Dream divination | What bees mean

If your dreams are filled with the buzzing of bees, here’s what it might mean

Bees are heavy in symbolism, appearing in myths and folklore in many cultures, from the Mayans to the Celts to the Native Americans. No wonder, really, that they turn up in our dreams from time to time. If you’ve had a dream about a bee, or even a swarm of them, here’s what it might mean. 

In general, dreaming about bees indicates something positive, according to dream psychology. Bees in dreams are generally linked to hard work, or efficiency. Perhaps you are busy with a new project at work or have a personal project on the boil such as moving house. 

More specifically, if your dream involves honey, it’s said to be a portent of wealth to come, or of a reward for hard work. A full hive is, unsurprisingly, a good omen of riches, whereas an empty hive might be a sign of imminent failure, particularly financial. A beehive on fire, also unsurprisingly, is an omen of very bad news. Particularly for the bees, we imagine. 

A swarm of bees may symbolise your fears of responsibility to a group, whether that’s work colleagues or family. 

Being stung by a bee is apparently a symbol of running away from pain. Again, no surprises there.

Meanwhile, being chased by bees suggests you are too invested in the future above the present (presumably invested in a future in which you are not being chased by bees). 

Or perhaps, you’ve simply got a wasps’ nest in your attic that’s disturbing your peaceful sleep. Who knows?  You can find out more about your dreams and the signs from universe by reading your natal chart.

The beautiful garden bumblebee pictured above is one of the buzzy chaps featured in our Bee Identifier from our May Miscellany pages. They’re from a print by Kate Broughton. You can buy a copy of her bee print from her shop.

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Outing | Nights at the Museum

Ever fancied getting ‘accidentally’ locked in the museum after hours? Now could be your chance

A sleepover is always exciting, but the idea of camping out underneath dinosaur bones, or among dusty artefacts thousands of years old, is the stuff nights away dreams are made of. The good news is that lots of the UK’s museums are encouraging us to do just that. The even <better> news is that this isn’t just for kids; adults are more than welcome st many of them, too. Dust off your sleeping bag and torch - the museums are waiting for you…

Dino Snores, The Natural History Museum, London

Dino Snores, in which you set up camp in one of NHM’s iconic galleries for the night and take part in a raft of activities, before settling down to sleep at midnight, is probably the most famous of the museum sleepovers. The one snag is that you have to source a child to take with you in order to attend. But breakfast is included and it sounds amazing. What price, getting to sleep under a blue whale. Plus, there are occasional Dino Snores for Grown Ups events, too - no kids required!

nhm.ac.uk/events/dino-snores-for-kids.html 

The Deep Group Sleepovers, Hull

If Blue Whale skeletons aren’t enough for you, fall into a (Deep) Sleep, with a stopover at Hull’s The Deep. Get a gang together and park your sleeping bags next to sharks, rays, turtles and more, drifting off to the sight of huge sea monsters, swooshing past your pillow. This one is kids only (though you could sneak in if you’re perhaps a Cub Scout leader or similar) but it’s also available - albeit at quite a price - for individual families of up to six people.  

thedeep.co.uk/deep-experiences/sleepovers 

British Museum Sleepovers

Snooze in good company, among kings and pharaohs, at a British Museum overnight stay. Again, you will need to borrow a child, but a few stories about cursed mummies and we don’t think they’ll give you any trouble, leaving you free to enjoy your evening and experience one of the world’s best museums after hours. 

britishmuseum.org/membership/sleepovers

Data After Dark, National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh

Take the chance to explore the museum without having to politely wait for the kids to step aside from the buttons and give you a turn. Not quite a sleepover, but this event is open from 7pm to 10pm and lets the grown-ups get their hands on all kinds of fascinating exhibits, from virtual reality light sabre duels and Lego to items in the interactive gallery, including getting up close and personal with Dolly the Sheep. Ticket includes a drink from the Belfield Brewery and there’s plenty of fun for adults from DJs to food stands and photobooths. 

nms.ac.uk/exhibitions-events/events/national-museum-of-scotland/data-after-dark/

Kip on a Ship, HMS Belfast

Have hot chocolate from a real ‘mess mug’, learn semaphore and make your own flag pole aboard the HMS Belfast on the River Thames, before sleeping over on this historical ‘floating village’. Groups of children (and responsible adults) can stay for up to three nights. 

iwm.org.uk/kip

Themed sleepovers, The Novium Museum, Chichester

Learn about smugglers, space and much more with treasure hunts and hands-on activities by night at The Novium, Chichester’s Roman specialist museum and then settle down for sleep among the Roman Baths. 

