Newly Laid hedge and the wildlife log pile

Hello Again

Can’t quite believe it’s April, we seem to have had our fair share of April showers ( or should I say down pours!) already. But the sun is shining today and we are all feeling suitable rested and well fed after the Easter break and glad that Spring is finally here.

We saw around 10 swallows this weekend feeding over a stream near the shire, although as the old saying goes ‘ One swallow doesn’t make a summer’ It’s always a great feeling that warmer weather is on the way when these delightful creatures start darting around the farm.

All the trees and hedge plants Graham and I planted are looking healthy and are coming out in bud, The daffs are all out with smiley yellow faces, we plan to go bulb crazy this year and plant crocus’, gladioli, tulips, anemones etc so that the banks are in bloom all year round.

The poly tunnel is now finished and ready for us to get planting, firstly I need to make some tables from old recycled pallets to put the seed trays on, then the next thing will be to get some seed potatoes into the raised bed. The plan is to plant each row with around 2- 3 weeks in between, then we will hopefully have a continuous supply of delicious new potatoes – you can’t beat fresh new potatoes cooked with mint and finished with a nice knob of salted butter ..mmm…!

We have lots of bird activity around the nature reserve,with blue tits nesting just outside the office door and the sparrows setting up home in the nest box with the camera, we’ll soon be starting our own series of Spring watch !

Since re opening the Bee shack in March we have had a couple of very busy opens days with lots of lovely people coming from far and wide to relax on the Bee shack sofas, with all the monies taken going towards to the Bee green fund our projects are really taking shape.

The next idea is to open some of the nature reserve to the Bee shack customers, we plan to open a little trail, taking you past the wildlife log pile, through the willow and hazel coppice down the steps over the newly laid hedge, up the bank the other side to the meadow coppice. We’ll put log seats around the trail so you can stop along the way, enjoy a picnic and watch the wildlife or just simply gaze out across bulbarrow hill and beyond.

Thanks for reading, until next time – Beee Green !

Charlotte x

Our new poly tunnel

Frosty morn, view from Bee shack garden

Hello again,

The Hedgelaying is coming on very well, as Spring has not quite sprung we have a few more weeks yet to get it finished, we also need to trim back last years growth on the hedge we laid last Feb, the idea is to use a very sharp hook, or for larger pieces a pair of secateurs to cut right back to the level at which it was laid, meaning when the re growth comes through again it will sprout out from more areas, thus creating a thicker hedge.

We also ordered our poly-tunnel this week from www.ferrymans.co.uk  they have a wide range of poly-tunnels to choose from, we have gone for one with a thermal cover, we will also get a heater so that we can get cracking straight away and bring on the first seeds. We’ll be using the poly-tunnel half as a nursery and half to plant out salads, tomato’s, peppers etc in the beds.

At home I have taken lots of cuttings from my raspberry canes and black current bushes and stuck them in pots of compost, they all seem to be growing, so I’ll transfer them over soon to the Bee shack garden to create our very own fruit patch.

Graham and I have now successfully planted out a mixed coppice of hazels, willows and dog roses, we now plan to do the same the other side of the hedge, turning our willow bird hide dome into a giant willow and hazel ‘S’ shape, in the summer this will be a lovely place to eat a picnic whilst enjoying the stunning views across Bulbarrow hill.

With more planting, Hedgelaying, grass seeding & filling up raised beds planned for this weekend I think we’ll be busy bees for a few more weeks yet!

Thanks for reading

Charlotte x

Willow archway with apple heart bird feeder

Hello

Spring is in the air here at the Honeybuns Nature reserve, a pair of sparrows seem to have claimed the nest box with a camera in!  They have been popping in and out and sitting on top, chirping very loudly!  So we are very much hoping that they will move in and start a family.

We have a TV screen in the Bee shack linked up to nest box cam and Joany cam, so it will be lovely for the visitors to the Bee shack to be able to watch them hatch and fledge.

Graham and I are making good progress with the hedgelaying, despite the fact that in places the hedge is made up almost entirely of brambles!!! We have been lucky with the weather and hope to finish by the first week in March.

This weekend we’ll be planting our hazel and willow coppice and the conservation hedging.

For more information on hedgelaying and courses in Dorset visit www.dorsetcoppicegroup.co.uk or Dorset Centre Rural for Skills ( DCRS).

