I am in charge of maintaining 14 research beehives based at the Cambridge University Botanic Garden, home to 8000 plant species from all over the world. In summer, the Botanic Garden research plot is surrounded by a wild meadow. All flowers pop almost at the same time around mid-June to create a small prairie, with splashes of white dotted by blues, yellows, and little freckles of red. On a summer evening, just after finishing my weekly beekeeping visit, I wandered through the meadow. Hundreds of honeybees and wild bees were busying, flying from one flower to the next, and rushing to get as much pollen and nectar as possible for their last foraging trips. Without flowers bees would not exist; and without bees, flowers would not have evolved into the wide diversity of colours and shapes I was observing in the meadow. This post relates the fascinating story of evolution between bees and flowers.

One of the first questions novice beekeepers ask is: Will I get stung by my bees? It is a worry that can discourage many from starting beekeeping. However, with good practice, this unfortunate event will only happen at most a few times per year. In fact, it is not unusual to find experienced beekeepers who have not been stung once.

This post will explain why bees sting, how to react when they do and how to minimise the chances of getting stung.