OKEHAMPTON Beekeepers held their final summer apiary meeting, hosted by Suzanne Maxwell, on September 3.

Members had the opportunity to inspect Suzanne's two highly productive WBC hives, which had produced over 100 jars of clear medium honey the week before the meeting.

Hive inspections were performed by Will Pyne, with assistance and advice from Malcolm Craig and Suzanne.

Each inspection consisted of checking a brood box full of frames and a super.

The first hive was strong, with many bees in both the super and brood box below.

The brood frames were full of healthy bees, though while there was evidence of sealed brood in the super, there was no sign of a queen.

The second hive showed stronger evidence of continuous sheets of sealed and unsealed brood in both upper and lower boxes.

The colony grew increasingly agitated during the inspection, possibly due to the deteriorating weather. Will closed the box two thirds of the way through inspection, having established a laying queen and healthy brood.

After the inspections the group convened in Suzanne's conservatory for the 'bring and share' tea and discussed the afternoon's events.

The next meeting is the first of the winter programme, and takes place on Thursday October 13.

Leila Goss will give a talk about bees, and the plants which supply them.