thenovium.org/sleepover  

Soane Lates, Sir John Soane’s Museum, London

Another ‘lates’ event that’s a bit special and just for the grown-ups. Visit the atmospheric Sir John Soane museum (pictured above) after hours and see the exhibits by candlelight on 90 minute tours that run up 9.30pm. Soak up the atmosphere of the museum when no one else is around before heading out for dinner and drinks. 

soane.org/whats-on/soane-lates-spotlight-soane-april-2022 

Enjoy more unusual outings with our feature Sneak Peek in our May issue, in which we discover places where you can tour behind the scenes, from theatres and museums to hidden farms and secret gardens.

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How to | Find Dyes in Nature

From onion skins to avocados and much more, you can find colour in the most unexpected places

If you’re making your first foray into natural dyeing (do not miss our May issue if so!) you might like to plan your palette. Here are a few natural products you can use for dyeing fabric all colours of the rainbow…

Red

Beetroot, pomegranate and hibiscus

Orange

Onion skins and carrots

Yellow

Dandelions, sunflowers and marigolds

Green

Spinach, nettles and grass

Blue

Red cabbage, blueberries and red grapes

Indigo

Woad plant and elderberries

Violet

Purple basil leaves and sumac berries

If you’re inspired to give natural dyeing a go, don’t miss our May issue, which has in it all the instructions you’ll need for dyeing cotton and linen napkins, tablecloths and more. The projects are taken from Taken from Natural Dyeing: Learn How to Create Colour and Dye Textiles Naturally by Kathryn Davey (Hardie Grant) with photography by Doreen Kilfeather and Kathryn Davey.

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How to | Trespass with Good Manners

Why reclaiming the countryside is as much about nurturing a relationship as it is about protest

Ninety years ago, the Kinder Scout Trespass saw 400 ramblers climb the Peak District’s highest point in protest for a greater public access. To tie in with that anniversary, activist, author and all-round countryside guru, Nick Hayes is campaigning to get more people out documenting their trespasses – his new book, The Trespasser’s Companion, serving as a call to action. “I’m putting my faith in the people,” he says. “I think there is power there.” 

There are, of course, important ways in which to be a better trespasser, not least political, “aggression is not good for our campaign,” he says. If you want to stage your own trespass, Nick recommends following the Scottish outdoor access code, where most land and waterways became open access in 2003. It’s also about respecting privacy. 

Confusingly, there’s currently “no distinction in the law between walking among 2,000 acres of deciduous woodland and someone’s urban back yard,” just one of the tensions underlining trespass legislation. Supporting the right to roam can be as simple as researching your local rights of way and making sure they’re not obstructed (visit whoownsengland.org, and slowways.org for routes that link towns and cities). Or using the draft letter on righttoroam.org.uk to write to your MP, or promoting the countryside code. 

To follow in Nick’s footsteps, plan your own, seeking deeper understanding by talking to the people who’ve lived on the land for years. “Ask about the legends and spirits that operate within it,” he suggests. “The stories you don’t find out from history books.” With his emphasis on close relationships to the land, it’s unsurprising that Nick also is infuriated by much-circulated pictures showing litter-strewn nature: not because he doesn’t think it’s an issue, rather he disagrees with it as a basis for limiting access. “It’s only by spending time in the countryside that we develop a connection with it,” he says, pointing to research showing the less litter there is, the less likely people will drop it. 

Rather than setting the wild swimmer against the fisherman, we all need to promote responsibility to the countryside – what better way than by encouraging greater access for all? “If we’re going to stop trashing the planet, we need a collective refalling in love with nature.” 

You can read the whole of our interview with Nick Hayes in our May issue, which is in shops now.

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How to | Keep Hens in Your Garden

Somehow, hens just make a garden. While they require work, the rewards are immense. And we don’t just mean the eggs. Here’s a bit about how to get started from hen guru Rachel Barclay along with some advice on planting for a hen-friendly garden

Part-time teacher and full-time hen expert, Rachel Barclay, appears in our May issue, where you can see pictures of her beautiful garden in a village in Surrey. She has lots of advice for anyone considering investing in hens and has written a beginner’s guide on her blog: thegoodlifeainteasy.com. Here, she shares a few beginner tips.

“Like any pets, chickens are a commitment,” she says. “Sometimes they require just a few minutes of your day, but I’d recommend doing your research so you know what you’re getting into. Speak to other keepers – there are lots of helpful online forums – and see if you can visit someone to see their set up.”

