Author Archives: Emily Scott

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About Emily Scott

I am a UK beekeeper who has recently moved from London to windswept, wet Cornwall. I first started keeping bees in the Ealing Beekeepers Association’s local apiary in 2008, when I created this blog as a record for myself of my various beekeeping related disasters and - hopefully! - future successes.

Winter beekeepers

Posted on December 7, 2012 by Emily Scott

We are having a cold snap of frosty mornings and even light sprinklings of snow occasionally. Last Saturday some hardy Ealing winter beekeepers gathered round our outside table, sheltered from the elements only by a canopy to keep the rain … Continue reading →

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4th Honey bee pests, diseases and poisoning revision post: viral diseases, patchy brood, bald brood, stone brood and nosema

Posted on December 1, 2012 by Emily Scott

I’ve now received my first set of feedback from my BBKA correspondence course tutor, Pam Hunter. She went through all my answers very thoroughly and gave me the additional advice “Try not to be dogmatic – ‘may’ rather than ‘will’ … Continue reading →

Posted in Disease prevention, Exams | Tagged , | 16 Comments

Friends of the Earth ‘Bees in Danger’ awareness meeting, 21st November 2012: Part 2

Posted on November 23, 2012 by Emily Scott

A follow-on post from yesterday’s, on a Friends of the Earth ‘Bees in danger’ meeting I went to on Wednesday night. Our second talk of the evening was from Rob Mitton, an MSc student from Royal Holloway College, who explained … Continue reading →

Posted in Bee biology | Tagged , | 18 Comments

Friends of the Earth ‘Bees in Danger’ awareness meeting, 21st November 2012

Posted on November 22, 2012 by Emily Scott

Last night I went to a Friends of the Earth meeting in West Ealing about their ‘Bee Cause‘ campaign. (For anyone who isn’t familiar with them, FoE are an international charity working to protect the environment). Quentin Given, the Ealing … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 23 Comments

Book review – Cooking with Honey, by Deborah de Long (2012)

Posted on November 16, 2012 by Emily Scott

I should say that I have met Deborah in real life, I love her blog (Romancing the Bee) and she has dedicated one of her recipes, Honey Lavender Gelato, to Emma and me, on account of one of our past … Continue reading →

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Bella Italia: visits to Italian bees and their keepers

Posted on November 3, 2012 by Emily Scott

Last week I spent a few days in Italy, near the little village of San Constanzo, in the Italian region of Marche. Drew’s Scottish aunt Alison lives there with her Italian husband Pino, and they kindly let us stay in one … Continue reading →

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3rd Honey bee pests, diseases and poisoning revision post: the lifecycle of Varroa destructor and monitoring & treatment techniques

Posted on October 21, 2012 by Emily Scott

B3 a) describe the life cycle and natural history of Varroa destructor & b) how does it develop within the colony?  Varroa is the number one killer of colonies in the UK, so it’s really worth studying. Whereas European/American foul broods … Continue reading →

Posted in Bee behaviour, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 33 Comments

2nd Honey bee pests, diseases and poisoning revision post: Diagnosis and treatment of AFB & EFB

Posted on October 14, 2012 by Emily Scott

A 2nd revision post for the British Beekeeping Association’s Module 3 Honey bee Pests, Diseases and Poisoning exam, which I plan to take in March. This year I’m doing the correspondence course, so I have a tutor who will set me papers and give me comments … Continue reading →

Posted in Disease prevention, Exams | Tagged , , , | 19 Comments

Book review – The Urban Beekeeper: A Year of Bees in the City, by Steve Benbow (2012)

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Emily Scott

Steve Benbow is a professional beekeeper who runs the London Honey Company. He runs courses for beginners, sells high-end honey and beeswax products and looks after hives for prestigious companies around the capital, the likes of Fortnum and Mason and … Continue reading →

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1st Honey bee pests, diseases and poisoning revision post: EFB and AFB

Posted on October 6, 2012 by Emily Scott

This is a 1st revision post for the British Beekeeping Association’s Module 3 Honey bee Pests, Diseases and Poisoning exam, which I plan to take in March. This year I’m doing the correspondence course, so I have a tutor who will set … Continue reading →

Posted in Disease prevention, Exams | Tagged , , | 26 Comments