Tip 1 of 3 · Choosing a hive
Pick one hive system and stick with it
National, WBC and Langstroth frames are not interchangeable. Running a single system keeps spare boxes, frames and foundation simple — and lets you swap frames between colonies.
Everything for Your Apiary
From your very first hive to spinning out the honey — hives, frames, bee suits, smokers, extractors and jars for UK hobby beekeepers.
A good season starts in winter: frames built, suit washed, smoker cleaned and a spare super waiting in the shed.
- Hives & frames
- Protective clothing
- Smokers & hive tools
- Honey extraction
- Jars & labels
- UK-wide delivery
- 14-day returns
Start Your First Season Right
Everything a first-year beekeeper needs to open a hive with confidence, packed in one box with a printed first-season checklist. Add the colony from your local association and you are ready to go.
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Complete Starter Kit — £449.00
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Essentials Pack — £149.00
Kit for Every Stage of the Hive
Five aisles cover the whole beekeeping year — from the boxes the bees live in to the jar the honey ends up in. Tap a category to jump straight to it.
How We Look After You
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UK-Wide Delivery
Small parcels go by tracked courier. Hives and extractors travel flat-packed on a two-person service — we confirm the date by email first.
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14-Day Returns
Change your mind within 14 days of delivery under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013. Unused kit, original packaging.
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Secure Payment
Card details are entered with our payment provider and never pass through or stay on our own systems.
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Size Exchanges
Suit or gloves not quite right? Send us your chest and height measurements and we will swap the size.
Popular Kit
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Cedar National Hive, complete
£289.00
Open mesh floor, brood box, two supers, crownboard and roof. Takes standard DN frames.
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WBC Hive, pine
£365.00
Classic double-walled cottage hive with lifts and pitched roof; inner boxes take British Standard frames.
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Langstroth 10-Frame Hive
£219.00
Deep brood box, two medium supers, queen excluder, inner cover and telescoping roof.
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DN4 Frames & Wired Foundation ×10
£34.50
Self-spacing Hoffman frames, flat-packed, with ten sheets of wired pure beeswax foundation.
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Ventilated Full Bee Suit
£119.00
Three-layer mesh, zip-off fencing veil, elasticated cuffs. Sizes XS–3XL.
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Fencing Veil Jacket
£49.00
Cotton-poly jacket with detachable fencing veil and thumb loops for quick inspections.
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Leather Gauntlet Gloves
£14.50
Soft goatskin with long ventilated cotton cuffs. Sizes S–XXL.
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Stainless Smoker & J-Hook Hive Tool
£34.95
10 cm smoker with heat guard plus a 25 cm hive tool for prising frames and scraping propolis.
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Round Rapid Feeder, 2 L
£8.95
Clear-lid feeder that sits over the crownboard hole for syrup in spring and autumn.
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4-Frame Tangential Extractor
£259.00
Stainless steel drum, hand crank, honey gate and legs. Fits National super frames.
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Settling Tank & Double Strainer
£79.00
25 kg stainless tank with honey gate plus a two-stage strainer for clean, clear honey.
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1 lb Glass Jars ×72 with Labels
£46.00
Traditional round jars with gold twist-off lids and 72 plain kraft labels to write on.
Nothing matches that search. Try “hive”, “suit” or “jar” — or email us and we will point you to the right kit.
The Beekeeper’s Year at a Glance
Bees set the timetable, not the calendar — but in most of the UK the season follows a familiar rhythm. Here is what to have ready, and when.
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Mar–May
Spring
First full inspection, fresh foundation, supers on before the oilseed rape flowers, swarm-control kit ready.
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Jun–Aug
Summer
Weekly checks, extra supers, then clearer boards and the extractor once frames are capped.
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Sep–Nov
Autumn
Varroa treatment, syrup in a rapid feeder, mouse guards fitted and hives strapped down.
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Dec–Feb
Winter
Heft hives for weight, clean and store equipment, build frames for the spring ahead.
First-Season Advice
Learning About Bees
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National, WBC or Langstroth: which hive first?
Frame sizes, weight when full, cost of spares and how each design copes with a damp British winter.
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How to size a bee suit, jacket and gloves
Where to measure, how much room to leave for layers, and when a jacket is enough instead of a full suit.
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Your first spring inspection, step by step
Picking a warm, still day, what to look for on each frame and how to close up without squashing the queen.
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Extracting your first super of honey
Clearer boards, uncapping, spinning, straining and settling — and how to keep the kitchen from turning sticky.
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Feeding and winter prep in autumn
How much syrup a colony needs, when to stop feeding, and fitting mouse guards before the first frosts.
Not Sure Which Hive to Start With?
Tell us where your apiary will be and how many colonies you are planning. We will reply with a kit list and a delivery quote for large items.
Email Us a Questionor call +44 7723 418596