Category: Uncategorised
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Sojourn
Relics and beads dangled from the gnarled branches of the lime tree which was embedded in the wall of the holy well. There was no one to be seen or heard as I took in the surroundings of this sheltered spot. Peace enveloped me in the stillness. Leaves barely dared rustle. I went down the…
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It’s not all about honeybees
So many have said to me that they would like to help the bees and some even want to take up beekeeping which, if you really think before you leap, is a bit daunting and expensive. It’s not all about honeybees you know. In fact, too may beehives in an area can dominate the eco…
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Full of potential
Bee Nirvana, that’s what I call this apiary. I still feel funny calling the place I have my beehives an apiary as it’s just a place I keep bees. I don’t even own the land, not a chance. A young farmer asked me would I put a hive or two on his land and when…
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Smokin’
Beekeepers have embarrassing secrets. I too have a deep dark beekeeping secret. I am useless at using a smoker! Using a smoker is an essential skill for any beekeeper. You’ve seen them, the iconic pictures of beekeepers wielding a smoker with slow, focused Tai Chi movements gently wafting smoke to calm their bees. Their bees…
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Oh no! I am a scavenger!
This is what beekeeping has done to me! I was never this way but now, well now, you might see me headfirst in a skip with my feet waving in the air as I rescue something that I could use for beekeeping. Recycling, that’s what I’m doing. Yeah. It started during the second year of…
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A fine mess – short and sweet
The door handles are sticky. There’s a schlick, schlick, schlick sound from my shoes as I walk across the floor tiles. My hair is sticky, every spoon, uncapping fork, super, hive tool, bucket and anything at all that I’ve touched (and many places that I hadn’t touched) has a splodge of honey. This is despite…
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Bovine encounter
I thought it was a good idea to put two hives inside a tall hedge near a public road. You couldn’t see the hives from the road and the bees flew over the heads of any passer by without anyone noticing. I drove by one day and was shocked to see the hedge cut low…
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Win-win
I remember the gorgeous smell of the house when my mother was making jam. She would stir the sticky mix with a wooden spoon, enveloped in the sweet, smelling steam as it wafted up from her special jam-making pan. Jam jars would be sterilized and lined up like a military platoon ready for action. “Keep…