Woking is a large Surrey commuter town on the edge of the Basingstoke Canal and Horsell Common, with Chobham Common — one of the largest lowland heaths in south-east England — a few miles to the north. The common's ling and bell heather gives an excellent late-summer flow, the canal corridor provides sallow and willowherb, and the town's abundant lime trees carry a reliable June flow through its Victorian and Edwardian residential streets.
Collectors are frequently called to swarms on the birch and heather margins of Horsell Common and the Chobham Road corridor, in the mature garden trees of the Pyrford and Sutton Green areas, in the lime avenues and park trees of the town centre, and in the chimney stacks and roof voids of the older properties near the railway station.
Nearest BBKA-affiliated associations to help with swarm collection and local advice.
KT15 2QJ· approx. 8 km
Visit websiteGU5 0LB· approx. 16 km
Visit websiteKT8 0AG· approx. 17 km
Visit websiteAssociation data sourced from the British Beekeepers Association directory via SwarmBase.
Spring builds fast on blackthorn, hawthorn and horse chestnut along the North Downs scarp, then leans heavily on field maple, sycamore and the urban lime avenues of Guildford, Dorking and Woking. The lowland heaths — Chobham, Frensham, Thursley — give a late bell heather crop in good Augusts that colonies here can count on, supplemented by rosebay willowherb across the MoD training land. Bramble is dense from Box Hill to the Surrey Hills AONB, and the old walled churchyards carry a strong ivy flow into autumn.
More on beekeeping in SurreyReport it in under a minute and a trained local beekeeper will arrange safe collection.
