This weekâs episode of the Bees with Ben podcast features Michael Colvin of âHigh Meadowâ.
Michael was born and bred in Guyra, on top of the Great Dividing Range in the New England region
of NSW. He was raised on a fine wool property near the small town of Wards Mistake, and has a
passion for regenerative agriculture, having managed organic beef and sheep enterprises. Michael
also loves his bees and is the President of the New England branch of the Amateur Beekeepers
Association. For the last 12 years, Michael has been employed in a full-time capacity as a fencer;
about 6 months ago he purchased a small excavator in order to diversify somewhat. About 3 or 4
years back, he also started up a small business selling local âcold countryâ honey. High Meadow is
actually the family farm situated near Guyra at an altitude of 1300 m above sea level, which results
in mild summers and cool winters. The business produces raw, unfiltered honey from chemical free
hives located on selected sites across the Northern Tablelands from Dorrigo in the east to Inverell in
the west. The High Meadow website, highmeadow.com.au, explains that the bees are only kept on
sites where the land managers practice chemical free, regenerative agriculture. High Meadow honey
is harvested during a limited season and is said to have a truly local flavour and pollen profile. It is
cold extracted, raw and unfiltered to preserve the delicate aromas and enzymes, as well as the
natural yeasts and pollens.
Michael describes his location as being âa little north of halfway between Brisbane and Sydney and
about two-and-a-half hoursâ inland from Coffs Harbourâ. He says he currently maintains just under
50 hives and had an awesome season last spring and summer, with a yield of about 16 kg per 8
frames. Guyra is notable for having the highest caravan park in Australia, and routinely gets a couple
of inches of snow in winter. Michael says itâs not easy to keep bees in this area because there is such
a short warm season; from Christmas onwards this necessitates making sure the bees have enough
supplies to get them through to next spring. Once the queen starts laying in spring, the advent of a
cold snap can see a hive run through a full box of honey within 2-3 weeks. The bulk of Michaelâs bees
are therefore now located at a site which is around 6 degrees warmer, where they cruise through
winter without a problem.
Michael tells us that he has not been directly impacted by the varroa mite incursion in northern
NSW; in the first couple of weeks after the mites were identified he travelled to Newcastle and spent
4 days working as a volunteer inspecting hives. He says he had a great time and met a lot of
interesting people. He also relays that to date it is estimated that just over 2,100 volunteers have
contributed the equivalent of 47 years of hours worked towards controlling the outbreak. Michael is
quietly confident that we will eventually eliminate the mites; heâs got a âgood feeling that we will get
round itâ.
When asked about his aspirations for the business, Michael replies that he would like to build it up
to the point where he no longer has to fence; he says that he doesnât want to go too quick, as he
doesnât want to sell bulk honey if possible. He and his partner Alison, a Research Fellow at the
University of New England, do everything themselves (Alison loves the business side of the
enterprise) and they are gaining some good traction locally. Last weekend they went to Moree to
attend a festival, where they had a great reception and picked up another stockist for their products.
In fact, the highmeadow.com.au website lists a dozen stockists across the New England region.
Runny honey, creamed honey, honeycomb and pure beeswax may also be purchased online from
the website.