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Near the start of this season I found queen cells in a double brood so having made space a sufficient distance away in the apiary I picked up the entire hive and carried it about fifteen metres, setting it in place in its new home. Oh how I laughed when I realised that I'd picked up the wrong...

Ah, yes. In that case I'd make it bee-proof as soon as the opportunity arose :D James

I've done that when I've not had a suitable piece of foam to hand. Works fine. James

This afternoon I've been making up a box for storing my InstantVap. Not quite done yet, but hopefully I'll finish it tomorrow after I have fixed the hole in the workshop roof where the wind tore out one of the wrinkly tin sheets overnight, which I sadly didn't spot until I went to shut the...

There are photos of people working bees wearing a veil with a small hole in front of the wearer's mouth, to allow a pipe to be smoked and used for smoking at the same time. James

First day of a new year so despite the rain and gloom I've been outside in the veggie plot. Mostly just to do some watering in the polytunnel/greenhouses, but as temperatures are forecast to plummet to something vaguely approximating "normal for Winter" over the next few days I've been putting...

The deadlock mechanism is a plastic bolt (which blocks the release mechanism) driven by an electric motor with microswitches acting as limit sensors at either end. Given that I have found no sign of corrosion anywhere, I suspect that either the motor or the associated electronics have failed...

To be fair though, thinning out the population a little wouldn't do any harm and if there's a group that wants to voluntarily select itself for euthanasia, well... Perhaps the government should make cigarettes much cheaper and let things take their course :D James

Giving up doesn't make your life longer. It just feels that way :D James

I'm not sure this is necessarily true because the drones don't share all of the queen's genes, only half of them. Depending on how the genetics works out it could perhaps be that it's more likely that the drones won't pass on the necessary "disease resistance" genes. I think. My knowledge of...

This is very true. Cheap is undoubtedly going to be useless. You can save a small amount of money by going for a cover that is buried in a trench at each side of the tunnel, but it is more effort to do (I use a trench). Personally I'd not bother with the "anti-drip" coverings either. I've...

First Tunnels and Northern Polytunnels are the ones I've had experience with. Both have been good and seem to have an ok reputation generally. James

"Competent Person Scheme" however, means something specific and is defined in the regs. In the gas world it means that you must be Gas Safe registered. There is no alternative. In the oil world it means that you must have persuaded at least one of a number of different (listed) organisations...

I suspect that many swarms are not actually genuinely feral. I'd not be surprised to find that an awful lot of beeks with two or three hives don't bother to mark their queens. I didn't even attempt to do so for quite a few years because I don't seem to be very good at spotting them. James

From memory, I'm sure I've read a piece by someone who was adequately-qualified to know what they were talking about (ie. had a good understanding of genetics and statistics) suggesting that the piecemeal approach is very unlikely to work (at least, without full control of the gene pool, which...

The gov.uk website appears to disagree with you. Under the heading "Some examples of work that you do need to tell a Building Control Body about unless you use an installer who is registered with a Competent Person Scheme" it lists: "installation of a new or replacement heating system or...

I can't say that the idea appeals to me, but if they're dirt cheap then they might always be a useful starting point for, say, a Demaree board, or whatever split board takes your fancy. James

Surely if you were of a mind to do that then you'd just requeen from a "better-performing" colony? James

Selling the property may become a problem as you're supposed to have some sort of "certificate of conformity" these days I believe. Qualified installers can issue one themselves as long as they're following the rules. A self-install would probably require dealing with the local council's...

As far as I am aware, installation of oil-fired heating in new builds is banned from 2025 (or possibly 2026). If you have an existing oil installation then replacement of an oil-fired boiler with another will still be possible until some time after 2030. I don't know how replacing an electric...