大象传媒

Spring has well and truly sprung and the hives are going from strength to strength, but that brings with it a problem of its own - the swarm. As the colonies become overcrowded, the bees become likely to depart in a swarm with the queen, leaving just a few behind to rear a new queen. It is a natural process, but for the beekeeper it can be a disaster, leaving the hive all but empty with little prospect of a harvest of honey. Martha discovers methods to control the swarms, including clipping the wings of the queen. When one of her hives swarms, Martha's neighbours leap to the rescue and she harvests the first honey of the year. Martha enjoys the English countryside at its best, offers her honey to the public at a village fair and finally succeeds in harvesting the true wildflower honey she set out to achieve. At the height of summer, the owners of the meadow have invited the public to an open day to celebrate this unique bit of countryside. The pressure is on Martha to get the honey ready in time. With such a late spring the meadow flowers are late opening and the bees are still foraging on a neighbouring farmer's crops when the day arrives. Martha visits Cornwall's Tregothnan Estate to discover the secret of the highly-prized Manuka honey and returns home with plans for a final harvest of wildflower honey.
When Martha sends her honey to be tested it is proved to be true wildflower honey. It only remains to prepare the bees for the winter and reflect on a rewarding and fascinating season of beekeeping.