Brookfield Farm Hiveshare News Autumn 2016 

Welcome to your Autumn Hiveshare newsletter. We enjoyed all the Hivesharers visiting Brookfield Farm for the 2016 Honey Celebration on Sunday August 21st. Happy Hivesharers collected their honey boxes full of Brookfield Farm delicious honey and had a lovely rural day, although it was a little damp in the afternoon. A Hivesharer sent on beautiful photos of the day - thank you David!

We are adding interesting bee information and great farm photos and videos on facebook - like our page to get them!

Brookfield Farm in the news! 

We were really excited this week to see Brookfield Farm hivegifts featuring in Vogue  Magazine and US Town and Country Magazine

Ancient candle making craft.

The journalists recognised that we make beeswax candles by hand the traditional way.  Great to have our beautiful dinner candles appreciated by US style leaders. 

Fame indeed.

Autumn harvest

Lots of Hivesharers wrote asking could they meet us and collect the honey. So we are arranging a couple of collection points in Dublin in the next couple of weeks.  

Meet Ailbhe, pick up your Hiveshare and have a chat about your honey. Collection in Blackrock and Rathmines:

Saturday 15th October Blackrock

Friday 11th and Saturday 12th November. Rathmines and Blackrock 

Let us know if you would like to meet and collect your honey - email us honey@brookfield.farm to arrange a suitable collection time and place. Really looking forward to meeting you!

We have now harvested Brookfield Farm honey, like many Irish beekeepers honey was scarce, but we have enough between our harvest and our mentor beekeepers to meet our Hiveshare commitments. Brookfield Farm is now packing honey boxes for Hivesharers.

Let us know if you would like to swop a honey jar for one of our lovely beeswax candles.

 There are a few different types of honey, depending on the flowers the bees visited - examples are blackberry and clover, with a contribution from tree blossoms and whitethorn, and some heather and ivy blends. We are allocating a couple of different honey types to the Hivesharer allocations, so you can taste the natural differences.  

Do let us know what you think!

Nuffield Agricultural Scholarship 

This agricultural research is at personal research stage. Ailbhe is looking at farms selling direct to consumers and selling harvests in advance (sounds familiar?). Right now Ailbhe is writing monthly reports and undertaking more travel to research individual casestudies. Ailbhe is also teaching in Gurteen Agricultural College.

www.nuffield.ie

The Ploughing

What a huge event! Brookfield Farm were delighted to be awarded a stall in Enterprise Ireland's Innovation Arena at the Ploughing. Held in Tullamore this year, it was a great success.

It was an honour to be in an area for agricultural innovation for helping bees and the innovation of Hiveshare

Three Ministers dropped by our stall to say hi - we were delighted!

And an interview on the Nicky Byrne show on RTE with Nicky and Jenny was great fun. They asked about beekeeping, Hiveshare and hivegifts.

Bees and Wild flower meadows 

We were really pleased with our 11 acres of wildflowers sown on the farm this year.

We are planning to sow again next spring.

Brookfield Farm apiaries are working with our excellent mentor beekeepers to ensure your share of pure raw Irish honey from local hives.

We have just treated our hives, as most Irish beekeepers do this time of the year for the varroa mite - there are lots of opinions about best treatment.

The bees are settled after the summer and are happily collecting nectar and pollen from ivy blossoms right now - a very important source for winter stores.

Brookfield Farm lamb -

We have our new flock - store organic lambs. Order now.. only €20 to reserve your tasty and healthy lamb delivered to your door for delicious tasty dinners this autumn and winter.

Competition winner!

Mary from Westmeath has won a pair of our classic 10 hour dinner candles and a beautiful spalted beech candle holder specially made by our collaborators Elements of Action.

Raffle at the Ploughing - we are delighted Mary. Your prize is on its way to you.

Handmade pure beeswax candles

We love making our natural candles - pure beeswax hand poured and hand dipped candles. Have a look at ourrange - they make super gifts!

We want to hear from you!

Do let us know how you are enjoying Hiveshare. And we'd be delighted to hear your comments - email or phone and we're thrilled to chat.