The last month, the Bee & Bee accommodation at Ardvarney Country Lodge was vacant for new Bees to check in.Unfortunately, no wild swarms were interested to build their colony

in the Hive (probably because it was already end of season for swarms).    I had to close down the hive for wild habitants (Wasps), interested to steal the remains of honey from the hive. This ment that I had to find a Queen bee and some workers.  A Bee keeper from Sligo (Paul) was willing to split one of his Bee populations and build a new colony for us.

During our visit to Holland in August (our Youngest daughter got married), a fresh new Queen was selected and  a new colony of bees were transferred to our Hive.  

First thing we did when we came home was visit Paul to see the new addition to our small farm.

The whole swarm was buzzing a welcome, they were not happy though with the transport from Sligo
to Ardvarney, the Hive was closed and put in the back of the jeep. This all went well, and after an somewhat an thrilling drive (what if they escape…!!!) the hive was brought to the place in the secluded bee garden of Bee and Bee Ardvarney Country Lodge. A lot of zooming and complaining when opening the Hive again, but after a night, they settled down well. The box contains, the broodbox with new happy Bees, a feed-box with fresh sugar solution to feed them and a stunning flower environment around the lodge to explore.On advice of Paul, I got 2 pads of ApiGuard to preventively fight Varroa (bee mite)

After a week, I can say that the family is in good shape. They are friendly flying around the hive and eating well from the sugar. I expect that the Queen is laying her eggs and that the colony is growing well.  The bees have not much access to Nectar (sugar feed from the flowers that they use to make honey.)

anymore, as it is end of season, but they do go out to collect pollen.

Honey bees collect pollen and nectar as food for the entire colony, and as they do, they pollinate plants. See the yellow powder/ pollen on the back legs of this bee.

In September and October, the preparations for the winter will start. No honey yet this year. However, for next season we have high expectations. Exciting months to come. Lets keep a close eye on them to see how they manage during fall and winter time.

More to come……Wilfred.

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Living in Dromahair, Leitrim and being retired, gave me the possibility to think about a new  hobby to do next to  the work in the Bed an Breakfast .

Making the frames

I always had the idea to become a beekeeper when settled, next to our sheep, chicken and ducks to have some buzzy guests in a nice beehive. However, I realised that keeping bees is not so simple as putting a hive in the garden and let nature take its course.

Inquiries what, where how beekeeping is planning ahead.

As a start, a few months ago, I did a  beekeepers course with Mary from Mill Lane Beekeeping. A fantastic lady, living bees. She herself has 22 hives on her site. A remote cottage, hidden in the Leitrim countryside. She explained all about the world of Bees. The housing, the life style, the food, their habits, the diseases etc. A great experience. Last week, after my birthday, I got some money to spend on a real new hive.

Gauntlet and other beekeepers products

No way back now and up to the Mill Lane Beekeeping place to see what we could buy. I bought a self to assemble pack of a National Hive. A 3000+ bedroom apartment for bees. It took a few glasses of water and a lot of patience, to get this puzzle together. At last after a day work I succeeded. The new house was build. The floor, the entrance block, the brood chamber, the queen excluder, the super (2x), the crown board and roof. Inside, the self assembled frames (30 in total).

With the buy of the hive came a starter equipment like a smoker,  beekeeper tool and beekeeper Gauntlets. I also needed to buy a frame that can hold two hives. (I start with one but you never know!)

Placing the beehive,

Next step was that I defined a place in the garden. Sunny but not too sunny and a free landing strip from the fields around us. A safe place without the risk of being disturbed but still in site from the house window. A paradise for our future guests.

Hive in the Garden

I put an ad on the social media with the message that a new house was build for 3000+ guests. The rent, a load of honey and a friendly attitude.

drone bee looking for new house

A few drops of Lemon grass oil to make them feel at home and ready to go.
After a day, there were some first views of interested guests, swarming around the hive and popping in for a quick look. Now, I have to wait if they are able to convince the Queen to have a visit and settle herself at a nice sp

First guests

ot in the property. The new adventure has started. Still a lot to learn and experience, but the start is made for a successful beekeeping adventure.

