Scottish Beekeeper Allergic to Stings

WEBVTT

00:00:00.840 --> 00:00:06.719
In a world brimming with complexity, few creatures

00:00:06.719 --> 00:00:12.839
embody harmony like the honeybee. With tireless

00:00:12.839 --> 00:00:17.739
precision, she dances from bloom to bloom, each

00:00:17.739 --> 00:00:22.420
motion guided by millennia upon millennia of

00:00:22.420 --> 00:00:28.940
instinct, each act in service to the whole. And

00:00:28.940 --> 00:00:34.570
then there are the beekeepers, watchful stewards

00:00:34.570 --> 00:00:40.490
of this ancient symbiosis. Part agriscientist,

00:00:40.909 --> 00:00:45.490
part poet, they move along their hives with the

00:00:45.490 --> 00:00:50.549
efficiency of mow, levy, and curly, tending to

00:00:50.549 --> 00:00:54.070
the bee's needs as best they can comprehend,

00:00:54.929 --> 00:00:59.679
and with the infrequency of a waterfall in the

00:00:59.679 --> 00:01:05.620
Sahara, sometimes running off flapping and flailing

00:01:05.620 --> 00:01:12.219
like a penguin on a hot sidewalk. This is their

00:01:12.219 --> 00:01:25.859
journey. Welcome, welcome to Bee Love Beekeeping

00:01:25.859 --> 00:01:28.620
presented by our great friends over at Man Lake.

00:01:29.200 --> 00:01:32.280
Today we're going all the way to Scotland for

00:01:32.280 --> 00:01:35.000
a conversation with a full -time beekeeper who's

00:01:35.000 --> 00:01:38.840
actually allergic to bee stings. We'll learn

00:01:38.840 --> 00:01:41.439
a lot, share some fun laughs and even hear her

00:01:41.439 --> 00:01:45.329
most crazy beekeeping experience. First, How

00:01:45.329 --> 00:01:47.629
do you know when it's finally time to remove

00:01:47.629 --> 00:01:52.129
a colony of bees from a church built in 1857

00:01:52.129 --> 00:01:55.909
and listed on national register of historic places?

00:01:56.769 --> 00:01:59.090
Well, this is kind of a fun story. It comes to

00:01:59.090 --> 00:02:02.150
us from Bluffton, South Carolina, where at a

00:02:02.150 --> 00:02:04.969
recent celebration, they ring the church's bell

00:02:04.969 --> 00:02:10.069
250 times. And guess what? Honey started dripping

00:02:10.069 --> 00:02:13.979
down the walls. Everyone has known there were

00:02:13.979 --> 00:02:16.580
bees living under the church's exterior siding

00:02:16.580 --> 00:02:19.680
for years, but it wasn't really seen as a problem.

00:02:20.199 --> 00:02:22.979
So they, the bees, and the churchgoers all lived

00:02:22.979 --> 00:02:26.479
together in harmony. But sticky walls weren't

00:02:26.479 --> 00:02:29.340
the only problem. You see, Beaufort County is

00:02:29.340 --> 00:02:31.860
South Carolina's epicenter for yellow -legged

00:02:31.860 --> 00:02:35.060
hornets. The hornets have been terrorizing the

00:02:35.060 --> 00:02:37.840
bees, which of course put the bees in a bad mood.

00:02:38.180 --> 00:02:41.099
See where I'm going with this? Local beekeeper

00:02:41.099 --> 00:02:44.580
Fred Peters was brought in and ultimately removed

00:02:44.580 --> 00:02:48.539
10 different colonies from the church, totaling

00:02:48.539 --> 00:02:52.599
around 400 ,000 bees. The colonies were relocated

00:02:52.599 --> 00:02:55.219
with beekeepers further away from the hotbed

00:02:55.219 --> 00:02:58.039
of hornets. And as the final chapter in this,

00:02:58.219 --> 00:03:01.919
it's reported that Peters received 200 stings

00:03:01.919 --> 00:03:04.860
during the removal. Hey, Fred, you're a brave

00:03:04.860 --> 00:03:08.240
guy. One more quick note before we get to our

00:03:08.240 --> 00:03:11.419
desk. We want you to know that this podcast is

00:03:11.419 --> 00:03:15.199
available everywhere and any way you like it.

00:03:15.379 --> 00:03:18.719
All of the podcasting apps plus Man Lake's YouTube

00:03:18.719 --> 00:03:21.919
channel. And if you want video to see our guests,

00:03:22.139 --> 00:03:25.740
you can find video versions on Man Lake's beekeeping

00:03:25.740 --> 00:03:29.219
community on Facebook. and on YouTube at B -Love

00:03:29.219 --> 00:03:32.719
Beekeeping's channel and video is now available

00:03:32.719 --> 00:03:36.099
for all new episodes on the Apple Podcast app.

00:03:36.539 --> 00:03:39.180
If you're already on that app just push the little

00:03:39.180 --> 00:03:47.719
video button and you're in business. I'd like

00:03:47.719 --> 00:03:50.939
to welcome to the show today from across the

00:03:50.939 --> 00:03:53.860
pond our very special guest coming to us all

00:03:53.860 --> 00:03:57.500
the way from Scotland, Gail Wilkinson. Did I

00:03:57.500 --> 00:03:59.819
pronounce that right, by the way? That's right.

00:03:59.960 --> 00:04:02.919
No, that's perfect. Okay, I'm just not used to

00:04:02.919 --> 00:04:06.860
spelling Gael that way. Yeah, it's Gaelic, G

00:04:06.860 --> 00:04:10.680
-A -E -L. It's the Gaelic spelling. Also, a man's

00:04:10.680 --> 00:04:13.280
name, if you live in Spain. As I found out when

00:04:13.280 --> 00:04:16.259
I lived in Spain that it's quite a popular boy's

00:04:16.259 --> 00:04:18.660
name. People would look at me very funny when

00:04:18.660 --> 00:04:20.920
I said my name, when I had to write my name down

00:04:20.920 --> 00:04:23.800
and go, that's your name? Well, that's a problem.

00:04:24.029 --> 00:04:26.310
Yeah, it never quite got to the bottom of it.

00:04:26.310 --> 00:04:28.810
Yeah, it is a Spanish man's name, but quite a

00:04:28.810 --> 00:04:31.129
common name in Scotland. Well, stay away from

00:04:31.129 --> 00:04:34.850
Spain. I actually have a lot of ancestors that

00:04:34.850 --> 00:04:38.689
came here from Scotland. So maybe they were friends

00:04:38.689 --> 00:04:41.230
with yours back when. Well, I think we have the

00:04:41.230 --> 00:04:43.709
Clans here and everybody seemed to fight from

00:04:43.709 --> 00:04:46.850
what I know of my own Scottish history. But when

00:04:46.850 --> 00:04:49.550
I'm over in the States, people immediately think

00:04:49.550 --> 00:04:52.009
I'm Irish. But then when I say, oh, I'm Scottish,

00:04:52.089 --> 00:04:54.629
they always say, I am Scot. And I love that.

00:04:54.629 --> 00:04:57.089
I love that Americans say that they are Scottish

00:04:57.089 --> 00:04:59.750
from where their heritage is from, or I am Irish.

00:04:59.889 --> 00:05:02.290
It's not, oh, I have my families from. They say

00:05:02.290 --> 00:05:04.990
they are. I've spoken to so many people and had

00:05:04.990 --> 00:05:07.490
such interesting conversations with both who

00:05:07.490 --> 00:05:10.009
trace their ancestry back to various places across

00:05:10.009 --> 00:05:12.449
Scotland. I'm going to have to figure out where

00:05:12.449 --> 00:05:14.930
ours were compared to yours. And if they were

00:05:14.930 --> 00:05:17.310
fighting then, oh, well, we can be friends now.

00:05:17.629 --> 00:05:21.569
Well, I'm in the kingdom of Fife. which is a

00:05:21.569 --> 00:05:23.689
lovely part of Scotland and kind of right in

00:05:23.689 --> 00:05:26.389
the middle. We're very close to Edinburgh and

00:05:26.389 --> 00:05:31.050
I have eight purées all around the west of the

00:05:31.050 --> 00:05:35.050
kingdom and into Stirlingshire and over near

00:05:35.050 --> 00:05:37.930
Edinburgh, near Edinburgh Airport, our sort of

00:05:37.930 --> 00:05:40.790
HQ is in a little village, quite a historical

00:05:40.790 --> 00:05:43.089
area, but in a little village that borders two

00:05:43.089 --> 00:05:45.930
big estates, the Loga estate, which I always

00:05:45.930 --> 00:05:47.829
find interesting that Buffalo Bill brought his

00:05:47.829 --> 00:05:52.220
show here. to the village in 1904, something

00:05:52.220 --> 00:05:54.600
like that. And then the other estate that borders

00:05:54.600 --> 00:05:57.459
us, where I've got bees, is at Broome Hall Estate,

00:05:57.639 --> 00:05:59.939
which is the Bruce family of Robert the Bruce.

