Monday 13 October 2014

Broody Hens and Honey Bees.....

The Bee workshop I attended on Saturday was a real education and got me to do some serious thinking...I didn't realise how much of a commitment it was to take on a Hive, regular checking in Spring to ensure the Hive remains disease free and that the Queen is still OK and laying her eggs.....the need to prevent swarming and ensure they have enough room in the Hive....strict hygiene and ensuring no bee by-products or honey from your hive are left lying around in case other bees come in contact with them....the list goes ...I genuinely want to do this but feel I need to get a bit of hands on experience before I go ahead and commit myself to the maintenance and upkeep of a Hive....I had no idea that a single hive can contain up to 60,000 bees in Spring...I find that incredible...I also have to ensure that I have the correct location to place the Hive...so the delightful Bec from Becs Bees has invited me to go onsite with her when she opens up one of her hives to see how I go...really looking forward to that.  It will be quite the challenge but will certainly help me decide if I am up for it. Responsible beekeeping is quite involved including registration and yearly honey samples sent to a lab for disease testing.  It's all food for thought.

The little bags on the honey bee for collecting her pollen....nature really is incredible...
Two of my light Sussex girls have gone broody again...last year I put them in and out of a broody box and it drove me crazy because the next day or two they were back on the nest.....it went on for ages until they eventually gave up but they wore me out....this year I don't have the heart to stop them and have decided to let them sit on a four eggs each and see how they go....hopefully better than the first year with them.. when 2 out of 3 eggs hatched and after 9 weeks I found out they were both roosters...thankfully Isa Browns don't appear to go broody....although it's beautiful to see the girls on the nest so determined to get chicks and so contented...


This is the first time they have been broody at the same time....they have snuggled up together...it's now just the waiting game and see what happens in 21 days....they are on fertilized Isa Brown eggs so hopefully I may wind up with a couple of hens...fingers crossed...anyone else got broody hens on the go?

3 comments:

  1. That's a beautiful photo of the two together. Being a Sussex boy, they are of course my favourites too. I wish you (them) success.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I had no idea that taking care of a beehive required so much work. Good luck with that project. Love the shot of your girls - very sweet!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I envy the bee hive plans, I am allergic and we can't have them but am hoping for a few chickens perhaps next summer! What great photos of your 'girls'!

    ReplyDelete