Heather Picnic on Drummuir Estate.

Visits to bees at the heather and beekeeper’s picnics are the highlights of my beekeeping year and nobody does it better than Moray Beekeepers’ Association https://www.moraybeekeepers.co.uk/

The last heather picnic held in 2019 was memorable on account of glorious sunshine and temperatures tipping 28 degrees Celsius. We visited Tony Harris’ bees on Ben Rinnes, and a golden eagle flew overhead as we assembled in the Glenfiddich distillery carpark for the drive up onto the moors. We had our BBQ on Torquil Gordon-Duff’s family run estate at Drummuir which was a joy to visit in the lush greenery of the Spey valley.

This year Torquil hosted the party again for a super-large turnout of over 40 fellow beekeepers and family members on another glorious day, albeit only 19 degrees C. The Association stalwarts, Anne, Markus, Mike, Torquil and others, set up the catering table and prepared the food while the rest of us carried on in convoy up to the moors where Duncan Gordon of Spey Valley Honey had placed 2 colonies of honey bees for us to see in the correct position and setting at the heather.

The hives were facing south and slightly sheltered by a bank. A few hundred yards away a small burn (stream) provides drinking water for the bees as does the grass in the early morning dew. All around, a sea of purple heather coloured the usually khaki landscape, and turning wind turbines on the horizon generated energy in the strong breeze.

The large group assembled close to the hives without standing directly in front of the entrances but it was hard to stay clear of bee flight paths which are not always directly in front of the hives. It was probably disorientating for the bees flying home and suddenly finding new beekeeper-shaped landmarks where empty moor stood as they went out to work. They milled around a bit but were not at all defensive as some bees can be at the heather. Gordon doesn’t use smoke because the Carniolan bees are gentle and manageable and he doesn’t want the honey tainted. He handed round some recently drawn-out frames of foundation and demonstrated what a great nectar flow could produce in just 9 days. The frames were filling fast and he explained that his colonies on other moor sites were filling a super a week.

Gordon aims to have very strong colonies at the heather but there is always the risk of late swarming so he places a shallow (super) box directly above the single brood box. This is known in Scotland as a brood and a half. Some beekeepers always us this configuration. Gordon will harvest any of these super frames that has no brood at all in them. He places a completely empty frame with no foundation at all in this shallow box to create a little more space. A queen excluder is placed above, and one super above this. The super is filled and replaced as necessary according to the flow.

Our group comprised all levels of beekeeping ability, and non-beekeepers too who were interested to see what their family and friends get up to on the moors. There was a lot of chat and information exchange before we headed back down to the picnic. We shared our car with 2 relatively new beekeepers from Huntly who were excited to learn new things.

Spey Valley Honey Company.

Gordon runs a beekeeping business with over 60 colonies which he manages with the help of his daughter Catriona Dunbar who also runs the family haulage company and is Vice-Chairperson of Moray Beekeepers’ Association. Catriona wonders how she will manage when she steps up to the chair role, but, as the old saying goes, if you want something done ask a busy person!

 The BBQ is ready when we get down off the hill and we eat in the sheltered grassy square surrounded by sheds and estate offices. Torquil has been busy hosting BBQs and other events over the weekend, including grouse shooting, so all the gazebos, tables, chairs, and BBQ equipment are already laid out to welcome us. Although the day was lovely, we were grateful for the gazebos when a short shower of rain came on.

 Linton knows that I always end up being asked questions about bees so he gets me food and a chair though I didn’t sit much and was grateful for the delicious burger in a bun which is so easy to eat standing up. I found a handsome glossy spaniel called Toby looking up beseechingly at me but I was canny enough not to drop anything. I catch up with old friends and meet new beekeepers.

The sun comes out again and before we know it it’s time to make our way home along the Spey valley to Grantown-on-Spey then down over the Dava moor into Nairnshire. Before I go, I ask Torquil about his children, bees, and the farming side of the estate. I’m interested to know that he produces organic oats which are bought by the company marketing the porridge oats that I buy which has a similar name to the great London toy shop!

I love this part of the country with its rich rolling landscape beside the river Spey and Linton and I travelled on the tourist train from Keith to Dufftown a few years ago on Torquil’s recommendation. We enjoyed the unspoiled scenery as the train made its way slowly up through Drummuir estate which has a little station platform of its own. Torquil tells me that he enjoys walking over the hills to Dufftown for an ice cream at the Sidings café at Dufftown station from where he catches the train home again. In winter he likes to cross country ski along the tracks because it is nice and flat and there are no trains operating then.

With Torquil’s permission and additional information, I’ve copied some photographs from the estate Instagram site along with a bit of history to share with you. Most people I know are interested in sustainable living and understand the need to diversify from traditional ways of managing land. Torquil and his family are great examples of careful and successful stewards of the land.

Drummuir Estate.

Along with his parents, Torquil owns and runs this 4,000-hectare family estate in the heart of distillery country in the Spey valley near Dufftown. Drummuir castle which dominates the drive in to the estate was built in 1847 by Thomas MacKenzie for Admiral Archibald Duff who served with Lord Nelson.

Torquil’s parents were early converts to organic farming and took the courageous plunge in the early 1980s long before it became fashionable or financially beneficial to be registered as an organic farm. That Drummuir estate’s membership number is 015 gives it away. The Home Farm is organic and separate from the twelve tenanted estate farms.

Torquil tells me that organic oat prices are pretty good and they don’t use much fertiliser on the crops, certainly less than the maximum permitted amount. Unfortunately, organic lamb is currently not so productive with barely a premium on the meat price per kilo, and the yield less due to reduced stocking density and grass growth.

Holiday Accommodation.

Diversification is essential in farming and land use today and Torquil has invested in renewable energy and holiday accommodation. The accommodation has something to suit everyone from the off-the-grid modern Loch Park Cabin designed and built by James Hunt, to the family 3-bedroomed Dalroddie house and an appealing little lodge at the end of the castle drive which is popular probably due to its resembling a mini castle. If you’re inspired to visit this magficient part of the world you can access holiday accommodation via https://www.airbnb.co.uk/drummuir-united-kingdom/stays