Black Mountain Honey

01/06/2026

You can’t rear queens efficiently from bees that sting you constantly. The Melita Bees operation in Malta runs hundreds of mating nucs a day. Nobody’s wearing gloves. The Buckfast and Italian genetics they work with are so calm the whole process just works.

Good genetics don’t just make your inspections nicer. They make everything possible. If you’re buying queens from us, this is part of what you’re paying for.

If you want beekeeping that’s straightforward and practical (not overcomplicated), 14 Day Beekeeper is built for that 👍

01/06/2026

31/05/2026

Solar Wax Melter: Wax Flowing in Just 5 Minutes!

31/05/2026

Bees are creatures of habit.

Brood in the middle, pollen around that, stores on the outer edges. Every colony, every time.

When you slide a frame of foundation between two frames of brood, they look at you like you’ve lost the plot.

But that discomfort is exactly what gets the comb drawn fast.

They want their configuration back, so they get to work. Nine days later, the frame’s fully drawn and the queen’s already laying in it.

What’s your experience with checkerboarding?

31/05/2026

👉 Should We Add Another Super To The Beehive? (Beginner Beekeeping Week 7)

31/05/2026

Checkerboarding only works if the colony is strong enough 👍

Big colony? Brilliant.

Tiny split still building up? You’ll often set them back instead of helping them forward.

The bees need numbers to cover and heat new foundation properly 🐝

Not sure whether to add space, split, feed, or just leave them alone? 14 Day Beekeeper shows you what to look for and what to do 👍

31/05/2026

Outer frames aren’t just unused space… If you leave full foundation on the outer edges, your bees start to treat them as the boundary of the nest. 🐝

They see that frame as a wall, not an opportunity.

And when the colony has no room to expand, swarming becomes the answer.

Checkerboarding forces foundation into the middle where the bees have to use it — keeping your outer edges occupied so the colony doesn’t feel boxed in.

31/05/2026

May was a bit of an experiment on my YouTube channel…

I had so much content ready to go that I decided to post a new long-form video every single day throughout May. The idea was simple: share more, help more people, and (hopefully) give the channel a boost.

What I’ve learned from the results is that daily long-form is just too much for most people to keep up with - and if the goal is to add value, I want to do it in the best way possible.

So in June, I’m switching it up:

Back to 1 long-form video per week on YouTube (Black Mountain Honey)

And 1 long-form video per week on our new channel - 14 Day Beekeeper (youtube.com/)

That means two long-form videos per week, just split across the two channels.

Now I’d love your input:

If you could only have ONE VIDEO per month, what would it be?

Drop your idea in the comments

30/05/2026

Outer frames aren’t just unused space… If you leave full foundation on the outer edges, your bees start to treat them as the boundary of the nest. 🐝

They see that frame as a wall, not an opportunity.

And when the colony has no room to expand, swarming becomes the answer.

Checkerboarding forces foundation into the middle where the bees have to use it — keeping your outer edges occupied so the colony doesn’t feel boxed in.

30/05/2026

Best Smoker Fuel for Beekeeping (That Actually Stays Lit)