Category Archives: Smallholding

New honey labels

Posted on January 8, 2026 by james

Rather than using pre-printed labels for my jars of honey as sold by the likes of Thorne’s I wanted something a little more special. Something unique to me and that tells a little bit of a story about the contents … Continue reading →

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So how does this perry stuff work then?

Posted on January 7, 2026 by james

I’ve not come across anyone with perry pears until recently, but in the Autumn I was offered the opportunity to pick some from a tree in a local orchard. I’ve pressed them and put them in a fermenter, but information … Continue reading →

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Unrecognised beekeeping kit

Posted on January 7, 2026 by james

I found these in a pile of old kit that was given to me. Really not sure what they are. Best I can come up with is that they might be travel screens, but they seem a little over-engineered for … Continue reading →

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Cutting a bit of Winter heating

Posted on January 7, 2026 by james

Mostly sycamore. Happiness is a sharp chainsaw 😀

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Spring honey vs. Summer honey

Posted on January 7, 2026 by james

Same hive, same location, just harvested a few weeks apart…

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Sawdust for the compost toilet

Posted on January 7, 2026 by james

When the floor underneath one’s tablesaw looks like this: It doesn’t take that long to get a collection of bags together like this: Hopefully that should keep me going (as it were) for a while.

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DIY foundation

Posted on January 7, 2026 by james

I have plenty of recovered beeswax sitting around, but conversion rates to exchange it for foundation seem pretty poor. I’m also given to understand that much of the foundation sold in the UK is produced from imported wax, so who … Continue reading →

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The compost toilet is complete!

Posted on January 7, 2026 by james

The “throne” is finally finished and in use thanks to some scrap phenolic ply and a cheap fake wooden seat.

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DIY Demaree board

Posted on January 7, 2026 by james

Very simple this, but Demaree is a method of swarm control that I’d like to try more of in the future. The underside of the board has a rim to allow for a beespace and a 100mm-ish hole in the … Continue reading →

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The accidental vintner

Posted on January 7, 2026 by james

A somewhat unexpected turn of events has led to me being asked if I’d like to look after some (wine) grape vines in a local garden in exchange for the fruit produced. About 550 of them in fact, a mix … Continue reading →

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