Progress has also been good with the team veggie patch, the raised beds have been started, the next step is going to be filling them with a mixture of manure, compost and top soil. Then the smaller two will be covered with a poly-tunnel with a thermal cover, hopefully meaning we can start planting seeds in March. Everyone is getting really excited and busily planning what to plant in their plot. We have an excellent reference book in the Bee shack called ‘ Food from your Garden’ by Readers Digest, it tells you how to do just about everything, from making a green house, to planting every type of vegetable and fruit how to preserve them, I would highly recommend it.

Thanks for reading, please Bee Green ! x

The Start of the Team Vegetable patch!

Graham & I making good progress with the hedge.

Hello

Graham & I finally made a start on the next round of hedge laying here at the Naish farm nature reserve a couple of weeks ago, it’s been quite hard going as the hedge is about 70% brambles and dog roses!

The process of hedglaying starts with clearing out all of the dead branches, leaves and chopping off the brambles ( not pulling them out as we want them to re grow). Then once you have cleared your hedge, the next step if you have a ditch, is to dig it heaping up the earth & silt from the ditch around the base of the hedge plants you plan to lay.

My gran used to enter hedge laying competitions in her 20′s, she said you had to lay one chain ( approx 66 feet) and dig the ditch in one day, I think Graham & I have just about managed a chain in 1 & a half days! – so we have a little while to go before we reach competition standard!

This photo shows the hedge before we started to clear out the dead stuff & brambles.

Once you have cleared the hedge ( and dug your ditch) you start to lay in. It’s a very satisfying feeling once the first trees/ bushes start to go over and your hedge starts to take shape.

The first step is to take your Bill hook take hold of the tree & bend it down, away from the hook, chop out a V section and slowly push the tree over, making sure as it splits down, it doesn’t break off. Then using a small hand saw or bow saw cut off the remaining piece, on a slight angle to tidy it up. Cutting at an angle helps water to run off and helps prevent disease getting into the root. Once you have your tree cut and bending over you can then lay it in. Pushing it over carefully to fill in gaps & weaving in to make sure it stays down & is nice and tight.

This photo shows this stage, several trees have been cut and laid down.

Then as you go you lay more down over the top, leaving a good strong tree every so often and taking out anything that is dead or impossible to lay.

Sometimes you come across a piece that just will not stay down, for this tying down tightly with wire does the trick.

The final photo shows the setion of hedge that we’d finsihed after day one, on a very wet & muddy January afternoon!

Thanks for reading, there will be antoher update on all the latest Bee Green Projects soon.

Charlotte

Hello again

Another quick update on the Bee green front, having been so busy in the bakery in the last couple of weeks Graham & I have been unable to start the Hedge laying, but finally the day  has come, we are due to start this Friday!

My husband has his been busy with his sharpening stone, preparing the tools for us, just cannot wait to get stuck in now!

We are now all set to get going with the next round of tree and hedge planting.

I’ve ordered from a wonderful local company  www.ashridgetrees.co.uk some  stock friendly Conservation hegde mix,  Dog roses,  Filbert cob hazels, common hazels, Merryweather Damons & Crab apples.

Along with the many willow cuttings I took through out last year – some of which have rooted in our old barrel water butts. We plan to plant a willow & hazel coppice with dog roses and honeysuckles weaved in between.

The damsons & crab apples we’ll plant out in one of our setaside areas at the back of the farm, along with some buddlieas. Providing the butterflies and bees with much needed habitat.

 Graham & I are planning a hedgelaying photo diary to keep you all up to date with our progress, so keep a look out to see how we are getting on. 

Charlotte

We thought this Pied Wagtail was stuck in the sponge, but realised when he flew away that he only has one foot! He's become a regular at the Naish farm feeding stations.

Cherry tree, spring 2009. Planted 2008.

Dec Bird Survey

Blackbird, Song Thrush, Wren, Dunnock, Crow, Rook, Fieldfare, Chaffinch,Green Finch, Gold Finch (Flock of 17), Coal Tit, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Long Tailed Tit, Magpie, Jackdaw, Starling, Pied Wagtail, House Sparrow, Redwing, Wood Pigeon, Feral Pigeon ,Collard, Dove, Robin & Kestrel.

We are over the moon that we have species of high and medium conservation concern such as House Sparrow, Song Thrush, Dunnock and Bullfinch taking refuge in our nature reserve.

   Goldfinch on Feeder

Stormy Sky, view from the Bee Shack over Bulbarrow Hill

Here at Honeybuns we believe in eating well and wasting very little. The team eat together 3 times a week in the Bee shack and nothing goes to waste, windfall apples are turned into apple crumble, and burnt…… erm,I mean well done! … cookies & cakes are turned into trifles and knicker bocker glory for all to enjoy.

