November 8th 2024.
Ross Main, as a child, had a deep love for helping his gamekeeper grandfather with his beehives. It was a thrilling experience, even without any protective gear. Ross cherished being outdoors, surrounded by the bees' golden nectar. However, years passed, and his grandfather passed away. As Ross became a father for the first time, he couldn't help but think about the abandoned hives. He decided to embark on a journey to find them, located in East Lothian, just like his grandfather had kept them.
To his amazement, he stumbled upon one hive that had managed to survive in a dilapidated state. The bees were still thriving, despite the odds. Ross shared, "My son was born in 2015, and I had this strange longing and nostalgia to see if the bees were still there." Helping his grandfather with the hives as a child had left an indelible mark on Ross. It was those fond memories that inspired him to possibly recreate them with his own son. Although his grandfather had passed away seven years prior, Ross was determined to find solace in the one surviving hive.
He mentioned, "I didn't expect to find any bees after all these years, but I wanted to go to Dunbar and check anyway." To his surprise, there was one hive, and it was buzzing with life. Ross lovingly convinced his wife to take up beekeeping as a hobby, and she agreed. He then transferred the hive to their new home in Fife and began learning how to care for them by watching YouTube videos.
Ross admitted that he had no prior experience in beekeeping, and as a child, he was more interested in spending time with his grandfather and indulging in the delicious honey. He said, "I didn't pay attention to what he did to work the hive or gather the honey." However, with the help of YouTube, he started off slowly with the one hive he had found. As it grew and thrived, his confidence grew along with it. He also learned how to split and expand colonies by researching online. Although there were some mistakes along the way, he never repeated them, and he believes that mistakes are the best form of learning.
Nearly a decade later, Ross now manages 100 hives and approximately six million bees, all descendants of his grandfather's hive. He proudly stated, "I have over 100 hives across Fife at the minute." During the summer months, each hive can hold up to 60,000 bees, which means Ross is responsible for potentially six million bees. He shared, "Almost all of my bees originate from that original hive, as it split over time. This makes me incredibly proud of my success."
Ross's hobby eventually turned into a business, Main's Apiaries, where he sells honey to local farm shops after harvesting three times a year. The spring and summer harvests produce a clear, runny honey. However, some of Ross's hives are placed in areas with highly concentrated heather, resulting in a darker, thicker, and more distinct honey in taste and texture. Ross explained, "Bees forage within a three-mile radius of their hive, so the nectar they gather from the plants in their local area contributes to the taste and texture of the honey."
He further elaborated, "Spring honey is usually made from nectar gathered from hawthorn, dandelions, oilseed rape, and sycamore trees. On the other hand, summer honey is collected from clover, rose bay willow herb, poplar trees, and brambles. These produce a clear and runny honey." However, heather honey is produced when hives are located in an area with high concentrations of heather plants. This results in a darker color, thicker texture, and a stronger taste. Ross added, "In a good season with decent weather, we can get between 60 and 70 jars of honey per hive. The heather season is shorter, and we only move some of our hives there, so this honey is always in high demand."
Ross loves the fact that his honey is as natural as it can be. He said, "We simply lift the comb from the hive, spin and extract the honey, and filter it directly into the jars. We don't need to treat or heat the honey." He also takes pride in knowing that he is contributing to the survival of the honeybee species. He shared, "Honeybees are incredibly crucial to society, and the more people know about this, the better." Ross also takes pleasure in teaching his children everything he knows about beekeeping. He said, "Watching them develop the same passion as I have reminds me of my grandfather's influence on me. I hope that in the future, they will look back on these memories with fondness and good memories."
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