00:06:01.060 --> 00:06:04.100
And they are, that's Lord Elgin, and you might

00:06:04.100 --> 00:06:06.060
have heard of the Elgin Marbles, I don't know.

00:06:06.329 --> 00:06:08.810
which Greece really wants back and is a constant

00:06:08.810 --> 00:06:11.670
argument. But we're in just a really lovely part

00:06:11.670 --> 00:06:14.449
of Scotland. It's kind of a lowland. It's not

00:06:14.449 --> 00:06:16.990
mountainous like the Highlands. Yeah, it's sort

00:06:16.990 --> 00:06:19.569
of plonked. We're right in the middle in the

00:06:19.569 --> 00:06:21.850
busiest bit, the busiest part of Scotland because

00:06:21.850 --> 00:06:24.410
there's a lot of areas of Scotland where, although

00:06:24.410 --> 00:06:26.110
it's a small country, there's a lot of space.

00:06:26.649 --> 00:06:29.370
Give me an idea of what the weather is like in

00:06:29.370 --> 00:06:33.129
that area where your bees are. And because of

00:06:33.129 --> 00:06:35.269
the weather, what kinds of things are they foraging

00:06:35.269 --> 00:06:38.500
on? We've got really strong seasons here, although

00:06:38.500 --> 00:06:42.579
like everywhere with global warming, every year

00:06:42.579 --> 00:06:46.339
is so different. And here in central Scotland,

00:06:46.680 --> 00:06:49.199
we have quite a short season and it really goes

00:06:49.199 --> 00:06:52.060
from Easter weekend is usually the first time

00:06:52.060 --> 00:06:54.720
I open up hives after the winter. I've finished

00:06:54.720 --> 00:06:57.540
up now. I've done the last checks at the beginning

00:06:57.540 --> 00:07:00.420
of September. We're doing a bit of supplementary

00:07:00.420 --> 00:07:02.819
feeding and then that'll be it. It'll just be

00:07:02.819 --> 00:07:05.360
hive hefting. mite treatment, stuff like that,

00:07:05.480 --> 00:07:09.660
right through to next year. So it's a short season

00:07:09.660 --> 00:07:12.240
and as I've seen every year has been different.

00:07:12.319 --> 00:07:15.740
Sometimes we get a very wet spring, sometimes

00:07:15.740 --> 00:07:19.279
it's lovely and sunny. This year's been brilliant.

00:07:19.459 --> 00:07:22.259
We've had a good spring and a good summer. We

00:07:22.259 --> 00:07:26.800
used to have very cold, very snowy winters. What's

00:07:26.800 --> 00:07:28.500
affecting the bees now is that we just seem to

00:07:28.500 --> 00:07:31.540
have these long, damp winters where it's not

00:07:31.540 --> 00:07:34.060
really cold enough for the bees to properly cluster.

00:07:34.579 --> 00:07:37.259
So they do go through the stores quite quickly.

00:07:37.259 --> 00:07:39.339
And that's something we all have to keep an eye

00:07:39.339 --> 00:07:42.439
on after New Year is store levels because they

00:07:42.439 --> 00:07:45.379
are active and moving about inside the hive and

00:07:45.379 --> 00:07:49.079
burning those calories. Right now, we've had

00:07:49.079 --> 00:07:51.579
a really nice summer, although I'm looking out

00:07:51.579 --> 00:07:53.879
the window and it's raining. Quite different

00:07:53.879 --> 00:07:56.980
even from England, like five, six hours drive

00:07:56.980 --> 00:07:59.120
away, they've had a very dry summer. They're

00:07:59.120 --> 00:08:02.480
begging for rain. I think their summer season

00:08:02.480 --> 00:08:05.259
kind of fell off a cliff with the dryness and

00:08:05.259 --> 00:08:09.800
everything stopped. So this year we had brilliant

00:08:09.800 --> 00:08:13.879
spring and most of that forage was things like

00:08:13.879 --> 00:08:18.620
sycamore, chestnut, apple, a lot of cherry trees

00:08:18.620 --> 00:08:22.879
in this area. Not so much on the ground, but

00:08:22.879 --> 00:08:25.860
in the trees. which a lot of my customer, honey

00:08:25.860 --> 00:08:28.620
customers, find really interesting because when

00:08:28.620 --> 00:08:31.100
people talk about bees visiting flowers, they

00:08:31.100 --> 00:08:33.480
don't really think about trees all the time.

00:08:33.799 --> 00:08:37.259
And for us in spring, it's mostly, if you're

00:08:37.259 --> 00:08:39.519
not on oilseed rape, which I think we call, is

00:08:39.519 --> 00:08:42.159
it canola? If you're not on oilseed rape, it's

00:08:42.159 --> 00:08:45.259
trees. And then in the summer, it's just such

00:08:45.259 --> 00:08:49.200
a mix for us here. We have field margins of bacillia

00:08:49.200 --> 00:08:53.659
and lots of different brassicas. But our main,

00:08:53.820 --> 00:08:57.659
about 40 % of our summer honey is usually bramble,

00:08:57.960 --> 00:09:01.120
like blackberry. It's prolific here. So it's

00:09:01.120 --> 00:09:05.039
a real mix. We have a scheme in the UK called

00:09:05.039 --> 00:09:07.220
the Honey Monitoring Scheme, which we are part

00:09:07.220 --> 00:09:09.960
of and we send off samples every year. The project

00:09:09.960 --> 00:09:12.799
is actually to measure the health of the rural

00:09:12.799 --> 00:09:16.159
environment by DNA sequencing the pollen grains

00:09:16.159 --> 00:09:19.419
in the honey. But the benefit for us to send

00:09:19.419 --> 00:09:22.399
it in is we get a free DNA profile of our honey

00:09:22.399 --> 00:09:25.919
back. And we usually have about 27 different

00:09:25.919 --> 00:09:30.059
pollen grains in there, but every year is bramble.

00:09:30.919 --> 00:09:34.320
So it's quite a varied forage. Now it's over.

00:09:34.820 --> 00:09:37.519
There's not much around. Our last forage for

00:09:37.519 --> 00:09:41.200
the bees is Flowering Ivy, which has become a

00:09:41.200 --> 00:09:45.080
bit of a cult honey down south because it's warm

00:09:45.080 --> 00:09:47.399
enough for the bees to do a small harvest out

00:09:47.399 --> 00:09:50.220
of that. It tastes very medicinal, kind of TCP

00:09:50.220 --> 00:09:52.700
-ish, and people are really going a bit crazy

00:09:52.700 --> 00:09:54.779
for it, but it's just not warm enough up here

00:09:54.779 --> 00:09:58.700
for us to harvest it. So we just leave it in

00:09:58.700 --> 00:10:01.340
the hives. Just let the bees collect it and leave

00:10:01.340 --> 00:10:04.279
it in the hives for them for winter store. So

00:10:04.279 --> 00:10:07.820
last year we had Gino Jabar on, who's from your

00:10:07.820 --> 00:10:10.419
neck of the woods. And if I remember right, one

00:10:10.419 --> 00:10:13.240
of the things that he talked about was taking

00:10:13.240 --> 00:10:16.100
their bees up into the hills for the heather.

