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Hen Corner

  • About
  • Courses
    • Online/Virtual Courses
    • Business Start Up
    • Retreats
    • Chickens & Bees
    • Bread & Baking
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    • Preserving
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Hen Corner

Suspicious Spring?

Blog
| 17th February 2014
It’s the Half Term holiday and we are hoping to spend some good time in the garden. We’ve got courses coming up and are pleased to have been invited to speak about bees at the Country Living Spring Fair next month. 

Blue crocusBuds, bulbs, blossom & bees…

I know I’m not the only one who is very confused with the weather recently; one day I’m watching the bees fly and counting the daisies on the lawn, then the next day it’s torrential rain and winds of 80mph! Fortunately, here at Hen Corner, whilst we are very close to the River Thames, we haven’t been affected by the nearby floods and our corner plot seems to have shelter on most sides, which is a huge relief as I’ve been kept awake at night by the noisy wind, worrying that a beehive might be blown over….

I need to keep reminding myself that it’s only February; yes, my teenage son is wearing shorts and we’ve had some mild sunny days, but we haven’t actually had winter yet. I’d really like to get it over and done with, please. You see the plants and trees need a good cold period of dormancy to prepare for a new fruitful season. With trees blossoming early, the birds and the bees respond, but a late winter (remember the snow in April last year?) can damage flowers and young crops, which affects the harvest, and our poor bees miss out on vital pollen and nectar as it could be too cold to fly when it’s most needed. Add in the challenges of a low pollination rate and you’ll find I’m talking like a farmer, not a London mum!

Winter Tree WashTLC for the trees…

We took advantage of a recent dry day by spraying our fruit trees and bushes with  Winter Tree Wash. We try to do this several times during the dormant winter months, Ahem see above, to help kill off any nasties that might be hiding in nooks and crannies… It’s nice and natural and helps keep trees in tip top condition.

Looking back to last year, whilst we had loads of beautiful blossom on our flat Italian peach tree (the peaches are flat, not the tree!), we saw no fruit due to peach leaf curl, this is caused by a fungal infection where the spores are transmitted through wet, windy weather. The suggested solution to protect trees of this family is to build a waterproof shelter using polythene stretched over a frame that covers the tree. I was really quite pleased with my shelter, made using an old towel ladder, but the polythene sheeting was no match for last weeks wind, and have you noticed the rain???

featurespring_garden_590xCountry Living Spring Fair 2014

We are really pleased to have been invited to do a series of talks about bees in the Spring Garden at this year’s Spring Fair run by Country Living magazine. The topics are:

More than Honey: Looking at the role of bees in so much of the food we produce in the UK, changes in farming and bee keeping over the years and the challenges and benefit of keeping bees today.
Who is in the hive? Explaining the structure of a honey bee colony, looking at the nest, the castes, the life-cycle, and roles of each bee.
The Bee Keeping Year Outlining the seasonal tasks & responsibilities of keeping bees today including suggestions as to how those interested can find out and experience more.

The full programme for all the talks in the Spring Garden can be found here and show tickets can be bought here.

More than Honey: Sara will be looking at the role of bees in so much of the food we produce in the UK, she will be looking at changes in farming and bee keeping over the years and the challenges and benefit of keeping bees today.Who is in the hive?: Sara will explain the structure of a honey bee colony, looking at the nest, the castes, the life-cycle, and roles of each bee.The Bee Keeping Year: Sara will outline the seasonal tasks & responsibilities of keeping bees today including suggestions as to how those interested can find out and experience more.
Read more at http://www.countrylivingfair.com/Spring/Content/Spring-Garden/4_10/#2Lq7bkl3oHGxTz3q.99

FFF SkylarComing up at the Corner…

This year we have planned courses right throughout 2014 giving everyone the opportunity for ‘A little bit of country life in London’. Our next courses, on Saturdays 22nd February and 5th April, are the first of our family sessions where children and their grown ups can hug a hen and consider if chicken keeping would work for them.

