Category: Uncategorized
-
A winter tale (continued)
“Get out of my way, I must dance!” My sister butts me out of the way. She butts a load of others out of her way too. Then she starts wriggling, shaking her tail like crazy, runs a few steps along the comb before turning around and dashes back to where she started, turns and…
-
Deadout
If you’re squeamish don’t read this. For the rest of you if you want to be a beekeeper then you must get used to dead bees. Don’t worry, they don’t haunt you…well kinda but not really. You may have a few sleepless nights wondering what happened and worry just how awful a beekeeper you are…
-
Spring inspection of bees… and grass.
The soft, lush grass felt cool against my left cheek through my bee suit hood as I lay sprawled in the orchard beside one of my hives. I look up to see my aider-and-abettor busily putting a box with the old comb into the car. “Good.” I thought, “He didn’t see me.” “Did you enjoy…
-
Can I open them yet?
“Can I open them yet? Can I? Can I?” The child ogles the gift of a box of sweets. “Ah, go on, let me open them.” Five minutes later “Can I open them now?” The beekeeping forums are littered with it, the annual plaguing of the Sages for the answer that they want to hear. …
-
Missing the point
You’d think that one teeny little dot wouldn’t make any difference. That one teeny little dot wouldn’t make such an eejit of you. Hive alive but it does! There’s this product made in Ireland from some secret ingredients which include seaweed extract that just sang to the bohemian, eco, save the bees, side of me.…
-
Bees, bees, bees
“You’ve bees in your bonnet!” Significant others have a lot to suffer. Then a surprising “Shouldn’t you be feeding the bees or something?” all concerned and surprised at my blasé attitude now that there is a window of reasonable weather. That’s what everyone needs, an aider and abettor but not someone who wants to take…
-
The Joys of Beekeeping
Driving back from the Orchard apiary to the hives in Bee Nirvana, I feel it. The contentment. The Joys of Beekeeping. As the peace envelopes me I class it a halcyon day. A balmy 6oC sunny and calm after the previous night’s rain and a cold snap the days before with temperatures below freezing. I…
-
Bees and Christmas Cake
You may at this stage not want to hear about, see or smell another crumb of Christmas cake but did you know that Christmas cake with its layer of almond icing and sweet fondant topping does not conjure up cosy notions for beekeepers. In fact, I’m feeling guilty now for eating the almond icing on…
-
I definitely need this one. Don’t I?
“It would make the perfect beeswax candle present for my brother. Actually…wouldn’t it be great to make a whole set of beeswax candles for him? He’d LOVE them.” Click. There! Done! I’ve justified my purchase which of course is (yeah right) totally altruistic. I’m not doing it for myself. I am not buying yet another…
-
Bees don’t hibernate
If you want proof….. I blame myself. D’ya know the way when you KNOW the usual behaviour of someone/ something/ somebees but expect for once in their lives that this time they’d behave differently (probably because I was in a good mood) and well, they don’t. They are true to form and, in my case,…