“While I love their company, the hens can eat my seedlings and destroy a flowerbed in record speed. We put in a fence with a gate so when they came into the garden, it’s on our terms, not theirs. We generally let them into the garden when the borders are established, and use netting to divide up areas of the lawn for them throughout the summer. I use protective frames on delicate plants. In the garden we grow greenhouse crops, such as tomatoes and cucumbers, and chard and kale in the flower borders – but veg are particularly delicious to hens, so most are grown at our allotment.”

Planting for hens

“Hens are foragers. Although some plants are toxic, in my experience, most chickens know not to eat them!”
Hen-friendly:

• Lavender – an insect repellent with calming properties

• Nasturtium – great for chicken health with antiseptic properties

• Rosemary – smells lovely when your chickens dust bath nearby

• Sage – a good herb for general health and isn’t eaten too quickly

• Oregano – being studied as a natural antibiotic for poultry (a superfood in the chicken world!)

• Fennel – attracts insects for hens to eat

• Sunflowers – dried seed heads make great boredom busters

• Thyme – good for chickens’ respiratory health

To avoid:

• Bulbs – tulips and daffodils

• Foxgloves – all parts are toxic

• Green parts of the nightshade family – be careful growing potatoes around hens

• Rhubarb leaves – oxalic acid can cause liver damage

• Beans – raw beans are toxic, but cooked are fine l Azaleas and rhododendron – can cause digestive problems

• Apricots – fruit and plant can cause respiratory problems and low blood pressure

Read more from Rachel in our Cluck and Collect feature in our May issue, in shops now. You can read more from Rachel by following her on Instagram @thegoodlifeainteasy.

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Recipe | Wild Garlic Risotto with Griddled Asparagus

Risotto is a wonderful canvas to showcase the first of a new season’s produce and in this instance, the celebratory ingredients are spring’s premium greens: wild garlic and asparagus

SERVES 4 (with enough leftovers for arancini) or 6 (with little to no leftovers)

RISOTTO BASE
Olive oil, plus extra to finish 2 onions or 3 leeks (whites and light green), finely chopped
300g risotto rice
A wine glass of white wine (optional but adds heaps of flavour)
1.5 ltr stock (chicken or veg for a classic risotto), simmering
Half of the wild garlic purée (below), more or less, to taste
1 lemon, zest and a squeeze of juice, to finish

WILD GARLIC PURÉE
300g wild garlic (you can pad it out with baby leaf spinach, if needed)
100g salted butter

GRIDDLED ASPARAGUS
400g asparagus

1 Heat a splash of olive oil in a large pot over a medium heat. Add the onion and gently cook until the onion is glossy and tender.

2 Tip in the rice and let it crackle and pop for a few minutes. Pour in the wine and let the rice guzzle it up.

3 Add a crack of black pepper and cook for a min or 2 before adding the first ladle of stock.

4 Set a timer for 20 mins. Lower heat to a simmer and add the stock to the rice, little by little, until the timer goes.

5 While it cooks, make the wild garlic purée. Bring a pot of water to the boil. Plunge the wild garlic in the water then drain immediately and rinse under really cold water to cool down. Squeeze out excess water, roughly chop and blend with the butter to make a smooth purée – add a little lemon juice and/or more, butter, if needed. Season to taste and set aside.

6 Once the risotto has had 20 mins, take off the heat and griddle your asparagus. Set a large frying pan over a high heat. Snap the woody ends off the asparagus (save them for the Asparagus stalk arrabbiata). Rinse the asparagus then add to the smoking hot pan while it still has a little water clinging to it. Season with a good pinch of salt. Cook for 4-5 mins, turning once or twice, until just tender and slightly charred. Season well.

7 Place the risotto back on the heat just to warm through. Fold in the wild garlic purée. Taste and adjust the seasoning and add a bit more stock, if needed. You want the risotto to have a creamy texture and not be too thick. 8 Scoop the risotto onto warm plates and top with the griddled asparagus, a drizzle of olive oil, grated lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon juice

This risotto was just one of the recipes from our Home Economics pages, which is all about reviving age-old wisdom about household management and deeply valuing all our resources: our time, ingredients and the money we invest in them. As well as the risotto, the feature includes recipes for Rosy Strawberry Crumble, Arancini with Asparagus Stalk Arrabiata, Almond Shortbread with Rose Sugar, Wild Garlic Butter and Strawberry Shrub. They’re all in the May issue, which is in shops now. The recipes are by Rachel de Thample with photography by Ali Allen.

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