The Ampthill Bee Co.

The Ampthill Bee Co. Sponsor a hive • Support pollinators • Share your impact

Helping businesses boost biodiversity
Local honey included (obviously)

13/06/2026

Come and say hello to us at the Tipsy Bee stall at the Aragon Day Festival in Ampthill Park tomorrow.

We’ll be showcasing our brand new observation hive for the very first time, giving you a chance to get up close and see our amazing honey bees at work.

And to help get everyone into the medieval spirit, we’ll also have complimentary samples of honey cake and mead to try. And if that’s not enough, Dan will be embracing the occasion and spending the day dressed as a monk!

Whether you’re curious about bees, interested in local honey, or simply fancy a chat, we’d love to see you there!

Where: Ampthill Park
When:Sunday 14 June
At: The Tipsy Bee Stalll
See: Brand new observation hive
Try: Honey cake samples
Taste: Mead samples
Don’t miss: One beekeeper-turned-monk!

See you tomorrow!

Yesterday Dan had the pleasure of giving a World Bee Day talk to the brilliant Saturday Squirrels group at Flitwick Scou...
24/05/2026

Yesterday Dan had the pleasure of giving a World Bee Day talk to the brilliant Saturday Squirrels group at Flitwick Scouts.

A room full of enthusiastic 4–6 year olds, learning all about honey bees, pollinators, and the small things we can all do to help nature thrive.

There was honey tasting, bee facts, and even a live demonstration of the famous waggle dance! Thankfully one of our ‘special bees’ (also known as the 16-year-old) stepped in to help bring the dance to life, which definitely went down a storm!

Huge thanks to the group for having us. It was wonderful seeing so much curiosity and excitement about the natural world at such a young age.

Weekend musings…
20/05/2026

Weekend musings…

13/05/2026

A little behind-the-scenes glimpse…

On Saturday we introduced a beautiful new Buckfast queen from into a hive - one that will soon fill our last vacant hive at the Ampthill apiary - our bright pink Adopt-a-Hive.

She arrived safely in the post with a small group of attendant workers and a supply of food in her protective mailing cage.

For now, she’s settling in and acclimatising in the temporary nuc, while the colony gets used to her scent. In a few days’ time, the tabs on the cage will be opened and, all being well, she’ll begin her reign as the new queen of the hive. We’ll keep you posted on progress!

A quick walk to the local shop took longer than expected over the weekend. We were flabbergasted by the amount of bees -...
05/05/2026

A quick walk to the local shop took longer than expected over the weekend.

We were flabbergasted by the amount of bees - both honeybees and solitary bees - on an avenue of Holly we passed! Cue too many minutes to mention as we tried (and mostly failed) to capture this! But we did get one cracking photo for our efforts. This beautiful early bumblebee having a feast. And a short snippet of a honeybee covered in pollen.

Holly certainly isn’t the first plant that springs to mind when you think of bees, but when it flowers it’s an absolute magnet! The small flowers are packed with both nectar and pollen. It turns out the male plants are loaded with pollen (and never produce berries), while the female plants provide rich nectar and go on to produce those iconic red berries we associate with Christmas - but only if pollinated by our pollinator friends.

A perfect little reminder that even the most unassuming plants can play a big role in supporting biodiversity. Nature is full of surprises!


04/05/2026

A big thank you to Jewson Flitwick for kindly donating the hive stands for the Ampthill Apiary in Ampthill Great Park.

We’re incredibly grateful for the support. These are solid, quality pieces that will stand our girls in great stead for years to come.

As Dan’s face might suggest, they weren’t the lightest to get into position! So was great to have some extra muscle from the 16-year-old, who helped for the day (and seemed quite happy being transported around in the trailer!).

The hives are now looking resplendent in their new home. If you’re passing Westminster Pond on Woburn Road, you might just catch a glimpse. The pink hive is hard to miss!

Support like this from local businesses makes such a difference as we bring the apiary back to life.

Thank you again - we really appreciate it!


Ampthill

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Ampthill Great Park
Ampthill
MK452HX

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