Out of office: Emma Gaudern, EMG Solicitors
You complement your role as EMG Solicitors’ managing director with a passion for beekeeping. What attracted you to the apicultural world?
My great-uncle Oliver used to keep bees when I was a child, and I still remember going with him and my dad to where they were kept on the moor to check them.
It was something I wanted to pursue for a long time.
I was spurred on when it became clear that bees as pollinators were under threat; that gave me the momentum to order my hive.
I think we should all take steps where we can to protect and support our environment.
There is a lot to consider when setting up as a beekeeper, not least the purchasing of a colony, hives and protective equipment.
Is it an expensive hobby to found?
Like so many hobbies, it can be as expensive as you want to make it.
I bought a starter kit of a hive, basic tools and a suit for about £250.
Then, my first nucleus colony – a queen plus about 10,000 workers – cost another £120; I bought that from a local beekeeper.
Doing an initial course is a must to learn the basics, which is maybe another £100.
So, it’s not cheap to start, but once you’re underway, it doesn’t have to be expensive to keep going.
There are lots of things you can do to make it cheaper if you’re handy – I have seen all sorts of homemade hives.
Bees aren’t that picky about where they live – if they were, they would never swarm – so homemade can work just fine.
How do you source bees? What are the rules and regulations around buying colonies – and do you need to factor in the North East climate when choosing which species to tend to?
You can buy a queen and six workers (just enough to keep her alive in transit) online for about £50.
But a full hive in the summer has 40,000 to 50,000 bees in it, so six or seven won’t get you far!
It’s usual to buy a nucleus of about 10,000 bees.
Local beekeeping associations are the best place to source a nucleus.
I haven’t known there to be any regulations around who you buy from or sell to, but I think if you undertake it as a business, there must be some form of regulation around it.
This summer, I was trying to sell a couple of my colonies because I had too many and was struggling to cope.
I put an advert on Facebook Marketplace but, after about two weeks, got a stern warning that I should take it down or I’d be suspended for trading ‘livestock’.
I was horrified, as I hadn’t considered that at all.
It is certainly colder in the North East, and some breeds of bees are hardier than others.
It is not recommended to buy queens from abroad; if she is from a warmer climate, she may not fare as well over here.
We are also asked to consider closely the risk associated with bringing in any pests and diseases from buying queens abroad, which may not be present in the UK bee population and which can spread very quickly among such a mobile insect.
What does a typical week look like for a beekeeper?
It depends on the season.
In the months of winter, it’s pretty easy. You open the hive as little as possible, as the bees are trying to keep warm.
It is more about making sure they have enough food and keeping them snuggled up with insulation.
In the swarm months of May to July, you need to check the hive weekly, which can take around 30 minutes per hive.
You also need to allow an hour in total for dealing with getting set up and packed away, as well as dealing with unforeseen circumstances.
I got caught out this summer thinking I would make a quick check of a hive before going out for Sunday lunch.
I had missed an inspection the week before, so when I opened up I had eight maturing queen cells that were hatching out before my eyes and into my hand.
That sounds exciting, but it’s actually just worrying because you know by then that you have already lost half your hive to a swarm and unless you take appropriate action, your hive could be queenless, which is the worst news, as they depend on the queen to keep laying eggs.
That was a very flustering day.
How many times have you been stung – is the threat now just an occupational hazard?
I have probably been stung about 15 times in four years, so I don’t consider that to be too bad.
They are a lot gentler than a wasp sting, so it’s an irritation rather than a pain.
I got stung on the ear this year, which gave me a cauliflower ear for a few days, and was super-itchy.
That came from just having too many hives in the garden – the bees were unhappy at how busy it was and were trying to sting us regularly. Even my dog got stung!
I trimmed it down from four hives to one, and we are managing to live in harmony together again.
Are there any crossovers between your job and pastime? Do skills from one help influence the other in any way?
You can draw all sorts of parallels around bees working as a team and everyone having their role to play, but I think that’s like every organisation.
Being a beekeeper teaches you patience.
Bees do their own thing, and you have to work around them and learn how to create and maintain balance.
They are good lessons for any leader.
Any beekeeper will tell you that there are lots of opportunities to make mistakes, and we just keep trying to learn and improve, and I think I have finally come to terms with the knowledge that this is the same thing as running a business.
I definitely don’t get being a beekeeper or a chief executive right every day of the week, but as long as you admit that, try to understand why and work to do it better next time, then you’re moving forwards, which is all any of us can do.
