大象传媒

Martha Kearney's year gets off to a bad start when unseasonal snow in spring threatens to kill the bee colonies she keeps in her garden. With help from a master beekeeper, Martha feeds her bees and takes one of the hives to a wildflower meadow at a neighbour's house along with two brand new hives. She discovers the intricate hierarchy within the bee colony and learns how the organisation of the hive has become a metaphor for human society. Martha discovers a bee with deformed wing virus in one of the hives she has set up on a wildflower meadow. With the help of a master beekeeper, she treats the hive for Varroa mite. Britain's leading bee scientist explains the role of Varroa in the decline of bees throughout the country. Martha witnesses the growth of the colony and watches as bee larvae hatch out. She investigates the science behind the decline of the honeybee and examines evidence that pesticides may be to blame. Back at her cottage, she tackles a colony of angry bees by replacing their queen with a more mild-mannered individual ordered online and delivered through the post, and she meets the Archbishop of Canterbury to talk about his family's love of beekeeping.