00:10:16.440 --> 00:10:19.740
To the heather, yeah. Yeah. And it was a two

00:10:19.740 --> 00:10:22.460
or three week really big bloom. He said, made

00:10:22.460 --> 00:10:25.299
great honey. Yeah. Is that not a thing in your

00:10:25.299 --> 00:10:29.399
area? It is. People do take them up for me. It's

00:10:29.399 --> 00:10:32.399
a bit of a weird one. I actually have an April

00:10:32.399 --> 00:10:36.419
8 through in Stirlingshire where the bees hit

00:10:36.419 --> 00:10:38.500
the heather. And the heather seemed to bloom

00:10:38.500 --> 00:10:41.399
quite late this year. So I went back just this

00:10:41.399 --> 00:10:44.879
morning to just check their stores, see how they

00:10:44.879 --> 00:10:48.059
were doing. And they were absolutely stuffed

00:10:48.059 --> 00:10:50.679
with heather honey. I could barely heft the hives,

00:10:50.700 --> 00:10:53.019
which was great. So I didn't have to do any supplementary

00:10:53.019 --> 00:10:56.620
feeding. I just walked away. But what I did do,

00:10:57.100 --> 00:10:58.799
I don't know if you can see it in the background,

00:10:59.080 --> 00:11:02.320
just there of my video, I did snuffle a whole

00:11:02.320 --> 00:11:05.419
frame and brought it home for myself. And the

00:11:05.419 --> 00:11:07.960
whole house now smells of heather honey. It has

00:11:07.960 --> 00:11:10.679
been tested, Scottish heather honey, and the

00:11:10.679 --> 00:11:12.279
active ingredients that are in manuka honey,

00:11:12.460 --> 00:11:15.600
apparently the Scottish heather honey has the

00:11:15.600 --> 00:11:19.629
same or more. things like manganese. It's not

00:11:19.629 --> 00:11:23.330
something that I do. I prefer to just keep my

00:11:23.330 --> 00:11:26.269
bees in the one place. I don't really like moving

00:11:26.269 --> 00:11:28.850
them around too much. And the weird thing is

00:11:28.850 --> 00:11:32.889
I am not a huge fan of Heather, honey. I'm trying

00:11:32.889 --> 00:11:34.830
to get more into it, which is why I brought this

00:11:34.830 --> 00:11:38.669
frame back and sort of trained my palate. What's

00:11:38.669 --> 00:11:40.490
wrong with it? What don't you like about it?

00:11:40.590 --> 00:11:44.991
It's really strong. It's not got that classic...

00:11:46.149 --> 00:11:48.889
floral flavor. Dino would probably describe it

00:11:48.889 --> 00:11:51.710
better because he's more trained in honey sommelier.

00:11:51.970 --> 00:11:54.330
But there's just something about, I am training

00:11:54.330 --> 00:11:57.070
myself to like it more. So this year, I thought

00:11:57.070 --> 00:11:59.970
I'm going to bring myself back a whole frame

00:11:59.970 --> 00:12:03.149
and try and munch my way through it over the

00:12:03.149 --> 00:12:05.330
winter. It's going to be my own sort of winter

00:12:05.330 --> 00:12:10.129
store, but it's very strong. And even when my

00:12:10.129 --> 00:12:12.090
husband came in the house, so I'm in the office

00:12:12.090 --> 00:12:13.649
here and he came in the other end of the house.

00:12:14.440 --> 00:12:16.659
I could smell something, and I was like, I brought

00:12:16.659 --> 00:12:19.019
some heather honey back, and he could smell it

00:12:19.019 --> 00:12:21.179
at the other end of the house. It does have a

00:12:21.179 --> 00:12:23.559
bit of a cult following. It's a premium honey

00:12:23.559 --> 00:12:27.200
here. It's lovely, and people go crazy for it,

00:12:27.519 --> 00:12:30.759
which is why I want to like it more. But I suppose

00:12:30.759 --> 00:12:32.879
we're all different. We all have different tastes.

00:12:33.039 --> 00:12:37.340
I'm a big fan of just my own bog standard wildflower

00:12:37.340 --> 00:12:39.659
summer honey. I just love it. If you don't like

00:12:39.659 --> 00:12:42.659
it, you don't like it. I know. I just feel like

00:12:42.659 --> 00:12:45.580
I should like it more. And people ask me for

00:12:45.580 --> 00:12:47.299
it. They say, are you not taking your bees? And

00:12:47.299 --> 00:12:49.559
every year I get invited because it's quite a

00:12:49.559 --> 00:12:52.679
big thing. You've got to have your bees ready,

00:12:52.799 --> 00:12:55.200
just the right, you've got to be super strong

00:12:55.200 --> 00:12:58.700
and really, really ready to go. And what I've

00:12:58.700 --> 00:13:01.019
found weirdly this year is my hides that were

00:13:01.019 --> 00:13:03.899
on the oilseed rake were tired this summer. They

00:13:03.899 --> 00:13:05.720
just sort of stayed the same. They didn't sort

00:13:05.720 --> 00:13:09.350
of come back really strong. and those are ones

00:13:09.350 --> 00:13:11.610
if I'd thought about it I could have taken up

00:13:11.610 --> 00:13:13.649
to the heather but you have to get them in the

00:13:13.649 --> 00:13:16.570
back of a van or on a trolley take them up to

00:13:16.570 --> 00:13:19.669
the heather and then get them up the hillside

00:13:19.669 --> 00:13:23.470
up the mountain and you usually have to pay quite

00:13:23.470 --> 00:13:26.450
a bit of money and then you take your chances

00:13:26.450 --> 00:13:29.049
because some years it's great and some years

00:13:29.049 --> 00:13:32.490
you get nothing so every year I get asked do

00:13:32.490 --> 00:13:34.169
you want to come on the back of our trailer and

00:13:34.169 --> 00:13:36.149
I go yeah yeah I'm gonna do that and then when

00:13:36.149 --> 00:13:39.049
it comes round I go no I can't Be bothered, to

00:13:39.049 --> 00:13:41.509
be honest. Can't be bothered. By the time it's

00:13:41.509 --> 00:13:43.690
ready to take the heather, I'm tired. Being a

00:13:43.690 --> 00:13:46.970
one -woman band in my business, I'm tired by

00:13:46.970 --> 00:13:49.409
then. How many colonies are you working with?

00:13:49.529 --> 00:13:52.169
I'm on about 100. For one person, that's plenty.

00:13:52.669 --> 00:13:54.950
Yeah, and I'm trying to stick to that. I don't

00:13:54.950 --> 00:13:57.629
want to go really any higher because I want to

00:13:57.629 --> 00:14:00.809
just keep it one person. And I'm trying also

00:14:00.809 --> 00:14:02.909
to have a little bit of a life through this time.

00:14:03.580 --> 00:14:07.000
and not be working seven days a week. You have

00:14:07.000 --> 00:14:10.120
a grandchild now. Yeah, I know I'm a granny now.

00:14:10.279 --> 00:14:13.200
So I wanted time to spend with him this summer

00:14:13.200 --> 00:14:15.100
and to be able to do some nice things and do

00:14:15.100 --> 00:14:17.679
some trips. And what was great is we did manage

00:14:17.679 --> 00:14:19.960
to have some trips to other parts of Scotland

00:14:19.960 --> 00:14:22.539
and Lee managed to catch the brilliant sunny

00:14:22.539 --> 00:14:25.139
weather. So, because I have to say there's nowhere

00:14:25.139 --> 00:14:27.419
better in the world than Scotland when the sun

00:14:27.419 --> 00:14:30.440
shines. It's just stunning. And we have the most

00:14:30.440 --> 00:14:34.659
beautiful... Caribbean white sand beaches here.

00:14:35.159 --> 00:14:39.179
The water is freezing, but it looks beautiful.

00:14:39.500 --> 00:14:41.879
But the sand is white. I've been to Scotland.

00:14:42.059 --> 00:14:45.080
It is absolutely beautiful and the golfing is

00:14:45.080 --> 00:14:47.740
good. The sand comes from the Caribbean, but

00:14:47.740 --> 00:14:49.740
the water seems to come from the North Pole.

00:14:50.120 --> 00:14:52.570
I believe it. All right. I would love to hear

00:14:52.570 --> 00:14:54.549
a little bit more about your business. So you

00:14:54.549 --> 00:14:57.409
have 100 hives, but I can see on your website,

00:14:57.769 --> 00:15:00.429
you do some other things. Oh, and before I forget,

00:15:00.690 --> 00:15:05.090
you had a tip for how to find lost hive tools.

00:15:05.409 --> 00:15:07.789
Would you please tell everybody, two word answer,

00:15:07.870 --> 00:15:10.830
how do you find lost hive tools? Cut the grass.

00:15:11.929 --> 00:15:14.570
Lawnmower. Lawnmower or strimmer, but I would

00:15:14.570 --> 00:15:16.909
recommend a strimmer before a lawnmower because

00:15:16.909 --> 00:15:19.509
I think some of my hive tools could, luckily.

00:15:19.960 --> 00:15:22.259
I ran out of hive tools, that's what happened.

