Alison's Bee Class

14/09/2026

Ivy bees - Colletes hederae

If you, or someone you know, appear to have (what may look like) thousands of bees 'swarming' low down on a sandy lawn area.... fear not!

They're simply solitary IVY BEES who are just coming out of hibernation for the 8 weeks they're around in time for ivy to flower.

They look quite similar to a small honey bee but they abdomen stripes are more uniform.

They're harmless if left alone and, in my opinion, the cutest of all bees.

Video sent to me from The Elizabethan pub, Woodside who are blessed with them at the moment 🐝🐝🐝The Elizabethan Woodside

https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/learn-about-bumblebees/solitarybees/ivy-bee/

15/08/2026

IT'S DOG DAY!

Got no plans today?
Need some inspiration?
Want to treat your four-legged friend to an amazing walk now it's cooled down?

Then head over to Shropshire Petal Fields between 10-5pm today.

The best bit... no need to book for the final two days, simply pay at the gate.

So, what ya waiting for??!!

See you shortly 😚🥰🤞🍯🐝

Fresh LOCAL HONEY available 🍯🍯🍯

13/08/2026

Sadly this little bear candle failed my stringent quality control!!

But happily he's been repoured (or should that be 'pawed') ready for you to buy over the next three, final days at the amazing Shropshire Petal Fields

Fresh pure, LOCAL HONEY also available 🍯🍯

Tickets are still available. Friday is late night opening and Sat/Sun are dog-friendly days too.

12/08/2026

Steve's made his own DIY eclipse viewing tool... I think the instructions got mixed up by AI 🤣🤣🤣🤣

07/08/2026

LOCAL HONEY 🍯

Yayyyyy we have local honey again. Exclusively available every day of the amazing Shropshire Petal Fields event.

Pop along to see our amazing honey bees too, they're 'buzzing' to meet you 💖 🐝🐝🐝🐝

05/08/2026

Fab morning 🥰🥰🐝🐝🐝

07/06/2026

It's TODAY!!

Remember the pancake swarm we collected from Shifnal dentist last month with the damaged Queen??

Come to Battlefield 1403 today (10-4pm) to meet her 🥰

Your opportunity to pick up some delicious pure honey too. See you later. Alison ###

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1bSsJZjydb/

02/06/2026

With five talks to deliver this week as well as Battlefield 1403 Open Farm Sunday, I get ample opportunity to discuss the disgusting situation regarding fake honey/honey adulteration.

DID YOU KNOW that MOST cheap honey sold in UK supermarkets is either 100% fake (manufactured in a factory) and/or bulked out with rubbish... yet it can be labelled as 'Honey'?

Please read this article...

What is honey fraud facts? - What food is adulterated in honey? - Is honey one of the most counterfeited food items in the world?

27/05/2026

VIDEO UPDATE

These are Tree Bumble Bees in action to you can see how they simply zip around the nest entrance 🐝🐝🐝

Video courtesy of The Shropshire Sam

27/05/2026

BUMBLE BEES in your fascia/soffits, corner of roof or redundant bird box???

It's that time of the year again when Tree Bumble Bees (Bombus Hypnorum) appear more active especially at the corner of roofs... this is normal and nothing to worry about. This is a good sign as those zipping about are cheeky drone (♂️) bees getting excited about the prospect of getting lucky 🤭🍆🤣

Once the new Queens have left the nest, the rest of the bees will die off. This is normal, it's their life cycle.

There will be no damage to your property. They're harmless if left undisturbed. Go ahead, open the windows, if they come in, they will simply want to go back outside.

Hope this helps. Please share to get the message out there.