www.facebook.com/PaulaCarnellcreatingabuzz/videos/645182902565324 I was given a selection of honeys from a fabulous expert beekeeper, Marcin Matelski last week in Chicago. We were both speaking at Grayslale Beekeeping Group. This sample is the sunflower, buckwheat and goldenrod.
Art for arts sake
Having almost actively avoided art galleries for the past ten years, it came as quite a shock that I actually felt drawn to visit Chicago ‘s Institute whilst visiting this American city. Thankfully we arrived a day or so AFTER the record breaking polar vortex froze the city in temperatures below minus 26 centigrade, without […]
Winter Bees
It is such a joy to see the honeybees flying during the winter months. After a long summer of seeing the bees daily flying in and out of their hives, the winter months are a time of patience and faith that all will be well. As soon as the sun comes out and the temperature […]
Skep Course at Buckfast
Last weekend I was invited to run a straw skep making course at the Bee Barn, Buckfast Abbey. My Bee team colleague Rande joined me, and together we helped fifteen bee-lovers weave a straw skep and learn the techniques needed to start a new skep after the course. I’d […]
Leaving Bhutan
It was apparently most auspicious to pass a dead body being prepared for transportation for cremation. On our last drive together to the airport, we paused to learn why the road was filled with cars and people at such an early hour. A crowd had gathered around a farmhouse, and I could see a bright […]
A to Bees….
It is with huge relief that I have completed writing my book ‘A to bees’. I feel very professional, employing an editor to condense my ramblings to a readable quantity and correct my dodgy spelling. Reading through her wonderful edits, I am so excited that she has replaced some words with ones I preferred but […]
Out with the Drones
As the mornings are crisper and the chill of Autumn engulfs us, the bees are preparing for winter. In the height of Summer the colony is 50,000 strong but that number needs to be reduced to ensure a winter survival. It’s quite heart wrenching to observe two female worker bees dragging a large male drone […]
Eating at Babylonstoren
I have been truly blessed with having spent some precious time in July with my husband staying in the extraordinary Hotel & Gardens of Babylonstoren in the Western Cape of South Africa. I have so much to write about this incredibly inspiring place so I shall break it down into digestible chunks; food, spa, […]
Asian Hornets
Asian hornet on lavender This month’s Bee Craft magazine has a feature on this dreaded hornet that has popped up again, this time in Fowey, Cornwall. I’m reminded based of last year’s National Honey show where I’d gone to hear Tom Seeley speak and was lucky to also catch an excellent presentation by Heather Mattila […]
Global honey tasting
It’s almost a year since I attended the Honey Sensory analysis course in Bologna, Italy, with 14 other bee people from around the globe. I’d attended with no agenda as to how it may be of interest in my world, let alone how it would have influenced my career. The trip was my first abroad […]