DMs Christmas pressie to me was a beekeeping course. We’re hoping that a nice, genteel, stress-free activity like bee keeping might be just the tonic I need.

Add to that the benefits to our little bit of land of bees to pollinate our fruit, veg and flowers, plus the honey and we’d like to think the whole thing will be a recipe for success.

Bee keeping isn’t like chicken keeping. I’m not confident enough to just go out and buy bees and a hive then hope for the best. When I got the hens, I bought a coop then got the hens from the free-ads with no guidance about their keeping other than a couple of books.

This time I’m taking a more cautious approach and getting some expert guidance so we’re both off to learn how to keep bees.

Last year? Oh dear - all a bit cack really!