It's All About the Honey

The first crop of honey from a new colony of bees installed this summer at Skellow Hall Care Home in Old Skellow, South Yorkshire, has been collected and already sold out, as the home declares its new hobby a success.

“We’ve had the pleasure of recently taking on some new hard-working recruits,” says Activity Coordinator Melissa Hathaway. “Our new bees are dedicated, work great as a team and on their own and put in all the hours they possibly can to finish the job of making honey. We’re delighted with them.”

The colony of bees were brought to the home by local beekeeper Duncan, from Scawthorpe, and have formed part of an interactive and engaging activity taken on by the home and its residents. The hive has been placed in a secluded part of the garden which is surrounded by woodland and berry bushes, making a great location for the busy bees, who are returning the rewards by making plenty of honey.

The residents have been learning all about beekeeping, including facts on the average life span (44 days) and how to keep their hives thriving (focus on the Queen). With regular visits and support from Duncan, the bees have produced their first honeycomb, which was put into jars at the beginning of September, and sold out at the summer fair two days later.

“Our residents are extremely engaged with their bees” says Melissa. “It has been a really positive experience for us all - practical and educational. We will be keeping the bees and their space nurtured, and we plan to sell more of our very own Skellow Hall Honey soon.”

The benefits of beekeeping are numerous, from engaging residents in a meaningful activity, to the therapeutic nature of collecting the honey, and the tasty outcome of creating edible produce. Honey has been collected in many different ways since 13,000B.C. and it is hoped that this season’s Skellow Hall honey is just the first of many to come.