First wasp's nest of the season!

[Lons]

I was thinking that too!

@bob, can't your neighbour lend you a hat for mowing the paddock? Sounds only reasonable...

I'd much rather he moved the bees a little further from my boundary!

hasn't been a problem this year (so far) but he has far less bees at the minute as they have suffered badly due to weather over the past couple of years.

Bob

 

[Phil Pascoe]

The flight path is as important as how close they are. Maybe he could turn them?

 

[devonwoody]

If a neighbour suffers an anaphlaxsis shock and dies could the bee keeper be charged with manslaughter especially if the keeper knows the neighbour is allergic to bee stings?

 

[WoodMangler]

@bob, can't your neighbour lend you a hat for mowing the paddock? Sounds only reasonable...

I'd much rather he moved the bees a little further from my boundary!

Talk to your local council, probably Environmental Health. The bees are a nuisance which affects your quality of life, just like excessive noise or foul smells from your neighbour would be.

Incidentally, I once put a petrol hedge-trimmer straight through a hidden wasp's-nest. As I was wearing all the right protective gear for that job (helmet with face-mask, ear-muffs, heavy clothes and gloves) I didn't see, hear or feel the little B***********s till they got behind the visor and started stinging my face - at which point I dropped the (just-refuelled) hedge-trimmer and ran for cover. The hedge trimmer idled on the ground for another two hours, keeping them irritated, and I couldn't get back out into the garden to retrieve it till after sunset.

 

[marcros]

If a neighbour suffers an anaphlaxsis shock and dies could the bee keeper be charged with manslaughter especially if the keeper knows the neighbour is allergic to bee stings?

No, I believe not. Bees are classed as wild animals, legally and so the beekeeper wouldn't be liable for that. Negligence might be an argument. There hasn't been a lot of case law, but the laws of nuisance certainly have been used, and it is that which I recall was used when bees were used for revenge/as a weapon in one case.

I have a book about Beekeeping and the Law, but it is a while since I had a read.

 

[Eric The Viking]

I can't go with the "leap-to-litigate" thing.

Obviously they're a bit of a nuisance, but we all need bees!

I'll bet there's a sensible compromise (possibly even involving honey in due course). I've had neighbours from hell in the past, but beekepers just don't seem the type ;-)

 

[Phil Pascoe]

As I said, make sure their flight path is going away from you. They shouldn't give you much grief as long as you're out of their direct path.

 

[marcros]

failing that- lift the flight path by putting something tall in front of the hive so that when they come up, they have to go up and over.

 

[Lons]

Philip.p / Marcros

The flight path is facing my boundary (South) but there is a hawthorn hedge in front and I've let that grow to about 8 ft to deflect them upwards so whilst it's a b*gger to cut, it may be worthwhile. i cut that section with an electric cutter rather than the petrol one, just in case :wink:

Woodmangler
I can relate exactly to your experience :lol: I was cutting under the hedges with the std petrol mower before using the ride on when I was attacked and had several in my hair. I ran a full 100 yds to the house with the little beggars chasing me. didn't know they could fly so fast though my neighbour later said I should have stood still - yeah right :roll: - the mower ran for over an hour before they stopped buzzing around enough for me to sneak back and turn off the engine.

When they swarm, it's somewhat disconcerting to have them settle close to the house.

I wouldn't complain to the council as my neighbour is generally very good and has been for 20 years even though he doesn't see it as a problem and as said - we need the bees!

Bob

 

[devonwoody]

I think I'd be tempted to put them at the bottom of the garden - if you put them on the roof, you've got to get up there every time you wish to inspect them - even if you're fit enough to do it, it won't do your flat roof much good. It's a great hobby - I only gave up after nearly dieing from anaphylactic shock.

Phil.p, my wife was probably only minutes or seconds from death after an anaphylactic shock. The paramedics arrived with 12 minutes of a 999 call the first time it happened so we had no knowledge or the epipen, I never want to see another AS, I was trying KOL, fingers down her throat, didn't smack her bum tho. :wink: