Introductory training

An Introduction to Bees and Beekeeping

Saturday 1 March 2025, Riddlesden Institute
Course fee: £45
This is a fun, informative half day classroom session, an introduction for anyone interested in bees, their impact on our lives and the environment. If you are considering taking up beekeeping but unsure what is involved, this course will help you decide.

In the session, you will discover

How to identify honeybees and the differences between each caste
Why bees are so important to our lives and to the environment
What bees do all day and what they produce
What a super-organism is and how it works
What a beekeeper does during each year
What you need in order to be ready to start keeping bees

What to bring along:

A pen and paper if you wish to make notes.

Next step: Meet the Bees

Meet the Bees

Early spring/summer 2025, ABKA Association Apiary, Aire Valley

Course fee: £25

‘Meet the Bees’ allows you to handle bees in a small group led by one of our experienced beekeepers. A 1-2 hour session, usually April/May but is weather dependent.

On the day
We provide a full bee suit and ensure you are properly prepared. We will talk about beekeeper and bee hygiene, demonstrate opening a hive, use of tools and smoker and handling a frame of bees for inspection. You will have the chance to hold a frame, which we'll describe and discuss.

You will hear the bees, watch them working, feel their warmth, smell pollen and honey and see different cells, bees and (hopefully) the queen. Then we carefully reassemble the hive and have time for questions.

What to bring along:
Clean wellies or boots, washing up gloves and glasses if you need them for close up work.

Next step: Our full course