00:15:22.659 --> 00:15:25.379
And I do have about 30 hive tools and I ended

00:15:25.379 --> 00:15:27.879
up with one and then I lost it. I was like, this

00:15:27.879 --> 00:15:30.820
is ridiculous. I just couldn't find them. So

00:15:30.820 --> 00:15:32.460
I went, you know, you put them down, you turn

00:15:32.460 --> 00:15:35.220
round and it's as if they've run off. I decided

00:15:35.220 --> 00:15:38.059
to trim back one of the sites and found three

00:15:38.059 --> 00:15:40.299
immediately. And I was like, hmm, maybe that

00:15:40.299 --> 00:15:43.460
I should cut the grass a bit more often. So a

00:15:43.460 --> 00:15:45.460
couple of weeks ago was back up to about 10,

00:15:45.600 --> 00:15:49.190
but I'm back down to one already. So. I just

00:15:49.190 --> 00:15:50.769
seem to put them down and then forget where I

00:15:50.769 --> 00:15:53.590
put them all the time. And I've been sent one

00:15:53.590 --> 00:15:56.230
of these magnetic belts and I still forget that

00:15:56.230 --> 00:15:58.370
the magnetic belt is there and I put it down.

00:15:58.570 --> 00:16:00.730
Don't tell them that, I've lost it. But I will

00:16:00.730 --> 00:16:03.669
find it again the next time I cut the grass,

00:16:03.789 --> 00:16:06.870
at whichever site I've sat it down. I love Hive

00:16:06.870 --> 00:16:09.450
tools with a J hook on them. Do you use that

00:16:09.450 --> 00:16:12.190
kind? Yeah. It's got a J hook, the Hive Alive

00:16:12.190 --> 00:16:14.690
ones have got a J hook and a bit that sticks

00:16:14.690 --> 00:16:17.269
up, which is just brilliant for cracking frames.

00:16:17.549 --> 00:16:19.570
They're really good. That's my favorite one,

00:16:19.590 --> 00:16:22.750
I think. I've got lots of different ones, but

00:16:22.750 --> 00:16:25.049
that's my favorite. We need to do one of two

00:16:25.049 --> 00:16:28.809
things, because everybody loses hive tools, and

00:16:28.809 --> 00:16:31.269
I think they do have a mind of their own. I think

00:16:31.269 --> 00:16:34.450
they do get down and walk off, by the way. That's

00:16:34.450 --> 00:16:36.750
just my theory. It's a thing. It's a real thing,

00:16:37.110 --> 00:16:40.350
yeah. Yeah, we'll have somebody study that, but...

00:16:40.379 --> 00:16:43.139
We could do one of two things. One is we could

00:16:43.139 --> 00:16:45.779
coat them with something that is glow -in -the

00:16:45.779 --> 00:16:47.840
-dark, and then we could go back at night and

00:16:47.840 --> 00:16:50.600
find them. That's a good one. Or two, you and

00:16:50.600 --> 00:16:53.600
I could market a metal detector for beekeepers,

00:16:54.100 --> 00:16:57.320
where you can just go out and... And you find

00:16:57.320 --> 00:17:00.259
all these hive tools everywhere. I've tried the

00:17:00.259 --> 00:17:03.759
metal detector once at one of my sites where

00:17:03.759 --> 00:17:06.619
it's one of these things that happen. This is

00:17:06.619 --> 00:17:08.849
last year, I've nipped in... I've been out and

00:17:08.849 --> 00:17:12.150
I nipped in just to check a nook, and for some

00:17:12.150 --> 00:17:16.769
reason I still had my good earrings in. This

00:17:16.769 --> 00:17:19.650
is such a girly story, but I had my really good

00:17:19.650 --> 00:17:23.150
little diamond earrings in and a bee got inside

00:17:23.150 --> 00:17:26.390
my veil. So I ended up all over the place flapping

00:17:26.390 --> 00:17:29.369
about, getting out the veil and I just blew an

00:17:29.369 --> 00:17:31.750
earring out. So I got a metal detector thinking

00:17:31.750 --> 00:17:34.130
I'm going to find it in the grass. And it kept

00:17:34.130 --> 00:17:36.509
beeping. And then I realized that I was never

00:17:36.509 --> 00:17:38.109
going to find it in the grass because there was

00:17:38.109 --> 00:17:40.690
a buried cable running right through the apiary.

00:17:41.470 --> 00:17:43.930
And it was just constantly beeping. And I've

00:17:43.930 --> 00:17:45.809
still, despite cutting the grass, I've never

00:17:45.809 --> 00:17:48.190
found the earring. But I did find a hive tool.

00:17:49.089 --> 00:17:52.349
You found a hive tool. I saw something else on

00:17:52.349 --> 00:17:54.470
your website that I have not seen before. And

00:17:54.470 --> 00:17:57.230
that was a venom extractor. Is that something

00:17:57.230 --> 00:18:00.130
you make or you just resell? And how does it

00:18:00.130 --> 00:18:04.279
work? I found someone recommended it to me. I

00:18:04.279 --> 00:18:07.619
have been slowly getting more and more allergic

00:18:07.619 --> 00:18:10.039
to bee stings to the point where it's got a little

00:18:10.039 --> 00:18:13.420
bit scary and I've had to be really super careful.

00:18:13.779 --> 00:18:18.559
Just this week, I was given EpiPens by my doctor.

00:18:19.140 --> 00:18:23.180
I'd had spad reaction and I've had a blood test

00:18:23.180 --> 00:18:26.079
and I can't. quite work out exactly what they're

00:18:26.079 --> 00:18:29.640
testing for, but apparently a normal person would

00:18:29.640 --> 00:18:33.940
have a reading of not 0 .3, and my reading was

00:18:33.940 --> 00:18:37.339
23 .1. So she asked me to come straight back

00:18:37.339 --> 00:18:40.480
down to the surgery and pick up a couple of EpiPens.

00:18:41.119 --> 00:18:42.859
I've lost the train of thought. What was the

00:18:42.859 --> 00:18:46.000
question? I'm talking about EpiPens. The venom

00:18:46.000 --> 00:18:48.579
extractor. I've never seen one of those. So I'd

00:18:48.579 --> 00:18:51.200
been speaking to another beekeeper, Mark at Dunny

00:18:51.200 --> 00:18:54.690
Bees, and he had said... He's the same, he's

00:18:54.690 --> 00:18:57.309
got an EpiPen, and he said that these little

00:18:57.309 --> 00:19:00.230
extractor things, I mean, pick them up on Amazon,

00:19:00.410 --> 00:19:02.990
that's the chemist, really cheap. But basically

00:19:02.990 --> 00:19:05.869
you plunge it, but it sucks instead of blowing,

00:19:06.470 --> 00:19:09.609
and it actually sucks the venom out. And I've

00:19:09.609 --> 00:19:12.769
got one through my sleeve onto my wrist, and

00:19:12.769 --> 00:19:16.250
when you used it, because the nozzle's clear,

00:19:16.309 --> 00:19:18.329
you could actually see the venom bubbling out.

00:19:18.640 --> 00:19:21.220
and I ended up having no reaction. And it was

00:19:21.220 --> 00:19:23.680
maybe, you know, an equivalent of about $15.

00:19:24.200 --> 00:19:27.420
It was brilliant. So that was good. But to be

00:19:27.420 --> 00:19:30.480
fair, that only works if you can see the sting.

00:19:30.900 --> 00:19:33.059
You know, if it's on the back of your leg or

00:19:33.059 --> 00:19:35.579
something and you, you know, or the back of your

00:19:35.579 --> 00:19:37.680
arm and you can't see exactly where the sting's

00:19:37.680 --> 00:19:39.880
gone in, you're a bit scuppered. So I do try

00:19:39.880 --> 00:19:42.450
and be really careful. But I am terrible for

00:19:42.450 --> 00:19:44.910
rushing and I seem to always have a deadline

00:19:44.910 --> 00:19:47.509
and something else to do. So when I'm rushing

00:19:47.509 --> 00:19:50.109
sometimes mistakes are made and I end up with

00:19:50.109 --> 00:19:53.490
one in my suit or, you know, up my sleeve. I'm

00:19:53.490 --> 00:19:56.069
always looking. The search for the perfect bee

00:19:56.069 --> 00:19:59.470
suit goes on. It's time right now to prepare

00:19:59.470 --> 00:20:02.829
your bees for winter and Man Lake is the place

00:20:02.829 --> 00:20:05.599
to help you make it happen. When it comes to

00:20:05.599 --> 00:20:08.519
prep, the first thing to think about is Varroa.

