Recent content by Father Fox

Can anybody recommend beekeeping insurance tHat covers theft of hives from remote out apiaries (somebody else's land) with less than ten hives?

After reading the responses to this thread, I must admit that as a fairly new beekeeper, it has been a bit confusing with the differing advice. I am proposing to use the advice from Dave Cushmans website: http://www.dave-cushman.net/bee/swarmconnuc.html Any big concerns on this?

Thankyou everybody for the terrific advice. As usual there's a few possible methods, but as a newish beek I feel more confident now. Thankyou

Last year I Got caught out in the swarm season without enough equipment. I did manage one successful artificial swarm into a spare hive at the same apiary. But this year I have some polynucs ready and a second apiary site several miles away that I want to get started at. I was wondering how best...

I was told that SBI's no longer work for FERA, it's now some other government agency who employs them. I think FERA are being privatised.

I mistakenly jarred up a batch of osr soft set honey too quickly, and am left with several jars with white froth on the top. I didn't want it to get too thick to jar. How long do people leave their extracted honey to settle before jarring up?

I have some purchased Heather honey, only 6 months old that has fermented in the jar. Well before the "use by date".

does Heather honey have a tendency to ferment?

Strange coincidence. I have three different smokers, and it is the polish one that is going rusty.

I've decided to use a water spray to ensure empty smoker is cool and to put a metal bucket in the car to put the extinguished smoker in. Cheap, and hopefully safe. Next problem is how to ensure the smoker Dosnt go rusty

Any recommendations for transporting an extinguished, but still hot smoker in the back of a car? Wooden box, metal box, what do people use?

Are the national poly nucs made by maisemore exactly the same thing as you get from paynes ? They look very similar in photos.

I must admit I know very little about tax, letting the people I work for sort all that out for me. Looking at the hmrc gov website it seems like a lot of faff and I'd rather not have to submit a self assessment return. Just wondered what would happen in ten or twenty years time if the taxman...

It seems that if you are a new beekeeper then this is the time to declare to the HMRC, you can then offset the initial capital outlay for first hives, tools, equipment etc? Any accountants out there?

What would be considered "significant income" ? I've heard of some ebay sellers getting into tax problems when only making a couple of hundred quid profit.