Victoria's Honey Bee site hosted by
Barry's Bees
Victoria BC, Canada
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250 900-5133
or by EMail
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Barry the BeeMaster Barry
is an accredited Bee Master and BCHPA certified instructor of Beginner's Beekeeping. He is a local beekeeper serving the Greater Victoria area on the southern end of Vancouver Island, BC Canada and has been keeping bees for more than 15 years.
It's May 2017
Spring has finally arrived in Victoria, BC
Local honey bees on the South Islands are building colony strength with ample forage from the Western Maple, local fruit trees and now the Arbutus is about to blossom. I had my first swarm call on Friday, April 28 which was a full month later than my first call on March 26th of 2016.
SWARMS
A swarm of honey bees start as a cloud of several thousand bees slowly moving through the air at tree top level. They eventually come down and cluster as a ball, usually on a tree branch. If you see a swarm of honey bees, please stay clear and call me directly on my swarm hotline at 250 900-5133 or by EMail. I will be happy to relocate these easily accessable clustered bees to a new home at no charge. For more information on why honey bees swarm and how to be safe around them, please visit my Swarms web page.
Bumble Bees
I can also relocate a colony of Bumble Bees. Bumble Bees are a ground nesting bee and can be found in compost bins. For assistance, please call me ditectly on my bee hotline at 250 900-5133 or by EMail. I will be happy to relocate these bumble bees to a new home for a small fee to cover travel costs.
Presentations
I am available for presentations to special interest groups within the Greater Victoria area of British Columbia, Canada. My presentation highlights the development of the honey bee, their life cycle, integration with the world today and many other interesting aspects. I also supply a variety of honeys for taste testing. Please EMail me to inquire for availability to present at your group's gathering.
Field Day - Date TBA
To further your beekeeping skills or just see what keeping bees is all about join me for an hour or so on site at my apiary in Colwood on Saturday, date TBA, at 10:00 am.
The theme for March is 'Preparing for spring growth'. We will look at colonies to assess the need for pest management and supplemental feeding in order to grow into a honey collection hive.
For bio safety, please wear long sleeves and long pants. If you have a bee veil, please bring it as well. If you do not have a veil, I will ask you to stand back a safe distance when we are handling live bees.
For bio security, no hive tools are permitted on site. Availability is limited to 20 people. Please reserve a seat for yourself by sending me an EMail. I will send you a map of the location with confirmation of your resevation.
Equipment and Supplemental Feeding

After 5 years of development and 3 years of field testing the Rain Coast Bee Hive is now available for limited sales.  A supportive supplemental feeding  program  is proving beneficial.