Even the wildlife around the site eat incredibly well, on a chilly morning last week I topped up all the bird feeders with reject pecans & almonds and the ground feeding birds got out of date cranberries and apples. Although I think the ground feeding dog – Peggy, ate most of the cranberries!

Em & I spent a ’ Bee green Day’ a couple of weeks ago, planting out more shrubs and bulbs for the spring and lots of willow,  filling in the sides of our willow bird hide. We got to use our first batch of home made compost, we compost all of our kitchen waste, from fruit skins to blue paper towel. It’s a very  satisfying feeling to  be able to return it to the ground and use it to grow more fruit & veg for the team and our lovely Bee shack customers to enjoy.

Graham and I are all set to get cracking with the next section of hedge-laying in Jan. Graham took part in a coppicing course with the lovely people at Monkton Wyld Court www.monktonwyldcourt.co.uk in Oct, he spent a very enjoyable couple of days learning all aspects of coppice planting and harvesting, he is now raring to go with planting our coppice.

We are planning  to plant a hazel and willow mix  and aim to create an extra wildlife haven as  part of our nature reserve.

Thanks for reading,

Charlotte

Remember….Bee Green!

Peggy, The ground feeding dog, fleeing the scene!

One of our set aside areas

Small Tortoiseshell butterfly outside the bakery

Is it just me or is it feeling Autumny all of a sudden? The evenings are getting Chilly and dewy. The hedges are bursting with juicy blackberries, hips and haws, that lovely autumn smell is in the air.

Here at Naish farm we are busy preparing to plant the next section of conservation hedging and hazel copse. We have left all the set aside to go to seed so we have an abundance of thisle heads for the finches to feed on.

Graham and I will start the next round of hedgelaying in October, I can’t wait, it’s so much fun and so rewarding to see the hedge grow back thick and healthy. Also exposing the banks mean that the ferns and primroses have a plenty of light and are able to grow.

Last weekend Honeybuns had a stall at the Oak fair at Stock Gaylard www.stockgaylard.com , Graham had an excellent show and had lots of lovely feedback. Whilst there I picked up lots of info about wildlife, conservation and rural crafts.

Anyone interested in learning a new rural skill should visit www.dorsetcoppicegroup.co.uk for course information. It’s run by a lovely group of people passionate about woodland conservation and rural crafts.

On Tuesday 2nd Sept I had a very exciting day in London at the Tate Modern at the Launch of 10:10. A campaign to cut 10% of carbon emmisions by the end of 2010. Individual households, business’ and organisations can all sign up. Visit www.guardian.co.uk/environment/10-10 to sign up and find out more.

Charlotte

Thanks for reading, and remember Bee green!!!

Hello

After a wonderful, inspiring, wildlife packed weekend away at Downshay farm campsite nr Swanage www.downshayfarm.co.uk exploring glorious meadows and coastal walks around the purbeck hills it’s back to work on the Bee Green projects here at Naish Farm, we have already left set aside areas of meadow grasses, thistles & teasels to give the birds & butterflies a helping hand, but we’ll soon also be planting specific plants to attract them. Which will include hops – which are great for Comma butterflies, buddliea, - which are loved by Butterflies , Bee’s & the humming Bird hawk moth. To find out more about how to attract butterflies to your garden & how to help endangered species visit www.butterfly-conservation.org

The new Bee shack garden will include a Butterfly & Bee flower bed, a wild area, a raised veggie patch for the team, a herb bed & a picnicing lawn for our lovely Bee shack customers to enjoy.

My Husband Marcus ( The Thatcher) Has spotted some amazing wildlife this week from his vantage point on the Farm house roof, he saw a Hobby flying over, a flock of around 80 + finches in the trees next to the garden and a sparrow hawk attacking a small bird ( The bird got away!) .

Thanks for reading, Charlotte x

view from farm house roof

Devils bit Scabious

Each Month Graham our bird expert spends an hour seeing which of our feathered friends can be seen here at Honeybuns.

July’s List.

Blackbird, Blue Tit, Bullfinch, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Collared Dove, Dunnock, Goldfinch, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Great Tit, Greenfinch, Grey Heron, House Martin, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Kestrel, Magpie, Pheasant, Pied wagtail, Robin, Rook, Song Thrush, Starling, Swallow, Wood Pigeon, Wren, White Dove.

Total: 27 species

Look out for next month’s survey.

George