00:20:08.900 --> 00:20:11.880
If your mite levels are high, yeah, you'll be

00:20:11.880 --> 00:20:14.720
buying new bees come spring. Man Lake has the

00:20:14.720 --> 00:20:17.599
Varroa test kits and all the treatments that

00:20:17.599 --> 00:20:22.000
you may need. Next priority is food stores. If

00:20:22.000 --> 00:20:23.940
you're sure your bees have enough honey reserves

00:20:23.940 --> 00:20:26.880
to make it through winter, great. But if the

00:20:26.880 --> 00:20:29.420
hives are a little light, or you're just not

00:20:29.420 --> 00:20:32.019
sure, you can't go wrong with helping them top

00:20:32.019 --> 00:20:35.299
things off with continued feeding. In fact, fall

00:20:35.299 --> 00:20:37.740
is often a dearth period and even if things look

00:20:37.740 --> 00:20:41.019
good now, by November your colonies might be

00:20:41.019 --> 00:20:44.660
light. Like I say, when in doubt, put the food

00:20:44.660 --> 00:20:47.599
out. And right now Man Lake is offering podcast

00:20:47.599 --> 00:20:51.619
listeners $10 off your next order. Just enter

00:20:51.619 --> 00:20:55.960
code MLBlove10 at checkout. That's manlakeltd

00:20:55.960 --> 00:21:02.519
.com Discount code MLBlove10. Manlike. Trusted

00:21:02.519 --> 00:21:07.000
by beekeepers since 1983. So the one I've got

00:21:07.000 --> 00:21:10.019
at the moment, I love the suit, but I don't like

00:21:10.019 --> 00:21:12.299
the veil. But I'm going to have another look

00:21:12.299 --> 00:21:15.599
around all of the different vendors at the beekeeping

00:21:15.599 --> 00:21:17.940
show in February, which is down in England. And

00:21:17.940 --> 00:21:19.579
all the manufacturers are there. And I'm going

00:21:19.579 --> 00:21:22.210
to. choose another one when I'm there. See if

00:21:22.210 --> 00:21:24.690
we can find the perfect suit for me. It's quite

00:21:24.690 --> 00:21:26.950
hard because I'm only five foot two. Bee suits,

00:21:26.950 --> 00:21:28.809
they are made for guys and they're always really

00:21:28.809 --> 00:21:31.210
long and huge. But I will find the perfect bee

00:21:31.210 --> 00:21:33.390
suit eventually and I will definitely talk about

00:21:33.390 --> 00:21:36.190
it on my social media. Okay. I can't wait to

00:21:36.190 --> 00:21:38.970
see. And by the way, I like getting bee suits

00:21:38.970 --> 00:21:41.769
that are too big for me. I find when they're

00:21:41.769 --> 00:21:44.069
baggy, it's a lot harder to get stung through

00:21:44.069 --> 00:21:46.589
them. Yeah, I like it baggy but I find that when

00:21:46.589 --> 00:21:48.250
they're really big, when they're really long,

00:21:48.410 --> 00:21:50.210
when the sleeves are long, it all bunches up

00:21:50.210 --> 00:21:53.190
and bees seem to get caught in the folds and

00:21:53.190 --> 00:21:55.569
often are too long in the legs. And that's the

00:21:55.569 --> 00:21:57.430
problem with the baggy is they might be baggy

00:21:57.430 --> 00:22:00.630
on your wrist or down on your ankles and then

00:22:00.630 --> 00:22:03.309
that can become a problem. Yeah, I've got about

00:22:03.309 --> 00:22:05.210
five different bee suits and if I could just

00:22:05.210 --> 00:22:07.170
take bits of all of them and put them together

00:22:07.170 --> 00:22:10.730
into one suit, which is not that bad an idea.

00:22:10.809 --> 00:22:13.250
I might just do, I might just make a DIY suit

00:22:13.250 --> 00:22:16.730
myself. I bespoke it for myself. All right, let's

00:22:16.730 --> 00:22:19.750
talk a little bit about your beekeeping philosophy.

00:22:20.089 --> 00:22:23.750
Are you a much more of try to do everything naturally

00:22:23.750 --> 00:22:26.549
or which direction do you go on the spectrum?

00:22:27.109 --> 00:22:29.230
I think I'm somewhere in the middle. I don't

00:22:29.230 --> 00:22:32.130
like to just throw chemicals around all over

00:22:32.130 --> 00:22:35.990
the place, but I haven't quite got my head around

00:22:35.990 --> 00:22:40.009
not treating for Varroa and taking the hit. I

00:22:40.009 --> 00:22:41.950
can't quite get my head around that. So I do

00:22:41.950 --> 00:22:45.339
treat for Varroa. I read up on things that are

00:22:45.339 --> 00:22:48.200
coming. Obviously, we've had the Asian hornet

00:22:48.200 --> 00:22:51.720
marches north. And just this morning, there was

00:22:51.720 --> 00:22:54.500
one sighted, maybe about five hours from here,

00:22:54.700 --> 00:22:58.859
a nest. So as the climate changes and things

00:22:58.859 --> 00:23:01.299
are not as cold in the winter that usually kills

00:23:01.299 --> 00:23:04.119
these things off, we'll just see where that goes.

00:23:04.279 --> 00:23:06.920
There's also the rumblings of truffle alaps.

00:23:07.099 --> 00:23:10.259
I don't know how we stop that. And nobody knows

00:23:10.259 --> 00:23:13.230
quite what to do about it when it arrives. yet,

00:23:13.589 --> 00:23:15.369
although I know people are working on it. So

00:23:15.369 --> 00:23:17.009
yes, I thought I'd sit somewhere in the middle,

00:23:17.049 --> 00:23:20.490
but I do treat borough. Now you had mentioned

00:23:20.490 --> 00:23:24.210
earlier how short your season is, basically Easter

00:23:24.210 --> 00:23:26.789
through August till the first of September. If

00:23:26.789 --> 00:23:29.710
my math is correct, that leaves about a seven

00:23:29.710 --> 00:23:32.410
month winter. And you said one of the things

00:23:32.410 --> 00:23:34.569
that you pay attention to is if they're running

00:23:34.569 --> 00:23:38.700
low on food stores in the middle of winter. Seven

00:23:38.700 --> 00:23:43.460
months is a long time for winter bees to survive.

00:23:43.779 --> 00:23:46.880
Do you find it's warm enough that you have a

00:23:46.880 --> 00:23:49.460
couple of generations of them? Or do you have

00:23:49.460 --> 00:23:51.559
a set of winter bees that make it through that

00:23:51.559 --> 00:23:54.339
whole length of time? Well, it's not freezing

00:23:54.339 --> 00:23:58.920
cold yet. It's just that we've harvested. So

00:23:58.920 --> 00:24:01.319
the bees are still foraging and the queens are

00:24:01.319 --> 00:24:03.039
still laying, there's still pollen coming in.

00:24:03.579 --> 00:24:06.920
And that will probably go on through into October.

00:24:07.200 --> 00:24:10.119
So the bees are probably at the moment we've

00:24:10.119 --> 00:24:12.839
harvested, so they're back filling for winter.

00:24:13.079 --> 00:24:15.299
And I think the queens will now be laying the

00:24:15.299 --> 00:24:17.420
winter bees. And then they do start laying again

00:24:17.420 --> 00:24:20.759
in February. There's movement in the hives on

00:24:20.759 --> 00:24:24.980
warmer days. It's just never sustainably warm

00:24:24.980 --> 00:24:27.660
long enough for us to actually want to open up

00:24:27.660 --> 00:24:31.329
the hives. So the bees are sort of working. by

00:24:31.329 --> 00:24:34.130
the time we start opening hives at Easter, which

00:24:34.130 --> 00:24:36.950
is usually at the beginning of April. This year

00:24:36.950 --> 00:24:38.849
was a little bit early because we had this weird

00:24:38.849 --> 00:24:41.410
March heatwave. As I was saying, the weather's

00:24:41.410 --> 00:24:43.990
just all over the place with a really weird March

00:24:43.990 --> 00:24:46.650
heatwave, which gave us a great spring crop.

00:24:46.869 --> 00:24:49.789
It got everything growing, everything flowering.

00:24:50.150 --> 00:24:53.950
So it was a very heavy harvest in May, which

00:24:53.950 --> 00:24:57.970
was great. But yeah, every year is just different.

