Bee swarm collection in Staffordshire

Oilseed rape leads the early flow across the arable belt. Cannock Chase contributes a significant late heather crop — bell first, then ling — on its extensive sandy commons. The Staffordshire Moorlands add bilberry and small ling patches; lime in Stafford, Lichfield, Burton and Stoke-on-Trent fills the June streets. Bramble and rosebay willowherb are everywhere in the former colliery and brickworks land. Ivy carries hives into autumn on old red-brick terraces and the greenbelt villages.

North Staffs, South Staffs, East Staffs and Walsall branches of the BKA cover the county; migratory beekeeping to Cannock Chase heather is still practised. Collectors handle everything from Potteries terraces to cottage chimneys in the Moorlands.