bees

I have a bee's nest in my front border. I have to garden round them as they are very active. I do not wan't to kill them . Will they eventually fly off and how long will it take . They have been there for at least 3 months 

There is probably a bee-keeping society in your area who can advise you-try them??

Yes, please don't do anything yourself - contact either a bee-keeping society or your local wildlife trust.

When you say its' a bee's nest, what kind of nest?

Many gardens have nests of wild bees, which are prefectly natural. If the nest is in some kind of hole, or crevice, then simply leave it.

A sqarm of honey bees is a different thing. A swarm is a mass of bees, about the size of a football, usually in a tree or a bush. In that case you should contact a local bee-keeper.

Thank you all for your advice I will act on it.

Best leave bumblebees and other solitary bees alone - it's very hard to move them and they won't like you for trying! They will hardly ever sting unless severely provoked. 

Honeybees when swarming - contrary to popular belief and media hype - are almost always in a good mood and I routinely handle them without gloves or other protetive clothing. If you do come across a honeybee swarm, post a mesage on the Natural Beekeeping Forum and someone in your area will give them a good home.

Where have the bees gone? My garden at home is full of flowers and usually there are bees and other insects aplenty, this year very few. It is the same on my allotment. Runner beans not forming, other allotment holders age having the same problem.

It's the weather - cold and wet is not good for bees - it'll take a long time to make up for this year - so we need to protect and encourage the bees and other pollinating insects that we do have 

Spitfire, consider yourself lucky to have bees close by. It's a sign that your environment is still healthy enough to support them, unfortunately they are in trouble all over due to intensive agricuture and the use of the new systemic pesticides (the type that's in Provado and similar products). Unfortunately many gardeners use them as they don't know what damage they are causing.

I agree with beesontoast, try to find out what type of bee you have and if it's honeybees get in touch with Biobees forum or a local beekeeper. If you have bumblebees they will disappear after they have reared new queens at the end of summer.