00:24:58.319 --> 00:25:00.599
but it would be nicer to get a bit more snow

00:25:00.599 --> 00:25:03.500
and just calm everything down a little bit. Yeah,

00:25:03.500 --> 00:25:06.039
but that makes more sense. That's more like a

00:25:06.039 --> 00:25:09.339
regular four or five months kind of thing now,

00:25:09.519 --> 00:25:12.660
where those winter bees have to hang on. Now,

00:25:12.660 --> 00:25:16.200
I see that you do hive management, you sell honey

00:25:16.200 --> 00:25:19.180
and other products from the hive, you do hive

00:25:19.180 --> 00:25:21.759
tours. Talk about the business for a minute.

00:25:21.900 --> 00:25:24.720
What kinds of things, you don't have to use any

00:25:24.720 --> 00:25:27.660
numbers, but what kinds of things sustain you?

00:25:27.660 --> 00:25:31.319
I sell all of my honey direct to the customer

00:25:31.319 --> 00:25:36.440
through the website and at local markets. I don't

00:25:36.440 --> 00:25:39.299
stock it in lots of different shops and delis.

00:25:39.660 --> 00:25:42.940
I prefer to sell it direct myself. Over the last

00:25:42.940 --> 00:25:45.500
few years, I've built up a really strong mailing

00:25:45.500 --> 00:25:48.480
list through the website and have lots of repeat

00:25:48.480 --> 00:25:52.059
customers. So that's brilliant. Sometimes if

00:25:52.059 --> 00:25:54.220
I sell out over the winter, everybody's just

00:25:54.220 --> 00:25:56.859
really waiting and people come into the door

00:25:56.859 --> 00:25:58.799
and saying, is the honey ready yet? When are

00:25:58.799 --> 00:26:02.460
you harvesting the honey? So I sell almost all

00:26:02.460 --> 00:26:05.720
of it myself. I do stock one little shop in town.

00:26:06.720 --> 00:26:09.980
That is a not -for -profit that looks after Dunfermline's

00:26:09.980 --> 00:26:13.420
oldest building. And then we do the beekeeping

00:26:13.420 --> 00:26:17.579
experiences. A big part of the business model

00:26:17.579 --> 00:26:20.920
is hive management and hive sponsorship. And

00:26:20.920 --> 00:26:25.480
we look after hives on people's property who

00:26:25.480 --> 00:26:28.240
perhaps are not there all the time. I have some

00:26:28.240 --> 00:26:32.200
lovely people that live in a big castle and they're

00:26:32.200 --> 00:26:34.160
international. They're all over the place with

00:26:34.160 --> 00:26:36.200
their different businesses. So they're not always

00:26:36.200 --> 00:26:38.859
here. So I look after their hides for them. Day

00:26:38.859 --> 00:26:41.460
to day management of the hides. Just treat them

00:26:41.460 --> 00:26:43.539
exactly like my own hives. But when I harvest

00:26:43.539 --> 00:26:45.859
the honey, they get the honey. It's their honey.

00:26:46.059 --> 00:26:48.440
And I just jar it up and they get... big trays

00:26:48.440 --> 00:26:51.380
of of their own honey or sometimes frames of

00:26:51.380 --> 00:26:53.500
honey whatever it is they want so that's a big

00:26:53.500 --> 00:26:56.500
piece of the business model and also hive sponsorship

00:26:56.500 --> 00:26:59.759
so we work with a lot of local businesses sponsoring

00:26:59.759 --> 00:27:02.240
hives and we provide them with social media content

00:27:02.240 --> 00:27:04.880
video updates of what's going on in their hive

00:27:04.880 --> 00:27:08.599
they also get some honey um they get a sign on

00:27:08.599 --> 00:27:10.519
the front of the hive so they can talk about

00:27:10.519 --> 00:27:13.140
their beehive what the bees are doing it's really

00:27:13.140 --> 00:27:16.460
good because that revenue stream helps support

00:27:16.460 --> 00:27:19.400
us in rescuing bee swarms. And we do quite a

00:27:19.400 --> 00:27:22.140
bit of that throughout the summer. So lots of

00:27:22.140 --> 00:27:24.240
different bits, moving parts going on in the

00:27:24.240 --> 00:27:28.339
business. I also like to be as sustainable as

00:27:28.339 --> 00:27:30.740
I can with our packaging. We try and be really

00:27:30.740 --> 00:27:34.079
plastic free. We try and reuse all of the wax

00:27:34.079 --> 00:27:38.200
that we have from harvest, mostly from the uncapping.

00:27:38.500 --> 00:27:43.579
We make candles, balms, soap. And I mostly do

00:27:43.579 --> 00:27:45.059
that through the winter when it's the darker

00:27:45.059 --> 00:27:47.740
months. And those are all really nice little

00:27:47.740 --> 00:27:50.099
products that we can put together into gift boxes.

00:27:50.420 --> 00:27:53.359
And our gift boxes and candles do brilliantly

00:27:53.359 --> 00:27:55.799
sort of starting from October right through to

00:27:55.799 --> 00:27:58.640
Christmas. That's a big seller for us. We do

00:27:58.640 --> 00:28:00.819
sell a lot. And what happens is when we've got

00:28:00.819 --> 00:28:03.619
the Hive sponsorship, a lot of these businesses

00:28:03.619 --> 00:28:07.039
are also in the ecosphere. So they will then

00:28:07.039 --> 00:28:10.099
buy larger batches of honey for me. What often

00:28:10.099 --> 00:28:12.339
happens is the companies that come to us with

00:28:12.339 --> 00:28:14.799
sponsorship, we then end up helping them with

00:28:14.799 --> 00:28:17.380
other things. We have a house building company

00:28:17.380 --> 00:28:19.700
that sponsored quite a few of our hives, and

00:28:19.700 --> 00:28:21.420
they're now going to be putting together little

00:28:21.420 --> 00:28:24.099
packages of honey and some of our candles for

00:28:24.099 --> 00:28:26.180
all the new people when they move in. So that

00:28:26.180 --> 00:28:29.220
becomes another revenue stream. One of my other

00:28:29.220 --> 00:28:32.279
clients, they are having a big wedding, so we're

00:28:32.279 --> 00:28:35.319
doing gift boxes at their castle. So we're doing

00:28:35.319 --> 00:28:40.150
gift boxes as favors for that. So... There's

00:28:40.150 --> 00:28:42.029
always something different going on and that's

00:28:42.029 --> 00:28:44.569
what I love about beekeeping. I love the business

00:28:44.569 --> 00:28:47.289
side, but my favourite bit is when I'm just working

00:28:47.289 --> 00:28:49.789
alone in the fields with the bees. That's my

00:28:49.789 --> 00:28:52.109
favourite time. And there's also a reason why

00:28:52.109 --> 00:28:54.210
I don't want to increase my hive numbers because

00:28:54.210 --> 00:28:56.250
I don't want to work with anyone else. I don't

00:28:56.250 --> 00:28:59.849
want staff. I really enjoy that time on my own

00:28:59.849 --> 00:29:02.009
because when I'm not there, everything's quite

00:29:02.009 --> 00:29:04.470
busy. We've got busy lives and I really enjoy

00:29:04.470 --> 00:29:06.890
just being out in the fields. I've found this

00:29:06.890 --> 00:29:10.599
new app. that you put on your phone, I can't

00:29:10.599 --> 00:29:12.539
remember, I think it's called Merlin. I leave

00:29:12.539 --> 00:29:14.819
it sitting on the van and it listens to all the

00:29:14.819 --> 00:29:16.759
bird song and it tells me all the birds that

00:29:16.759 --> 00:29:19.299
are round about while I'm beekeeping. Becomes

00:29:19.299 --> 00:29:22.339
slightly obsessed with it and finding something

00:29:22.339 --> 00:29:25.420
new. Yeah, it's so good. It's just interesting.

00:29:25.779 --> 00:29:29.500
Because all of my hives are on pesticide free

00:29:29.500 --> 00:29:32.559
farmland, we have, it's quite, there's lots of

00:29:32.559 --> 00:29:35.160
bugs. And so now there's lots of birds. So it's

00:29:35.160 --> 00:29:37.559
great just seeing what I can hear, but I can't

00:29:37.559 --> 00:29:40.460
see. This brilliant little app tells you, you

00:29:40.460 --> 00:29:42.079
should get, you've got to get it on your phone.