Do you want to see our new hive go to  the website

Keep an eye out for the next blog, Wilfred will keep you informed of all new developments.

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They provide the main ingredient for the breakfast the eggs and they are an attraction for our guests.

The Pine marter a natural enemy of the chickens

On top of that are these chicks and ducks friends with our dogs.

Lady, one of our dogs at the bed and breakfast, loves to keep them together. She keeps them out of the flower garden and she sits with them when they are foraging in the field protecting them from fox and other predators. When I look at them it always makes me smile. Bella our Jack Russel is the hammock maker she loves to run with and after the birds. She tries to copy Lady but seriously fails every time.

Chickens in the garden of Ardvarney Country Lodge

Lady, on the other hand, quickly gathers all of them back together and sits down looking at them. Nature is beautiful.

One of our ducks has a special band with Lady, when we have some potatoes left over from the breakfast  we feed them to the birds. This particular duck always shares some with Lady and she knows it. She will sit next to the fence waiting for her piece.

From the beginning that we started with animals on our small farm B&B we let them be together.In this short youtube video you can see Lady at work .lady the chicken herder

Bella is our lamb mom when we have pet lambs, but that is a different story that I will tell you in the next blogpost.

Would you like to meet our chickens, ducks, dogs and sheep, you can book now call 00353(0)879141361 or look at the website www.ardvarneycountrylodge.com.

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Phone: +353879172143

From €100 pp (minimum of 2 persons)

Be sure to mention this package when booking!

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Special Price of €80 pps for Bed and Breakfast at Ardvarney Country Lodge plus

Contact Us Now for More Information

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On the second day, you will have the opportunity to visit a local smallholding and talk to Lyn the gardener, about no-dig gardening, gardening for wildlife, permaculture, composting and anything else you would like to discuss. Meet Teddy and Tony the Alpacas, Podge the Pot-bellied pig and the gang of Bantam hens, Geese and Ducks. You are welcome to stay for herbal tea of the day and a home baked scone on the terrace afterwards.

Available All Year – Price €100 PPS

Contact Us now for more details

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The Stables on the left side of the house are over 200 years old. We wander what is the best purpose to give them. Initially, the idea was to rebuild this old stable into a multifunctional area (courses and training sessions). But we decided to keep the old building and restore it with the purpose of housing our sheep and chickens.

Ready to go.  We found a local guy capable of getting the stonework repaired. A carpenter made a new roof build and new doors. A good example of local craftsmanship. After a few weeks, the job was done. The old stable was restored in his old condition (or even better) and ready for our Sheep and chicken to be used.

The stable

A bit of paint to get the old stable look, was the next step. The last step is painting the outside of the building. The back of the stable will be untouched old stone. Unfortunately the front is painted so many times, that we can not go back to the old stone. We need a view days sun now to finish the paintwork.

Ready to go and in time for the busy lambing season. Our girls (sheep) are expecting eight lambs in March this year. They have a nice place now to eat and nurse.

The chicken hut.

The next challenge was the chicken hut. A design was made on the chicken hut, the wood was bought and the house was build. A three star “self”-containing apartment” for our chickens.

The front of the chicken hut (to lay the eggs) was creatively decorated by Annet. Wood chips and old tree branches were brought in to make it cosy for our chickens, rooster and ducks.

In the mean time two ducks have taken the chicken hut in their possession. The chickens got the old doghouse of Bella.

A total of 5 chicken and 4 ducks and a rooster are now happy living in their apartment with garden en mountain view. Fresh eggs (chicken and duck) will be available for breakfast!

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Bella taking care of the lamb

Two years ago a dear friend who owns sheep and lambs, came to us with a lovely little pet lamb. You call a lamb, pet lamb, when its mum cannot take care of him or her. This can be because the mum is sick, or has had a triplet, or died. In this case the lamb has to be hand fed, with a bottle.

