We are having some warm weather at the moment. The sunny warm days are great for the bees allowing them to get out and about to build up their winter stores. Caught this lady foraging on a flowering ‘Iceberg’ (Sedumspectabile ) plant.
Author: Chilcotts Farm
This is what I want, I really really want ….
I have a two acre field, I really want to turn into (revert to?) wildflower meadow. How do you do it? Can anyone help?
It seems really complicated and expensive.
Done the research over a few years and got the facts, just spent £40 on seed! (mixture of perennial and annual from Pictorial Meadows #PictorialMeadows) only does 10 square metres. 2 acres is equivalent to 8,000 square metres …… so at a price of £32,000 …. not really achievable????
A lot of money, but it needs to be done right, so hopefully this autumn we will get started. I then just need to work out how to do it affordably over the next 5 years ….. yes a 5 year project ….
#RHSGardensRosemoor have stared a wild flower meadow, and it is looking good. They are just down the road, if they are reading, perhaps someone could help out, after all we are members. I could pay in honey, vegetables or fruit ….. but I suppose that is coals to Newcastle???
Anyone any thoughts on how we can do this in an environmental way, for little cost, to achieve a native meadow.
The #BidefordHoneyBeeSwarm continues to grow
A very quick inspection the other evening, showed that the swarm collected a month ago has a queen that appears to be laying well.
Since the swarm was collected, they have been creating comb to store honey and pollen in as well as provide the queen a place to lay eggs for the next generation of bees.
I have been regularly checking the new colony to ensure that they are healthy and have no visible signs of disease. There is always the chance, when collecting a swarm of bees, that they bring back a disease to the quarantine apiary such as EFB (European Foul Brood) or AFB (American Foul Brood), both of which are contagious, and notifiable to DEFRA.
The new colony is looking very healthy and the queen seems to be laying healthily producing eggs and brood (bee larvae)
Bees are enjoying the roses at RHS Rosemoor Rose Festival
The RHS Rosemoor Rose Festival was glorious. The roses were all out in bloom and their sweet scent wafted through the warm summer air.
Even though the blowsy colourful blooms thickly clustered with petals looked magnificent, it wass the simple open single rose flowers that attracted the attention of the bees.
This is always the way, the double blooms may look glorious to us, but simplicity is beauty to the bees.
Two Swarms Collected from Bideford this week.
Today I collected my second swarm this week from the Bideford, North Devon.
A large swarm collected yesterday in a plum tree and was still present today, so I nipped along at 12:00 and picked it up.
It’s now located in my quarantine apiary, ready to be put in a hive tomorrow.
When collecting swarms, people, often ask me: “what happens next”?
I’ve decided to write about this swarm, so that anyone who is interested can track it’s progress. Check back to my website for updates: www.ChilcottsFarm.co.uk/news/ or follow the tag #BidefordHoneyBeeSwarm on Instagram.
Honey Bees Looking for a New Home in Barnstaple
I have just collected this nice little swarm of Honey Bees from a building site in Barnstaple.
I got a call from the Site Manager. The bees had been clustering underneath some scaffolding since yesterday. Conveniently located at ground level, I put them in a box and brought them back to our isolation apiary.
Remember, if you have a Honey Bee Swarm that needs collecting and the swarm is in the local area of Bickington or Fremington, contact me. My details are below, or go to my webpage: https://chilcottsfarm.co.uk/bees/local-swarm-collector/ to find out more and to check it is a Honey Bee Swarm.
Contact me if you have a Honey Bee Swarm that you need removing:
Telephone: 07403 311920
Or, email me using the form below:
If I am not available, or you need a Swarm Collector for another area, please go to the British Beekeepers website and put in your post code: https://www.bbka.org.uk/swarm This will provide a list of Honey Bee Swarm Collectors near to you.
If you have had a Honey Bee Swarm collected and wish to make a voluntary donation toward expenses, please complete the form below:
Bees are out and about
A couple of weeks ago I noticed a couple of bees flying from the hive and returning with pollen. It looked like cherry blossom pollen, perhaps from the blackthorn that had started to flower in the hedge rows.
Anyway, the last couple of days, which have been very warm and bright, the bees have been flying and coming back with loads of pollen. In addition, the cherry and plum blossom in the orchard is covered in bees.
Hopefully the weather will remain kind to the bees, and this year’s fruit trees will be well pollenated and produce a bumper harvest of fruit.
Soft Boiled Goose Egg with Soldiers
This is a meal in-itself. Soft boiled goose egg. Boiled to perfection, soft white, and creamy yolk.
This is how we did it:
- Add water to a large pan (sufficient size pan, so that when the water is added it just covers the goose egg)
- Before adding the goose egg, get the water to a rolling boil;
- In the meantime put some slices of bread in the toaster;
- Once the water is boiling, gently add the egg to the water and set the timer for 6 minutes;
- At the end of 6 minutes remove the goose egg from the boiling water and place in a tea cup or small coffee cup;
- With a knife slice the top of the egg off;
- Hopefully a runny yolk and perfectly cooked white ready for eating!
- Serve with the toast buttered (when warm) and cut into strips ready for dunking into the egg.
Goose Eggs for Sale!
We have goose eggs for sale. About 3 times the size of chickens eggs, they are a meal in themselves.
Local collection only.
Goose eggs are truly distinctive being almost three times the size of a hen’s egg! We have three girls that typically lay from the beginning April through to the end of May.
Price is per egg, minimum order of 2 eggs.
CLICK & COLLECT only. Buy online and schedule a time to pick-up.
Card payments only online. 
Find us here …….
Description
Having a more pronounced flavour than a hens egg, but slightly milder than a duck egg. A Goose egg is simply a meal in itself eaten boiled, scrambled, or fried and shared. As with all eggs they can be used as an ingredient in baked dishes such as gratins and quiches or as the base for the finest Yorkshire pudding.
Our Geese lay their eggs between Spring and early Summer by free roaming in our fields. With access to grass all year round and free to roam, they produce the most delightful eggs with deep orange yolks!
Uses for Goose Eggs
Goose eggs can be used in exactly the same way as chicken eggs. The only difference is their size. About 3 to 4 times the weight of a chicken egg, they can be used in cooking in the same way. If a recipe is asking for 3 eggs, one goose egg may do.
Examples of use for goose eggs:
- Soft boiled: To get a nice runny soft boiled goose egg, boil for 6 minutes. Read more here ….
- Hard boiled: Boil for about 8 to 10 minutes to get a hard boiled egg, and use in the normal way.
- Blowing: Its great fun for kids to blow goose eggs and then paint and decorate them, especially around easter time. Use the egg blown out of the shell to make scrambled egg or omelette.
About Our Geese
Our Geese are kept naturally, predominantly eating fresh grass. In February, in preparation for egg laying, we may supplement their feed with a premium quality specialist goose breeders feed.
At this time of year, the grass can be low in nutrition, and supplementing their feed provides necessary minerals and vitamins in preparation for the laying season and the number of goose eggs they can produce.
Unlike many keepers of geese, we feed all of our birds on quality premium food, containing natural ingredients that contain no Genetically Modified crops or chemical additives.
Additional information
| Availability | Normally available February to June, Seasonal |
|---|---|
| Life Style | Access to Grass All Year Round, Given Free Range to Roam |
| Origin | Produced in Devon, United Kingdom |
| Weight | Average weight approximately 160 grams each |
| Allergy Advice | Eggs |
Be the first to review “Fresh Goose Eggs Laid by Our Geese”
Related products
Due To On-Going Theft, Our Honesty Stall Is Now Closed
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.