Wanted 'Out Apiary'

[b.lambert]

looking for place for 5 hives between Peebles and Galashiels does anyone out there know of any such place?

[marion.orca]

I'm too far North from you to know the area to suggest anywhere, but it may be worth it to find out the Lairds/Landowners and approach them with a request. I had to do it here, took me almost a full year, but received permission from the Laird in the end. It depends how determined you are sometimes, and I am nothing if not determined.

[Easy beesy]

Check out the coop website 'hive talking' its a sort of dating site for hives and land.

[Poly Hive]

It's truly not a lot of use going to a land owner and asking can I put some hives on your land. The easiest answer is no.

If you do your reconnoitring first and then ask may I put some hives "there" then it is a more difficult request to say no to. In dozens of quests I have been refused twice.

PH

[Poly Hive]

It's truly not a lot of use going to a land owner and asking can I put some hives on your land. The easiest answer is no.

If you do your reconnoitring first and then ask may I put some hives "there" then it is a more difficult request to say no to. In dozens of quests I have been refused twice.

PH

[REDWOOD]

Don't bother writing letters or sending emails, knocking on door is always the best with a jar of honey in your pocket as a secret weapon

[Neils]

Look for offers by all means but I think Redwood has the right approach if you see a good spot while wandering around.

[prakel]

I usually make initial contact by phone or (more so these days) by email. This comes from a personal dislike of having strangers turn up on my own doorstep -as discussed previously on the local honey sales thread.

I have a pretty good success rate too...I'd obviously do it another way if it wasn't working...

The idea of scouting around someone's land for suitable sites before enquiring isn't the sort of thing I'd ever be bothered with. That was the approach that Manley took in his books.... but I wonder if he actually took days off to trudge around the countryside looking for sites which might be refused anyway? In my experience, the greater majority of my enquiries get a positive response from the farmer. The one thing that leads to a negative is that there's already an existing relationship with another beekeeper, which, if it happens to be a migratory arrangement won't be apparent for most of the year no matter how much you wander around looking for suitable sites. Over all these tend to be enlightened times.