Greave House Farm Trust

Beekeeping Taster Sessions

admin — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:55:09 +0000

Would you like to learn more about the fascinating world of honey bees? We are running two taster sessions to give people a chance to visit our hives and meet Charles Austin who is the Head Beekeeper for the Bee Buddy project in Sheffield.

Tuesday 21st May 5.30 – 7.30pm or Wednesday 5th June same time.

Cost £30 per person.

Please contact Barbara by email asap: greavehouse@yahoo.co.uk to book a place.

Hardy volunteers not put off by cold and wet

admin — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 11:15:17 +0000

Our last work day on 9th March was a dreary cold and wet day. Rain in the morning, snow in the afternoon. So we were very pleased with ourselves that by lunch time we had managed to plant 105 trees. (Thanks Andrea, Pete, Ray, Chris, Ruth) These were donated by the Woodland Trust and are future firewood trees. After lunch (thanks Nana Julie and Doreen) we decided to make a willow windbreak around the trees. We used willow that we planted 2 years ago, which we’d cut down on the last work day to coppice . It felt really satisfying to see the lovely curve developing! Meanwhile, Tim was working away all day on the solar kiln until it was too dark to see and he’d turned into a snowman. When it’s finished it will season our wood in a matter of months. Our workdays are open to anyone and are usually on the 2nd Sauturday each month. We like to know who’s coming beforehand so we can prepare enough food for lunch!

How much did we raise?

admin — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 08:58:41 +0000

Our first Stocksbridge 10K race and Fun Run in September raised £942 profit. Many thanks to all those who ran and all those who sponsored people to run. It’s already planned to become an annual event and next year’s race … Continue reading →

Stocksbrdige Chase: Resounding success!

admin — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 10:26:01 +0000

Runners in the first Stocksbridge 10k Race

The first ever Stocksbridge 10k Chase was a great success last Saturday (I think people are taking it for granted that it will be on next year)

It all felt a bit shaky beforehand but it turned out to be really well organised, (thanks to Nick) and we had loads of positive feedback. About 25 children and adults took part in the 3K Fun Run. The concentration and determination on some of the kids faces as they approached the finishing line was priceless.

53 runners took part in the 10k race where they had to battle against the wind as they ran up Long Lane twice! Congratulations to Meles Okbazghi who was the overall winner.

Many thanks to members of Sheffield Running Club for marshalling and spending time setting out the course with tape and signs etc. and also volunteers from Greave House Farm Trust for being marshalls and helping out. A Great big thanks to Nick Duggen for all the time and work he put in to organise the event and for making it so successful. Here’s to next year! I might even start training myself (for the fun run maybe).

Meles the winner and Nick the organiser

Just giving

admin — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 13:56:45 +0000

We have a page set up now for people to make donations via Just Giving, to our work in an easy hassle-free way. Simply click this link then click the donate button.

As soon as I can work out how to do it I will be adding a button on the widget bar to make it even simpler.

The Stocksbridge Chase is coming!

admin — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 11:01:36 +0000

On Saturday 29th September we will be holding the very first Stocksbridge Chase (who knows – it might become an annual event?)

This is a scenic 2 lap 10km race with a gentle incline to the trig point on Whitwell Moor with fantastic views on all sides, then gently down hill all the way back, going through the lovely little village of Bolsterstone.

There is also a shorter Fun Run (or walk) for those of us who would rather not exert ourselves too much but still want to raise money for Greave House Farm

Please visit w:http://www.sheffieldrunningclub.org.uk/cahse/ for more information or an application form. Forms can also be picked up from Stocksbridge Leisure Centre or various shops and pubs in the area.

If anyone would like to get sponsored for it you can set up your own Just Giving Page for the Trust or let us know and we’ll send you a sponsor form.

We hope many people will be able to support the farm with this event so please spread the word.

Barbara

The Great Escape (or not)

admin — Fri, 06 Jul 2012 15:36:34 +0000

Emma and her sister Steph were really interested in the progress we have made on the farm. She had found our details on the care farming UK website last year and arranged to come and volunteer for a weekend. I had been showing off the bee hives and we were walking back up the field, when we noticed a low hanging branch full of bees. Emma could not have timed her visit better! I went into full bee rescue mode. As I had no-one else around to help me, Emma was press-ganged into service. We rushed back to the house to get the bee keeping gear and a cardboard box. Emma pushed Steph in her wheelchair through the deep grass so she could have a great view of what we were doing.

After battling though the nettles to get to the tree, (that reminds me, I must get around to making some more nettle soup!) I held the box, while Emma skillfully snipped the whole branch including the bees into it. Operation bee rescue was a success!

I am really chuffed that I was able to save our bees from swarming away from the farm, and that I’m gaining confidence in handling them. Emma and Steph were really pleased to have seen it and become involved.

Learning Disability Marketplace Event

admin — Fri, 06 Jul 2012 14:45:42 +0000

On Wednesday 20th June our trusty volunteer Ray and myself put up our display in Ponds Forge to launch our day service on the farm for adults with learning disabilities. All of the other organistations who provide services or support in and around Sheffield were there.

There was lots of interest in us and some people seemed excited at finding a new project that they didn’t know. Two or three people said their services were near to capacity and it would be good to be able to refer people to us as an alternative. I have to say, our display looked really nice and I was pleased that I decided to keep text to a minimum and not let it get too crowded. It had the desired impact. All we need now are some enquiries!

We are also looking for Volunteer Supporters who can commit to working one day a week. You would be working with one other person, probably me, the Development Worker, to support a maximum of 3 adults. It would involve gardening jobs, looking after poultry, cooking together and crafts. You would also need to have a CRB. (criminal records bureau) check before starting that we would arrange. Please get in touch with Barbara for more information if interested.

Very productive work day

admin — Sat, 09 Jun 2012 20:04:52 +0000

Thanks to everyone who came to work today. Lots of nettles and dock dug up and more woodchippings put down round the raised beds. Two young helpers found 16 chicken eggs hiding under a mass of nettles – and we thought they were just getting old and had stopped laying!

Following on from our little gosling hatching, we bought six more yesterday, about 2 week older to keep it company. They seem to be settling in ok and seem ok with the ducks around them. Very cute and fluffy.

A busy few days down on the farm

admin — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 09:14:03 +0000

Thanks to the recent warm weather, I’ve managed to plant out the runner beans, peas and mange tout, hope they survive now. There’s loads of stuff bursting out of our tiny polytunnel – beetroot, cabbages, squashes, chard, leeks, courgettes, plus the tomtatoes, cucumbers, chillis, peppers and ghurkins that will stay in there.

Debs and myself have also been very busy trying to prevent our lovely new bees from swarming. Charles (the head beek) has been over twice this week to do a “reversal” on two of the hives, which is a method to keep the new queen from flying off with about 20,000 others. I’ve just got to try and remember everything he’s telling me! We’re finding it all absolutely fascinating, but at this time of year it’s also quite time consuming and two hours can fly by while you’re doing an inspection. We are not the only ones who have been busy though, because there’s about 40lbs of honey stored already. Once the bees have capped it we will be able to take it out for extracting. How exciting!

Someone else who has been very busy sitting doing nothing has been one of our little bantems. Several weeks ago, Chris decided to put a goose egg under her as she was very broody. The poor little thing could hardly stay balanced on top of it! Anyway, against all odds it has started to hatch this morning so we are all very excited about our new arrival. I think some people questioned Chris’s sanity, but it’s worked. It will be interesting to see the relationship between the mother and baby. Springwatch…