Bunker's Bee Blog: Our Beekeeping Story
- nick92620
- Jan 14, 2024
- 2 min read
We’re very lucky to live in the Lincolnshire Wolds and are surrounded by rolling hills and an abundance of nature. We have dogs, chickens and grow lots of flowers, vegetables and herbs. It seemed only natural the next step into my countryside journey was to become a beekeeper.
I’m Nick Bunker, the hands-on beekeeper and I grew up in the countryside becoming an apprentice gamekeeper at the age of 14. Although I am no longer a Gamekeeper I still love the countryside and find peace within the rolling countryside of the Lincolnshire Wolds.
My wife, Kirsty, works part time as a qualified Aromatherapist starting her own business, Sage and Bellflower, in 2022 using the beeswax to create more aromatic and plant powered products to help heal and bring a little bit of happiness to people thanks to our bees.
We are entering our third year of beekeeping so are very new to it all. We have 3 Apiaries all within 3 miles of our house. Being an Ex-Gamekeeper I do have a few contacts who allow us to use their farms to house our Apiaries! Let’s be honest as I sit here and write I estimate I have around 20 hives with bees but who knows? It’s January as I write, and we all know that it is difficult to know exactly how many hives you have until spring. Well, I do anyway!
I will mention in another blog how our first and second years went and some of the points I have learnt throughout my short beekeeping journey. But first I’d like to mention our aim. I’m lucky in the job I currently work that I will retire at a relatively young age and hope between our bees, Kirsty’s business and dogs we will have enough to top up my pension.
Although this will be “work” it will be very much “work” in inverted commas as this is the life I love. This will be in five years from now by February 2029 I hope to have somewhere around 100 hives and enough equipment to be able to deal with the honey.
It’s a pleasure to write for you all for the first time and I hope you will follow me on my journey to 100 hives and semi-retirement!
What a joy to read your first post, Nick! The way you describe life in the Lincolnshire Wolds — dogs at your heels, chickens in the yard, herbs and flowers buzzing with activity — makes your move into beekeeping feel inevitable and inspiring. I love how you and Kirsty are turning beeswax into healing, aromatic products through Sage and Bellflower; that kind of full-circle countryside living is something many of us only dream about. Your honesty about winter hive counts made me smile (we all do that “how many hives really made it?” math!). Cheering you on as you grow from ~20 hives to 100 by February 2029 and craft the semi-retirement you love. From someone working in bee removal santa…
What a beautiful and insightful journey into the world of beekeeping! It’s amazing how much care and dedication goes into maintaining healthy hives. Just like how pest control scheduling software helps keep pest management efficient and on track, it’s clear that organization and attention to detail play a huge role in successful beekeeping too. Keep up the great work!