Family Feathers and Fun includes all the information of our Urban Hens course but also provides treats and craft activities for our younger guests.

A Squash and a Squeeze

Book of the Blog Post:

A Squash and A Squeeze

By Julia Donaldson
‘Take in your hen’ said the wise old man…

I love this book that encourages us to appreciate all that we have around us; a children’s classic with a powerful message!

It also reminds me of the times our chickens hop through an open door into our house, it’s always so funny…

This book is available with many of our other favourites books from the Hen Corner Shop!

Other News:

  • After our Toast and Marmalade course, London blogger Chiswick Mum wrote this great review
  • A cheeky squirrel sneaked into one of the Eglus looking for a corn snack and couldn’t find its way out!
  • Poor Ascot is not very well, I think it’s Oral Canker, I hope she gets better soon…

Jobs for next week:

  • Do some spring cleaning in the garden
  • Spend more time building our new website
  • Get ready for our Family Chicken Keeping Course

 

Have a good week yourself…Hen logo good

Join us on the Journey!

 

Suspicious Spring? was last modified: June 13th, 2016 by hen_admin
A Squash and a SqueezebeesblossomBread MakingBudsbulbsChiswick MumCountry Living MagazineCountry Living Spring FaircoursesFamily Feathers and FunHen CornerJulia Donaldsonpeach leaf curlrainSpringToast and MarmaladeUrban Henswindswinterwinter tree wash
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SOME OF OUR COURSES:

Scones and Jam (Virtual Course via Zoom)

4th March 2021

Think Summer, think strawberries, think afternoon tea… Whilst the strawberry jam is bubbling to the perfect set, we will roll up our sleeves to bake hand-made scones together ready for our afternoon tea.

Family Feathers & Fun

29th May 2016

An afternoon for the whole family in the garden at Hen Corner… You will be welcomed with home made refreshments and introduced to the joys of keeping chickens!

Bread Making Part Three: Sweet (Virtual Course via Zoom)

28th April 2020

Pop on your pinny and roll up your sleeves, this special course has been designed to help develop your artisan culinary skills as we create beautiful bread together from our London kitchen…

Apricot Advent Wreath (Virtual Course via Zoom)

20th October 2019

Pop on your pinny and roll up your sleeves, this special course has been designed to help develop your artisan culinary skills as we create beautiful bread together from our London kitchen…

Sourdough Stages (Virtual Course via Zoom)

28th April 2020

Pop on your pinny and roll up your sleeves, this special course has been designed to help develop your artisan culinary skills as we get busy with the wild yeasts, creating beautiful sourdough bread, from our London kitchen…

Toast and Marmalade Day

20th October 2016

Whilst the ground may look cold and barren in midwinter London, it's a different story in sunny Spain - the Seville oranges are in season...

Christmas Food Gifts (Make A Hamper)

22nd September 2016

It's a wonderful thing to create beautiful home made treats for friends and family at Christmas. Join us for the day as we bake, roast, preserve and decorate to fill gift baskets for the festive season...

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About Hen Corner

We are Hen Corner. We love the bee keepers, the veggie bed diggers, the jam makers and cider drinkers, the chicken fanciers and the real bread bakers. But not just in the deepest darkest countryside or the far, far away villages but right here in our cities and towns.

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⭐️Giveaway Baking Bundle worth £75!!!⭐️ C ⭐️Giveaway Baking Bundle worth £75!!!⭐️
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Win a Hen Corner Fairtrade Apron plus *Two Places* on our ‘Intro to Bread Course’ (virtual) for you and a friend. We’ll also post out a bread scraper each for you to use on the course! 
To enter: 
⭐️Follow us, ⭐️Like this post & ⭐️Tag the friend that you would invite to join you on the course.

Each unique comment tagging a friend = one entry (enter as many times as you like) 

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