00:29:42.279 --> 00:29:44.640
You become obsessed with it. Okay. I'm going

00:29:44.640 --> 00:29:48.539
to have you send me a link. I will. I love the

00:29:48.539 --> 00:29:52.240
fact that when people get into beekeeping, it

00:29:52.240 --> 00:29:55.559
also gets us more in touch with just all of our

00:29:55.559 --> 00:29:58.539
natural surroundings. We think a lot more about

00:29:58.539 --> 00:30:01.910
flowers. versus pesticides and about birds and

00:30:01.910 --> 00:30:04.089
all these other things. I also love how much

00:30:04.089 --> 00:30:06.250
you've diversified your business. Really smart.

00:30:06.509 --> 00:30:09.089
I think I sort of had to so that it could become

00:30:09.089 --> 00:30:11.690
a business that paid a wage, you know, that had

00:30:11.690 --> 00:30:14.329
an income to have all these different sort of

00:30:14.329 --> 00:30:16.910
revenue streams because just doing the honey

00:30:16.910 --> 00:30:19.509
wasn't quite enough. Yeah. But we've definitely

00:30:19.509 --> 00:30:23.190
tapped out all my hive numbers and I feel like...

00:30:23.990 --> 00:30:26.789
There's always someone new. There's a new company

00:30:26.789 --> 00:30:30.029
just come in as a Hive sponsor. They are a Scottish

00:30:30.029 --> 00:30:34.569
heritage brand who do book binding, old school

00:30:34.569 --> 00:30:37.410
leather for books. And they send that leather

00:30:37.410 --> 00:30:40.289
all over the world for book binders. Things I

00:30:40.289 --> 00:30:42.190
never think of. We just meet the most interesting

00:30:42.190 --> 00:30:45.789
people. We've got another company who are local.

00:30:46.240 --> 00:30:49.619
called McLean and Bruce. And the McLean of McLean

00:30:49.619 --> 00:30:52.359
and Bruce is Charles McLean, who's one of the

00:30:52.359 --> 00:30:54.980
top whiskey noses in the world. So they're a

00:30:54.980 --> 00:30:57.700
whiskey tour company. And you just meet, through

00:30:57.700 --> 00:31:00.400
Beeve, it's crazy. You just meet so many interesting

00:31:00.400 --> 00:31:03.660
people. I've got companies who make swimwear

00:31:03.660 --> 00:31:07.730
from recycled sea plastic. It's just, there's

00:31:07.730 --> 00:31:09.750
just so many different people doing so many,

00:31:09.890 --> 00:31:13.230
an international DJ that I look after their hives

00:31:13.230 --> 00:31:16.730
for, just so many different things. And that's,

00:31:16.730 --> 00:31:19.990
I love that about beekeeping. But as I say, I

00:31:19.990 --> 00:31:22.970
also love the quiet time when it's just me going

00:31:22.970 --> 00:31:25.170
from site to site in the van and working my way

00:31:25.170 --> 00:31:28.309
down the road. I really enjoy that. I like it.

00:31:28.569 --> 00:31:31.769
All right. In spite of all the quiet time, give

00:31:31.769 --> 00:31:34.490
me an idea of a really fun or crazy beekeeping

00:31:34.490 --> 00:31:37.460
story that you've had. Especially doing a lot

00:31:37.460 --> 00:31:41.599
of this alone, have you had any crazy or really

00:31:41.599 --> 00:31:43.920
fun or unusual beekeeping stories that you want

00:31:43.920 --> 00:31:46.400
to share with us? Well, I think one of them harks

00:31:46.400 --> 00:31:51.059
back to bee stings and having got this EpiPen.

00:31:51.279 --> 00:31:56.279
So back in lockdown, obviously in lockdown here...

00:31:56.349 --> 00:31:58.829
bees were classed as livestock so I could get

00:31:58.829 --> 00:32:00.809
out and still look after the bees and that was

00:32:00.809 --> 00:32:03.930
great and I was just finishing up at a site for

00:32:03.930 --> 00:32:06.210
some reason, oh I'd taken a call, that's what

00:32:06.210 --> 00:32:08.369
it was, I'd taken a call which I now never, since

00:32:08.369 --> 00:32:11.089
this moment I never do that, I'd taken a call

00:32:11.089 --> 00:32:13.769
and I bent down to pick up the hive tool back

00:32:13.769 --> 00:32:16.849
to the hive tools off the grass and a bee flew

00:32:16.849 --> 00:32:19.369
up out the grass and caught me right on the throat

00:32:19.369 --> 00:32:21.990
so I panicked and I was like oh my god I'm going

00:32:21.990 --> 00:32:25.000
to swell up. There's no one around, it's locked

00:32:25.000 --> 00:32:27.819
down, there's no one on the roads. So I jumped

00:32:27.819 --> 00:32:30.480
in the van. I wasn't far from our village that

00:32:30.480 --> 00:32:33.180
has a little chemist. And of course it was locked

00:32:33.180 --> 00:32:35.180
down, so everybody's in a queue outside the chemist

00:32:35.180 --> 00:32:38.140
with their masks on. And I pull up outside in

00:32:38.140 --> 00:32:40.400
the van, leave the van running, hood still with

00:32:40.400 --> 00:32:43.759
my B -suit on, panicking, brush past everybody

00:32:43.759 --> 00:32:46.900
in the queue, rush in, and I get to the counter

00:32:46.900 --> 00:32:49.500
and I say to the guy, I think I'm having a...

00:32:50.229 --> 00:32:52.349
anaphylactic reaction. I've been stung by a bee

00:32:52.349 --> 00:32:55.089
and he looked at me and I just projectile vomited

00:32:55.089 --> 00:32:58.230
right down the guy's front. And he just stood

00:32:58.230 --> 00:33:02.069
there and then I fainted. And then it got even

00:33:02.069 --> 00:33:04.769
worse because I peed myself in front of half

00:33:04.769 --> 00:33:07.190
the village in my bee suit. And I was basically

00:33:07.190 --> 00:33:10.869
dragged by the ankles into the little room. And

00:33:10.869 --> 00:33:13.430
then I was recovered quite quickly in about 20

00:33:13.430 --> 00:33:15.069
minutes. And then they had to let me out the

00:33:15.069 --> 00:33:17.829
back door. And even now, when I go into that

00:33:17.829 --> 00:33:20.859
chemist shop, Six years later, that guy won't

00:33:20.859 --> 00:33:22.799
serve me. He hides through the back when he sees

00:33:22.799 --> 00:33:30.279
me. Oh my gosh. I'm now the crazy bee lady in

00:33:30.279 --> 00:33:33.119
the village and everybody heard about it. Well,

00:33:33.119 --> 00:33:35.819
thank you for being brave enough to share that.

00:33:36.160 --> 00:33:39.019
The village crazy bee lady, it's awesome. Yeah,

00:33:39.099 --> 00:33:41.500
the village crazy bee lady. It wasn't my finest

00:33:41.500 --> 00:33:44.539
beekeeping moment, I have to say. But we have

00:33:44.539 --> 00:33:47.059
laughed about it now. Myself and the other girls

00:33:47.059 --> 00:33:49.660
that work in there, they still laugh about it.

00:33:49.759 --> 00:33:52.079
And when any new member of staff comes in, they

00:33:52.079 --> 00:33:54.559
have to be warned about the crazy bee lady who

00:33:54.559 --> 00:33:57.599
might come in and be sick down your front. So,

00:33:57.759 --> 00:34:00.740
did they give you a shot from an EpiPen? No,

00:34:00.819 --> 00:34:03.680
they didn't want me to go to hospital because

00:34:03.680 --> 00:34:06.000
it was lockdown. And obviously, the hospitals

00:34:06.000 --> 00:34:09.380
were crazy. So I just... on the floor till I

00:34:09.380 --> 00:34:11.500
felt better. That's all that happened. And then

00:34:11.500 --> 00:34:14.219
they let me out. They let me just go home. My

00:34:14.219 --> 00:34:16.960
son came and got me and I came home and I was

00:34:16.960 --> 00:34:19.280
absolutely fine. But I think they did the right

00:34:19.280 --> 00:34:22.719
thing because it was the first draft of COVID

00:34:22.719 --> 00:34:25.980
and the hospitals. Once you went in, you know,

00:34:25.980 --> 00:34:27.539
you seem to get caught in a system and I was

00:34:27.539 --> 00:34:28.920
like, oh, I don't want to go in the hospital.

00:34:29.039 --> 00:34:30.840
I'll end up catching COVID in hospital, which

00:34:30.840 --> 00:34:33.619
is a weird thing. Like many beekeepers, I've

00:34:33.619 --> 00:34:36.420
never had COVID, even though everyone in my house...

