angle turns the route away from the sun. Time lengthens the flight.
1.0 sec ≈ 700 m+24°
Figure-eight return loops
waggle run through centre
Old cider orchard
Yarrow meadow
Hazel copse
THE DANCESENDS US HERE
Decoded instruction
024° NE
1,260 metres from home · likely forage: field bean + yarrow
03 · Open hive records
Look. Listen.
Leave lighter.
An inspection is a conversation with evidence: brood pattern, weight, scent, sound. We open only when a question needs answering.
- 01 / hearRead the note at the crown board before opening.
- 02 / seeOne question, one frame, one clean observation.
- 03 / leaveClose warm, close straight, leave their scent intact.
Hive 03 · SedgeListen first
A low, even note.
225 Hz at the crown board. The colony settled within 18 seconds after opening; propolis scent strong.
- Temper
- 1 / 5
- Stores
- 28.8 kg
- Brood
- 6 frames
Hive 11 · SorrelRecheck 5 days
Room to become.
Fresh wax on the outer frame and two frames drawn since Tuesday. Added one shallow super above.
- Temper
- 3 / 5
- Stores
- 24.1 kg
- Space
- + 10 frames
04 · The honey ledger
Nothing taken
without account.
We harvest only the colony’s genuine surplus, after 18 kg is held back for winter. Every jar keeps a traceable field record.
2026 collective harvest684.6 kg−12% vs. 2025 · a dry hawthorn year
| Lot / flight | Harvest | Water | Kept by bees |
|---|---|---|---|
| BB-26-04Orchard bloom | 142.8 kg | 17.2% | 216 kg |
| YM-26-07Yarrow / bean | 174.3 kg | 16.8% | 234 kg |
| HC-26-08Lime / bramble | 132.1 kg | 17.5% | 198 kg |
| MB-26-09Heather edge | 112.9 kg | 18.1% | 207 kg |
| SE-26-10Late ivy | 122.5 kg | 17.7% | 225 kg |
Bars compare surplus harvest, not colony value. The bees’ reserve always comes first.
05 · Come to the field
Learn at
bee pace.
Small groups, quiet hands, no theatre. Veils and gloves are provided; tea is poured after the hives are closed.
Open hive / Bramble Bank
Read a brood frame
10:30—12:45
6 places
Field table / Wash House
Honey, place & proof
18:00—20:00
12 places
Wintering / Hazel Copse
Close well, leave enough
09:30—12:00
8 places
The hive is not a machine for honey.