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Starting a new thread here to chart my skep journey.

Booked to attend Chris Park's Skep Beekeeping course run through Bees for Development on 30th July: https://www.beesfordevelopment.org/bee-involved/courses/

I have already purchased a skep from a skep maker on etsy rather than these cheap rubbish ones you see online. It's a thing of beauty. It has bamboo skewers through it. I also hand-cloamed it in cow poo. Another member privately messaged me to say that I ought check with the farmer that the cows hadn't recently been wormed as that would affect the biome. I did and it's fine. I'm genuinely in awe of the cloam. I accidentally sprayed the skep with my hose when watering the garden (yes, in April) and the water just trickled off and didn't even get wet!

I constructed an eco box (a la Barefoot Beekeepr Phil Chandler) that I filled with detritus from the local forest floor. I understand that keeping the contents moist is a problem yet to be solved. I also understand from what I've listened to that some bees are pissed off about the contents and spend time removing every morsel so I hope they're not annoyed about that.

The skep and eco box is housed in a specially built wooden housing that has a slanted roof and polycarbonate shielding to keep rain off. It's placed in a field beside local woodland, faces a south-easterly direction and is well-sheltered from prevailing wind by hedging. The housing unit is raised probably 3 feet off the ground (again, based on the recommendations I read) and fully insulated with circa 100mm insulation on all sides (except the entrance obviously). It's painted and has bee stencils on the outside.

It's my first foray in to skeps and if nothing else, it's a thing of beauty that I like the look of. I'm not taking honey. There is a gap at the top of the skep for a 'skep super' to go on if I so wanted. At this stage I need to learn and understand more about that from Chris.

I have another hive that I will share more about later.

I'm also very likely to be purchasing a top bar hive in the next week or two for a more 'conventional' approach.

If you want to know more about skep beekeeping then please join me on Chris' course (hopefully he'll bring MEAD!!) I can't tell you anymore than I currently know. I read the book 'What Bees Want' and found it very interesting. That's what initially piqued my interest. I've also watched the YouTube videos about skep beekeeping so no need to share. I'm not going to debate this topic - this is simply a placeholder for talking about skeps. I'm fully aware I've a lot to learn on this process and I don't want a repeat of the other thread here. Thanks very much!

Emma

N.B. It's fine if you want to comment on this thread. Good faith input only, please.
 
I'm sure I watched a video on the eco floor that referenced Paul Stamets' work and how that might impact the health of the bee population. I don't think it was a video of Philip's but it might have been. I'll have to see if I can find it. Which will mean trawling through the hundreds of bee videos I've watched recently :)
 
remembered this work by Paul on mycelial extracts being beneficial to bees.
It would be expected that an interaction with whole microbial biome in the eco floor would have some positive impact on the bees, but how beneficial compared to extracts is anyone's guess
He is also a mycologist and founder and owner of Fungi Perfecti selling fungi based supplements

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-32194-8
 
remembered this work by Paul on mycelial extracts being beneficial to bees.
It would be expected that an interaction with whole microbial biome in the eco floor would have some positive impact on the bees, but how beneficial compared to extracts is anyone's guess
He is also a mycologist and founder and owner of Fungi Perfecti selling fungi based supplements

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-32194-8
It's an interesting read and the ecofloor could in some ways replicate the mycellium and provide the bees with whatever they are seeking from fungi sites ,,, but knowing the perversity of honey bees - if you provide something beneficial in the immediate vicinity of the hive they generally ignore it in favour of something they have found elsewhere !

I too am not sure about the efficacy of extracts.
 
I have already purchased a skep from a skep maker on etsy rather than these cheap rubbish ones you see online. It's a thing of beauty. It has bamboo skewers through it. I also hand-cloamed it in cow poo. Another member privately messaged me to say that I ought check with the farmer that the cows hadn't recently been wormed as that would affect the biome. I did and it's fine. I'm genuinely in awe of the cloam. I accidentally sprayed the skep with my hose when watering the garden (yes, in April) and the water just trickled off and didn't even get wet!
Well Emma you have started but before you buy more skeps why not try and make you own. It is fairly easy as I found to make from straw left behind from the edge of a field after harvest. Bound by long bramble stems de-thorned and split with the pith scraped out. Best done with new bramble but stored stems can be soaked over night before use. You can make the skep any size or shape you like. This one I made in 2020 and and put a late swarm in it 2021 which unfortunately didn't survive the winter but was a good experience for my first effort.

Bee Skep.jpg
 
Well Emma you have started but before you buy more skeps why not try and make you own. It is fairly easy as I found to make from straw left behind from the edge of a field after harvest. Bound by long bramble stems de-thorned and split with the pith scraped out. Best done with new bramble but stored stems can be soaked over night before use. You can make the skep any size or shape you like. This one I made in 2020 and and put a late swarm in it 2021 which unfortunately didn't survive the winter but was a good experience for my first effort.

View attachment 31630

Why didn't they survive, do you think?
 
Well Emma you have started but before you buy more skeps why not try and make you own. It is fairly easy as I found to make from straw left behind from the edge of a field after harvest. Bound by long bramble stems de-thorned and split with the pith scraped out. Best done with new bramble but stored stems can be soaked over night before use. You can make the skep any size or shape you like. This one I made in 2020 and and put a late swarm in it 2021 which unfortunately didn't survive the winter but was a good experience for my first effort.

View attachment 31630
Wow! That's incredible. Was that your first attempt?? Looks beautiful.

I'm afraid I just don't have the time to make one.
 
Wow! That's incredible. Was that your first attempt?? Looks beautiful.

I'm afraid I just don't have the time to make one.
I've seen demos of skep making at association meeting nights. Strikes me as something that is eminently suitable to do while seated. Maybe keep materials next to the toilet?
 
That thought did cross my mind. There's potentially an awful lot of leverage on the base in a strong wind. I'd be quite tempted to put a couple of concrete blocks across the base to hold it down, and even then I might want to add some straps to stakes driven into the ground if the forecast was for high winds.

I wasn't sure it was Emma's own hive either though. It looks a bit sunny for Scotland :D

James

Hey....Edinburgh yesterday...that grassy bank was covered in honey bees for some reason; maybe after the plastic wisteria flowers? :)

20220427_150802.jpg
 
Why didn't they survive, do you think?
I think it was a rather late swarm and a poor queen so not large enough to keep warm in the winter. I am in a high cold position hence the bee house which now protects 5 nationals and 2 warre hives with space for one more.

Wow! That's incredible. Was that your first attempt?? Looks beautiful.

I'm afraid I just don't have the time to make one.
It is my one and only and was done in the autumn after the bees were shut down for winter and did not take too long.
 
I've shared it before and probably others have done so to, but here's a really nostalgic video of an old gentleman making a skep-basket. I think it was used more for holding a swarm before hiving, but it's very interesting how it was made. I've set it to start with a cat and some kittens to put everyone in a good mood and to change the coprophilitic tone. ;)


 
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