00:34:36.480 --> 00:34:39.320
caught it at some point. I never had it. Seems

00:34:39.320 --> 00:34:41.500
to be a thing. I heard there was some research

00:34:41.500 --> 00:34:44.199
being done into it that why beekeepers are not

00:34:44.199 --> 00:34:47.039
catching things like that. Possibly back to the

00:34:47.039 --> 00:34:48.739
bee venom that's all running around our system.

00:34:49.320 --> 00:34:52.260
It very well may be. That's interesting. By the

00:34:52.260 --> 00:34:55.780
way, a month or so ago, we had an allergist on

00:34:55.780 --> 00:34:59.260
the show. So an allergy doctor. And she talked

00:34:59.260 --> 00:35:02.619
all about EpiPens and a thing called Nephi. I'll

00:35:02.619 --> 00:35:05.409
need to listen to that. which is the same medicine

00:35:05.409 --> 00:35:08.590
but it's a nasal spray instead of a needle but

00:35:08.590 --> 00:35:10.769
it was really interesting one of the things that

00:35:10.769 --> 00:35:14.110
she said is if you're afraid someone is having

00:35:14.110 --> 00:35:18.449
a reaction go ahead and give them the shot or

00:35:18.449 --> 00:35:21.570
the nephi you're not going to hurt them in other

00:35:21.570 --> 00:35:23.989
words you're not going to make the mistake and

00:35:23.989 --> 00:35:27.699
kill somebody because they weren't having a reaction

00:35:27.699 --> 00:35:31.679
and you gave them the EpiPen. It's just better

00:35:31.679 --> 00:35:34.320
to be safe than sorry and do it because it's

00:35:34.320 --> 00:35:37.159
not going to harm somebody. This isn't my medical

00:35:37.159 --> 00:35:41.039
advice. This was hers and she's a regular allergy

00:35:41.039 --> 00:35:43.809
doctor and so I take her word on it. Here, you

00:35:43.809 --> 00:35:46.909
need to have them prescribed by a doctor. Obviously,

00:35:46.929 --> 00:35:49.650
we get them free on the NHS, but because I think

00:35:49.650 --> 00:35:51.690
they're quite expensive, they don't just give

00:35:51.690 --> 00:35:54.110
them out. You get them prescribed for yourself.

00:35:54.309 --> 00:35:55.949
I have to say, I'm a little bit nervous about

00:35:55.949 --> 00:35:58.949
using one. I'd have no idea why, but I'm sure

00:35:58.949 --> 00:36:01.650
if I ever need one, I will use it. If I think

00:36:01.650 --> 00:36:04.309
I'm going to end up with a bad sting, I will

00:36:04.309 --> 00:36:06.809
use it and we'll just see what happens because

00:36:06.809 --> 00:36:09.389
I have no idea what to expect. Yeah. And don't

00:36:09.389 --> 00:36:11.389
wait till you're nearly dead and you can't breathe

00:36:11.389 --> 00:36:13.780
at all. No. Do it before then, because a lot

00:36:13.780 --> 00:36:16.059
of people wait too long. I don't know how it

00:36:16.059 --> 00:36:18.940
is there, but here in the States, if you're a

00:36:18.940 --> 00:36:22.000
beekeeper, even if you don't have an allergic

00:36:22.000 --> 00:36:25.320
reaction to bee stings, usually if you go to

00:36:25.320 --> 00:36:28.039
your doctor and say, hey, I'm a beekeeper. I

00:36:28.039 --> 00:36:31.159
have other people around. I never know if somebody

00:36:31.159 --> 00:36:34.719
is going to have a reaction. Most of them will

00:36:34.719 --> 00:36:37.019
write you a prescription to get one. And it's

00:36:37.019 --> 00:36:40.880
just a really good, smart thing to do, especially

00:36:40.880 --> 00:36:44.039
with the bee experiences that you're doing. You

00:36:44.039 --> 00:36:46.340
don't know, and you may need to save somebody's

00:36:46.340 --> 00:36:49.159
life. I do feel better having them. So I've got

00:36:49.159 --> 00:36:51.860
two, because she did say, use it and then give

00:36:51.860 --> 00:36:53.519
it 15 minutes. And if you think you need the

00:36:53.519 --> 00:36:56.400
other one, take the other one. That's exactly

00:36:56.400 --> 00:37:00.960
right. Some of the beekeeping, the bee suit manufacturers

00:37:00.960 --> 00:37:03.000
are now building in little pockets for them.

00:37:03.190 --> 00:37:06.050
So that's interesting. We really should have

00:37:06.050 --> 00:37:08.630
them with us all the time. It's just a really

00:37:08.630 --> 00:37:10.969
smart thing to do. We always have a first aid

00:37:10.969 --> 00:37:13.829
kit, especially as well because I am working

00:37:13.829 --> 00:37:17.309
on my own and I'm in often quite rural places

00:37:17.309 --> 00:37:19.849
where no one would see me from a road or a path.

00:37:20.010 --> 00:37:23.389
So I do always have my phone with me, fire extinguisher,

00:37:23.489 --> 00:37:25.750
you know, all those things. But I do feel a bit

00:37:25.750 --> 00:37:28.309
better now having the EpiPen just in case because

00:37:28.309 --> 00:37:30.630
I'm on my own. And if I went down, no one would

00:37:30.630 --> 00:37:33.409
know where I was. or how to come and get me.

00:37:33.650 --> 00:37:35.289
I suppose we should tell people where we're going,

00:37:36.110 --> 00:37:38.210
but often I get in the van and then I change

00:37:38.210 --> 00:37:41.449
my mind. I do feel better having the epic end.

00:37:41.690 --> 00:37:43.889
Hopefully that's it for this year and we'll just

00:37:43.889 --> 00:37:46.949
see what happens next year. These bee venom allergies

00:37:46.949 --> 00:37:49.389
are not to be messed around with. We have to

00:37:49.389 --> 00:37:52.150
take them seriously, so. Yeah, and I do feel

00:37:52.150 --> 00:37:54.630
it's getting worse. Hey, Gail, I've had fun.

00:37:54.690 --> 00:37:57.550
It's been a fun chat. If anybody wants to find

00:37:57.550 --> 00:38:01.429
out more about your operation, it's kinbees .com

00:38:01.429 --> 00:38:03.829
with a K. We'll stick it down in the show notes

00:38:03.829 --> 00:38:06.349
so everybody can find it. Thanks for being with

00:38:06.349 --> 00:38:08.969
me today. I appreciate it. That's OK. Thanks.

00:38:09.030 --> 00:38:11.269
Thanks for having me on. I hope I haven't spoken

00:38:11.269 --> 00:38:14.030
too fast, because as Scottish people, we like

00:38:14.030 --> 00:38:16.289
to speak really fast. Especially when we're talking

00:38:16.289 --> 00:38:19.670
about a subject that we love, we can become quite

00:38:19.670 --> 00:38:22.429
fast. So hopefully everybody understands my accent.

00:38:22.869 --> 00:38:25.389
They will. And I talk slow, so the two of us

00:38:25.389 --> 00:38:27.989
will balance each other out. That's great. All

00:38:27.989 --> 00:38:30.070
right. Take care. Brilliant. Thanks so much.

00:38:33.789 --> 00:38:36.610
Thanks again for joining us on Be Love, Be Keeping

00:38:36.610 --> 00:38:39.650
presented by Man Lake. Another big thank you

00:38:39.650 --> 00:38:42.750
goes to V2B Health for their support. Vita's

00:38:42.750 --> 00:38:45.889
Varroa Control Ranger products includes Epistan,

00:38:46.050 --> 00:38:50.349
Epigard, and now Varroxan Extended Release Oxalic

00:38:50.349 --> 00:38:53.309
Acids Trips. Hey, thanks a lot guys. And if you

00:38:53.309 --> 00:38:55.789
haven't yet, please subscribe to and follow the

00:38:55.789 --> 00:38:57.969
show, tell your friends about it, and click on

00:38:57.969 --> 00:39:01.369
over to BeLoveBekeeping .com to sign up for our

00:39:01.369 --> 00:39:04.289
free newsletter. If you have a guest suggestion

00:39:04.289 --> 00:39:07.409
or topic you'd like discussed on the show, shoot

00:39:07.409 --> 00:39:10.949
me an email, eric at BeLoveBekeeping .com. And

00:39:10.949 --> 00:39:13.389
remember, if you're not just in it for the honey

00:39:13.389 --> 00:39:16.449
or the money, you're in it for the love. See

00:39:16.449 --> 00:39:17.269
you next week.