Introducing Myself

[Bee Keeper John]

:) Hello Everyone,
I am a new member of the forum, and today and have read through a number of member postings. I found that all were very interesting,
along with some usable advise from members.
A little about myself :- I live in a Birmingham suburb with a
moderate size garden, I have several bird boxes around the garden and have been successful for many years in having Blue Tits, Wrens,Robins, Blackbirds, Thrush,
Wood Pigeons etc, nest and raise young in the garden. I also have call ducks, doves,
and around twenty egg laying hens, and a hobby I have followed for a number of years Honey Bees I have three W.B.C hives which is something I get great satisfaction from, I am helped in all these pursuits by my wife Rita, and son Matthew, and we are all very keen gardeners.
I would like to Know if any member in other suburban areas,
have had any success with owl nesting boxes, and also bat boxes, as just befor
Christmas I installed these items in my garden. my best regards Bee keeper John.

[Jimbo]

Hello and welcome Bee Keeper John.

[Bee Keeper John]

Hello Jimbo,
thank you for your welcome,
regards Bee Keeper John.

[barn owl]

welcome bkj,
i actually made my own bat box last year but it was taken over by sparrows lol, keep us postedon your boxes and, good luck.
regards owl.

[Bee Keeper John]

Hello Barn Owl,
thank you for your welcome.
Yes I will keep the forum posted on both the Bat Box and the Owl
nesting box, it is this time of year I am told that Owls seek out new nesting sites, so fingers crossed. best regards Bee Keeper John.

[barn owl]

Hi John,
take a look at this, amazing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eapO1jnMLTo
regards owl.

[Bee Keeper John]

Hello Barn Owl,
this is brilliant with agood selection,thank you for passing the information on. Hope to see this sort of action in my garden this year.
regards Beekeeper John.

[peanut]

Hello,

I love the sound of your hobbies. I wish that I had chickens and bees, and maybe in future I'll do that.

I'm ordering a bat box (or a few) soon so I'll keep the forum posted on that.
I live in an area that is suburban but rural, and kind of wild and natural, so my wildlife will probably be a little different than yours, but I think that bats are just as happy living around people and buildings as in the countryside. I've rescued a few bats over the years that have been injured by cats (pet and farm) I think that they're lovely animals.

[Bee Keeper John]

Hello Peanut,
thank you for replying to my posting, and please let me know of any progress that you make with your Bat venture.
With the small amount of Sun that we had today and being
a little milder Bees were flying from all three of my hives today,which
for me is very good because I know that I have live bees in the hives.
I will of course put new postings on the forum as and when things happen in the garden that would be of interest to members. best wishes Bee Keeper John.

[Kerry L]

Hello Bee Keeper John
Lovely yummy hobby you have. My chickens (3) will arrive in June - all Orpingtons.
I have also wanted a bat box, but that will have to wait until Christmas and I will be putting out hints to the family. Barn owl - it would be interesting to see how sparrows get in the box - ingenious little things!
Now I have a question for the expert - last year we had a swarm of wasps/bees??? that were collecting at the top of a hawthorn tree at the end of the garden (the tree was actually on council property by the road), so after some run arounds from the local council and the highways authority, a fellow was eventually sent out - too late, they had gone. Next day they appeared in the neighbour's hedge, but we thought they rather looked like bees - still to high to get a good look. They didn't stay long, but had moved on by the afternoon - much to our relief. I have seen a swarm of bees before and that was massive (and we all beat a hasty retreat), but this was quite small in comparison. Do you think it was a new queen and some delinquents who had escaped from a hive nearby?
Regards, Kerry

[ruth whitston]

Hi Bee keeper john,

I have just read your thread,WITH GREAT INTEREST.

Please can you tell me how to attract an Owl in to my garden as it is my wish.My neighbour has one but i can never see it? I would prefer to make the nest box myself,that way i get more enjoyment from it! Please can you help?

[barn owl]

Hi Ruth,
Just search the web (attracting owls) there are many sites with info, though dont hold your breath, owls are fussy nesters in the main and need peace and quiet plus plenty of local food, well im no expert but many owls are happy to sleep in trees without a nest and, normally look for nest sites to raise a brood. i made a nest box 2 yrs ago and even though there are lots of owls around here they never took up the free home. having said that i made a box for tawny owls and i notice that in general the owls here are long eared so much bigger, cant fit in the door so to speak, but its great to try. i made a bat box also to the designs on the web and that has been inhabited by sparrows for 3 yrs lol.
good luck and keep trying.
regards owl.

[ruth whitston]

Thanks barnowl,

Thats great to know.I live in the country and can`t understand how i dont have an owl, yet my MAD neighbour has and my trees are bigger and older than his.I guess its down to them though,but i shall do my best to fullfill my wish of having one or more in my garden.Thanks for getting back to me..

[Bee Keeper John]

Hello Ruth,
thank you for your mail, I am afraid at this point in time I have had no success in attracting an owl into my garden, as you must have read in my posting that it is over a year since I positioned an owl box in a large Beech tree in my garden.
I notice that Barn Owl has left a message for you , I will also take
advantage of this advise, and hope that both you and I have luck in achieving our
goal, my best regards ,Bee Keeper John.
P.S. let me know how you get on and I will do likewise.

[ruth whitston]

Thanks Bee Keeper John,for your Reply.
I have a bee keeper that lives down the lane and guess what!his name is john?
During the summer we get very lethargic bees,so we put out a saucer of sugared water and wait to see them build up energy and fly away.Its amazing to see.
Yes if i have any news i will let you know.so fingers crossed.
Takecare

[Jandy]

Hi Bee Keeper John,

It's so interesting that you keep bees - it must be a wonderful hobby! I was watching Autumnwatch this evening, and there was a mention of the trouble bees are apparently in more or less worldwide with some sort of virus or mite. Hope you are free from this - have they found any means of combatting this? I know how vital bees are for fertilisation of crops etc.