Giselle Burningham

Update: well the beehive (flowhive) has been installed.. learning about insulation has been interesting.. Tasmania’s weather is unlike mainland Australia. It’s a lot damper and colder.. winter winds are cold!.. but we tend not to go below -2C. ..I’m concerned about mould and condensation.. so I will see how we go.

I also purchased a flow hive lifter.. I have tried it out.. without bees.. works beautifully!

I leave mine dirty.. put them in the fridge.. then once a week I get them out, wipe them with a damp tea towel and then put them in clean packaging.. and sell them. .. I have a LOT of eggs. .. if they are truely filthy.. then I wiped them.. and use them for personal use. .. I’ve had eggs for two months with no problems in the fridge. .. BUT if you wipe them it removes the protection on the shell.. and they go off quicker.

I noticed that some of your posts are over nine years old but you need to be aware that in Australia the varroa virus has just arrived here in small pockets! So your information is invaluable. could you give us an update on how you’ve coped on what you’ve done?  And any tips to help us all out. Thankyou. From Tasmania,Australia.

Hi guys.. I thought I would take you on my journey for my first bee hive… and yes I’m disabled.
I use a powered wheelchair and I have poor grip in my hands..so this will be interesting.

I already have a massive walled garden with raised vegetable beds, and lots of young fruit trees and bantam chickens (20). (We are fairly self sufficient)

Basically I started with two choices.. a traditional bee hive .. the white ones with stacked boxes.. or a flat long hive.. but I couldn’t find anywhere to buy the later...l so I ended up with a flow hive with the special lifter. .. but I still think a long hive might be easier.. we will see.. but i definitely prefer the flow hive method of harvesting. A hybrid may be on the books after next year.. I will see how I go.

My local bee keeper won’t give me bees until I had a year of learning.. tough love! But worth it. .. so after numerous videos, books, learning about all kinds of diseases etc..I’m awaiting my first nuc in spring.

So I now have the hive.. all painted and looking pretty.. currently off gassing in the shed awaiting the end of winter.. it took me ages to find the right spot in the garden. I had to take into consideration access.. also not being bombarded every time I entered the garden.

As for the bee suit.. chose a xxl suit.. you need more room for your bum when sitting lol. .. so let the adventure begin!!

John.. thank you for the fantastic document from Slovenia on bee keeping for people with a disability.. very informative! Thank you.

Yes silkies will be eaten by predators first.. I think it’s because they are soo fluffy they can’t see properly.. also they can be real greedy guts for food.. and concentrate on food and not the eagles over head! That’s why I moved to bantam Sussex and bantam English game hens.. very smart birds.

We have 4 sea eagles in our woods and numerous crows, hawks etc... Only lost 3 birds in
5 years.

Bantam chickens are full of personality! But equally they are nice and small. I have 17 hens and 3 rooster. I started with three… so be careful they are addictive. I also find that they are less destructive in the garden. All of mine free range but because they are heritage you will not get a regular constant egg supply. Be aware that during winter things can slow down considerably even grind to a halt. make sure that you learn about percentages of protein in your chicken food as this will assist with laying.

I sell the spare eggs during the laying season.. in boxes of 6 .. I have a lot of elderly people here so they don’t need as many. I also sell them at cost at $3 AUD.. so I know people can afford a meal. .. the money pays towards feed I buy. Oats, Barley, Wheat, and 20% Corn and sunflower seeds for protein.. plus they free range.

My variety are English game hen and Sussex speckled and a silkie.

The nice thing about bantam chickens is you don’t worry about too much about the spurs on roosters they’re just too little. Don’t get me wrong it can still hurt. But I’m in a wheelchair and I do not worry about the chicken is being aggressive. If you’re thinking about eating them then one chicken to one person is the right ratio they are really tiny!

I use the eggs in baking and when it says add two eggs I add three. My eggs weigh 55 g and they produce deep yellow yolks. In fact recently I bought some from the supermarket because they are not laying and my husband hated them because they made white custard! He prefers the home produced ones and no longer complains about the cost of me pampering them.

Flow hive.. I have just purchased my first flow hive.  My local mentor wouldn’t let me get bees until I spent a year learning about them.. I thought a YEAR.. that’s ridiculous! But a year later I have realised how much I have learnt before I even get my bees. I started with books and watching videos. Then I started noticing things on the Internet. I started learning about diseases and prevention. It made me question whether I wanted to go natural or use chemicals to stop pests. It made me look at my garden about how I need to improve planting. I even learnt about wind direction.. to help the bees and stop me getting stung! Sometimes even though I think we could quickly get to the answer; slowing down actually makes you learn more.

Need help.. trying to buy some of the packs.. I’m in Australia.. no ability on the system to change it to international shipping please help.  Universalpuzzle@gmail.com

Interesting problem that is very common . I agree remove what you can asap then you can turn over the soil to loosen it,
then dig into the soft soil at a angle and  pull  through the soil a grill/ grid/mesh through the top soil…  Like a sleigh!!. I would use a machine to pull it. It will take out the worst. I also agree that looking after the micro soil bacteria should fix the paint chips. Have fun