In the beginning it is 6 feedings including the night, or late evening and very early morning.

We ended up with 4 pet lambs, in the beginning in the kitchen and Bella our dog had the skin care task, she was licking the poor lambs all day long.

After a week they stayed in the shed and after 2-3 weeks they where outside during the day.

Our youngest daughter g
ave them names, Yves (saint Laurant), Dior, Armani and (Ralph) Lauren.

lambs need botle feeding

Because we are so involved with them they started to get more and more part of the family. Bella was playing with them and they where always together in a pack of four.

Then they had to go in the field with the other sheep and lambs.

In the beginning they came running to us the moment they saw us, but after a while they just came for food.

Now they are in our own field with Coco and a pet lamb from 2016.

Although when we go in the field they are not afraid of us and they will come when they like to. However they know us and like the apple they get they never will be real pets like a dog and we will always have to be aware that they will give a head-butt when they want you out of their way. When we come with food we better be prepared because they will run us over to get it.

Every now and then we can cuddle them, a good rub on the head is what they like then. Never the less it is always on their terms.

Dior, happy sheep

We want to invite you

to come and see our lovely sheep and it might be in March that they have their own lambs.

www.ardvarneycountrylodge.com

Carin and Wilfred.

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What is it that we like so much about having guests in Ardvarney Country Lodge?

Arrivel: When guests come they usually are looking forward to a nice stay, there for often they are in a good mood. They are looking forward to explore new things and find their new place to stay.

Experience in Ireland: Every guest has his or her own story. This can be about their experience with the country or the locals. Often it is about the adventures they have had underway to the lodge. But most of all they talk about the beautiful scenery while driving up here.

Stories: Guests have their own story about their live, jobs or about their studies. Great to hear are the stories they heard from locals, about the history of a town or object or place where they have been at their last visit.

Experiences in other counties: Guests have stories about exciting places they have been in other countries during earlier travels. This kind of experienses make us want to explore more. Wilfred has traveled a lot himself. He likes to talk with guests about his experiences in other cultures and countries

Knowledge from our guests: We learn a lot from our guests, how to maintain the garden for instance. And what is an absolute no no to talk about or to do in their country.

Cultures: We hear stories from our guests about different cultures they have observed.

Most of the time we come to the conclusion that there may be differences.

But we all want what is best for our children and world peace.

We love it when our guests leave with a smile on their face, we hope that we have added a new story to talk about with their next host or at home. Guests are an enrichment of our overall knowledge and conviviality.

Guests like to hear about Irish customs to. The Child of Prague, Irish custom to put under the tree one day before a wedding, it will bring good weather.

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Four years ago we made a big decision, “we will follow our dream”. This was the start of where we are now rebuilding an old farmhouse in Ardvarney, Dromahair, Leitrim, Ireland.

Let me start at the beginning. Living in Rotterdam in the Netherlands we had a good life, two great daughters, good jobs, beautiful house everything we worked hard for to achieve the goal and fulfilment of what we thought would make us happy. Then some things changed. We decided that we needed to re-evaluate our life goals. Was this life the way we wanted it?

And now? Now we are in Ireland we are together enjoying nature, beaches, woods, mountains everything on the doorstep and we have found our old farmhouse! We are building our dream, literally building, the old house was in such a bad state that we had to start over.

The Farmhouse will become our jobs, we start in June 2016 with three guest rooms and open two more apartments and three Sheppard’s huts in 2017. We have sheep, a dog and will have chickens and maybe even a little piggy.

Carin will give Tera Mai Reiki lessons, Wilfred will be making packages for all kind if activities in Leitrim. We have lots of ideas that we worked out during the last year and we hope to see you soon in Ardvarney Country Lodge to enjoy the quiet beautiful nature.

For information: [email protected] tel: +353(0)879141361

Juli 2016 our website will be launched, in the mean time we keep you updated on our facebook page Ardvarney Country Lodge and this website.

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