Sussex Green Living: new hives for Horsham

Bees are good for the environment and for business. So Horsham District Council, in partnership with Experience Sussex are supporting Doug Pearce of South Downs Honey to install 40 new hives in locations between Ashurst and Small Dole It’s part of the Council’s plans to encourage regenerative, sustainable tourism, and promote more visitors to our beautiful county.

Doug, who runs South Downs Honey has kept bees since 2011, and already has a hundred hives on the Downs between the rivers Arun and Adur. What started as a hobby grew steadily and he was fully professional by 2022 and now produces 3.5 tons of honey annually, which is sold in shops, farmers markets and online.

“West Sussex is a good place for bees” he explains, “because of our relatively warm climate. Most farmers now operate at level two stewardship, with lots of forage on their land.” Hives thrive in woodland, pastureland and where there are many gardens. There are now about 10 professional and 500 hobbyist beekeepers across the county.

Experience Sussex works with partners across Sussex to promote sustainable economic growth for our visitor economy. Doug’s scheme is one of several they are backing thanks to a government-funded project they are running for Horsham District Council. “Horsham District Council do not promote the visitor economy directly,” explains Garry Mortimer-Cook of Horsham DC, “so we work closely with the team at Experience Sussex. When someone like Doug proposes a scheme, Experience Sussex provide tailored support, such as business mentoring and marketing advice. ”Associating a business with Sussex promotes better brand value and great networking opportunities with complementary providers.” Garry adds.

For Doug, it’s about more than business “Without bees, you’d have less crops. If you have hives near a crop, you increase yield by 30%!” Commercial beekeepers are even helping with pollination of crops like apples. Yet these vital creatures are under threat. Most readers will have heard of the Asian Hornet, an invasive species which can cost apiarists up to 30% of their hives (it takes down British hornets and wasps too) But agricultural practices like excessive use of pesticides and loss of hedgerows are still causing problems. Any help is welcome. If gardeners planted more lavenders, crocuses, and snowdrops, it would do a lot. “Ivy is good as it provides the last nectar they get before winter” says Doug.

He clearly loves his work “it’s fun! I like going up onto the Downs even if I am not intending to inspect the hives, I like just sitting up there, watching them coming and going, and the sound they make.” A love he hopes to share by promoting Visitor experience packages once the business expansion takes wing.

If we want growth, can we do it in ways that are sustainable and that fit in with Nature, instead of just pouring concrete over it? Is this a glimpse of a different way ahead?

www.southdownshoney.co.uk www.experiencesussex.com

Want to know how Sussex Green Living is helping pollinators and maybe sponsor the installation of a vital pollinator haven? Visit: sussexgreenliving.org.uk/renature/