Instagram Post
Saturday 15th August 2026
🐝 A fascinating morning last week learning all about bees!
I joined the Garden Drop In this morning and had the chance to listen to a brilliant beekeeping session from Dave Cowhig.
Dave had such a great way of bringing the world inside a beehive to life. I loved his analogies and the pictures he painted with his words – from the guard bees acting as the bouncers of the hive, tough and protective but apparently not always the brightest, to the undertaker bees, whose importa1qnt job is to remove bees that have died from the hive.
We learned about the different roles bees have, how incredibly organised a hive is and, of course, the famous waggle dance, which bees use to communicate information about where to find food. We even got the whole dance demonstrated!
There were plenty of props to look at, beekeeper veils to try on and different honeys to taste. I tried lavender honey for the first time and absolutely loved it. 🍯
It was also a real reminder of just how important bees and other pollinators are to our environment and food supply, and why creating places where they can thrive matters.
And the garden is certainly doing its bit! 🌸🐝 It's looking absolutely lovely at the moment, with plenty growing and flowering to make it a welcoming place for bees and other wildlife.
There was some lovely teamwork happening in the garden too. A metal and mosaic table and chairs donated by Jim have been given a new lease of life, with James sanding them down and Carol painting them – and they've come up a treat.
A really interesting morning and a great example of how someone who genuinely knows and loves their subject can make learning about it entertaining, memorable and fun.
Thank you to Dave for sharing so much of his knowledge – I definitely came away knowing far more about the secret life of bees than I did when I arrived! 🐝🍯🌼
