Local Honey Salisbury

Bellorama Honey Bees is operated by Tom Kenyon, based at Milton Farm near East Knoyle in Wiltshire. The operation has been keeping honey bees in the area for over 15 years, with the Milton Apiary established two years prior to the 2021 article to take advantage of village garden flowers across East Knoyle and the lime trees around The Clouds Estate. Tom works closely with farmer James Hyde at Milton Farm, helping to optimise his Countryside Stewardship scheme to create the best possible conditions for bees. Key forage sources include RHS Plants for Pollinators wildflower seed mixes, supplemented with Borage, as well as Ivy and Oil Seed Rape. The apiary is located 500 metres from the Bellorama campsite, well within the bees' foraging range. Tom is a member of the Bee Improvement and Bee Breeders Association (BIBBA) and is actively working to maintain and re-introduce the native Northern European Honey Bee (Apis mellifera mellifera - AMM), widely considered better adapted to UK conditions. He has already successfully bred near-native queens and aims to further develop his queen rearing programme. The operation is notable for its conservation focus, resisting the importation of foreign queens and colonies which risk introducing disease.