Bee swarm collection in Cornwall

The season opens with gorse on every headland, flowering intermittently most of the year but peaking in April. Blackthorn on the cob hedges lights up the byways; sycamore and hawthorn carry the early build; and the slow-growing pittosporum and myrtle in the sub-tropical gardens of the south coast provide unusual supplementary forage. Bramble is dominant through July, bell heather appears on Bodmin Moor and the Penwith commons in August, and the mild autumn leans on ivy and fuchsia hedging well into October.

Cornwall Beekeepers' Association has branches across the county, with notably active groups in West Cornwall, St Austell, Camborne-Redruth and North Cornwall. Many Cornish beekeepers keep small outyards on farms in return for pollination, and collectors handle everything from slate roof cavities to fishing-net shed eaves.