Sustainable beekeeping, chickens, and cake
Back in May, I visited the bees at Knockhatch Adventure Park, and there had been a small cast swarm in the bait box. We'd put this in a National, and kept an eye on them. I had last checked them from the outside at the end of August, and they had been bringing in pollen … Continue reading Another post mortem…
It is always really important to conduct a post-mortem on any hive losses, as it's a vital part of our learning curve with beekeeping. Sadly in many circles, losing hive is regarded as a "failure" which, if you are observing and watching and monitoring your bees rather than working towards a homogenised collection of colonies, … Continue reading Hive post-mortem
Today's weather was finally good enough for us to visit the bees on Langney Marsh. We also wanted to see if our tarp experiment had vanished in the floods, so Paul and I headed down under blue skies and a brisk and chilly breeze to see what was going on in the apiary. We saw … Continue reading Marsh bees, and Bee Lining
The second half of the conference started with a panel discussion and questions from delegates. Topics included: Carbon offsetting in the UK. Of course this doesn't address the issues at source, but for those activities that are not easily adapted such as essential flights or car use, at least having projects in the UK would … Continue reading Landscape Innovation Conference (Part II)
This event was organised by Sussex Wildlife Trust, in conjunction with the University of Sussex, and held at the Jubilee Building at the campus in Falmer. After introductions from Fran Southgate of Sussex Wildlife Trust, and Chris Sandom, Senior Lecturer at the University, the conference started. I will highlight a few of my personal gems … Continue reading Landscape Innovation Conference (Part I)
This workshop, like the autumn/winter one, is a chance to get ready for the upcoming season, and compare experiences with other beekeepers before the work begins. I noticed the willow near me has just started to burst its buds, meaning the bees will have some much-needed nectar and pollen in the next few weeks. The … Continue reading Spring beekeeping workshop
I don't use foundation in my frames as I prefer to let my bees build their own comb. There are a number of reasons for this. Firstly, the combs are essentially the bees' internal organs, where they raise their young, store their food, rest, groom, and carry out their communications. Sheets of foundation (beeswax with … Continue reading Foundationless frames
I am starting the sourdough courses this weekend, and have ordered some important and interesting flours to both try myself, and demonstrate to the bakers. Flour? Important? Interesting?? Seriously? Well, yes. I listened to a brilliant series of podcasts by Farmarama, where they discussed the grain used for baking bread, from growing, to harvesting, to … Continue reading Flour and friends
We are due some sporty weather over the net few days due to Storm Brendan passing through, and there is no sign yet of any spring forage, although I did notice the hazel catkins in the field opposite me, and the gorse shrubs - even though they are few and far between in my area … Continue reading More inspection boards
This between time is a rare chance to catch up with some thoughts, and both reflect on the previous year and look forward to the one coming. The more I read/hear/watch about the world we are living in, the more I keep reverting to a stance of resilience and working with natural systems rather than … Continue reading New Year