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On the other hand - I read it sometime ago and very much enjoyed it. Though it might not be particularly useful as a beekeeping textbook, it was amusing and reassuring (in that I realised I was not alone in getting things wrong from time to time). I have recommended it to others, who have...

Kindly note - Cornwall is not 'foreign' : it is England that is foreign! :seeya:

Just finished preparing a modest snack for Father Christmas (a few blinis with best beluga caviar and a bottle of Louis Roederer's finest, since you ask). Lest I should be otherwise engaged on the morrow, let me add my own best wishes to all on this forum - those whose advice is so valuable...

I suppose this means The Queen will be busy laying again :cuss: At this rate it will be June before we have a long enough cold spell to do the OA treatment! :eek:

Personally, I find the best antidote to be a good quality Armagnac (about half a bottle,taken internally). Works well for me, anyway.

Wasn't sure if 'treatments' covered the costs of the current Lady DD's visits to the health farm (or the drying out centre!) - so left that one blank. Seems to me a reasonable cost to add in though, given that I send her there so that she can recover from her exertions at the apiary.

Nothing (well, at my age almost nothing) would give me greater pleasure!

The recipe I used to use was very similar, but involved the addition of half a bottle of port and just a smidgeon or two of best armagnac. It was always very tasty. Had to give up making it though - the current Lady DD developed something of a dependency on it as her pre-breakfast pick me up!

The current Lady DD may be getting a little long in the tooth and a bit creaky at times, but she continues to produce a more than adequate loaf. Have thought about trading her in for a newer model, but have so far shrunk at the thought of the additional expense.

The Bentley seems to do the trick, and the glass partition between the driver's seat and mine takes care of any pesky hangers on. The current Lady DD does, however, sometimes complain when she is up front with a lively hive or two on the passenger seat beside her!

Ideal for the Aga, I would have thought

Delegate to the distaff side. I always feel that it is a kindness to the current Lady DD to allow her to get involved in this sort of preparation - makes her feel (even more) useful!

I have yet to consult the current Lady DD, but just between us I expect to have indigestion for Christmas lunch this year, as usual!

1. Think 2. No two years are the same 3. If all else fails, try common sense.

Heartfelt thanks to you, Admin, for the enormous effort keeping us going must take. And thanks, too, to all of those whose contributions make this such an informative, supportive and thought provocative site.

It has been a while since this thread was prominent. And there are a number of new forum users who may not know of its existence. So bump!

Mature beekeepers? Do we have any mature beekeepers on this forum?

Generally remove the watch. Make a point of removing the ceremonial sword, epaulettes and the various gongs - some would think it a little ostentatious otherwise.

On a couple of especially cold nights last winter I did suggest to the current Lady DD that she pop out to the hives with a hot water bottle or two. Uncharacteristically, there was some resistance to this proposal. So the bees had to make do on their own - and survived the rigours successfully.

A copy of the book that my bees base their activities on!