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January Newsletter Dear Members On behalf of the Officers and Committee Dave & I would like to wish all of you a very Happy and Healthy New Year. June. Subscriptions With this Newsletter you will find enclosed your subscription renewal forms. Please send these to Jim as soon as possible to help with the administration of the Association. If you are not re-joining for any reason please tell me and I will take you off our mailing list. Not that you are going to drop out are you?! Let’s make a New Year Resolution together: I will send my renewal form and cheque to Jim soon after I receive it and I will try to introduce one new person to beekeeping this year. I will also do my best to attend as many meetings as I can next year. OK? June Future Events Saturday 16th February- Hampton Bishop Hall. A.G.M. When you get your new calendars please mark this on them. The last 3 years we have had an excellent turn-out with nearly all members present. We can’t run a democratic association if only a few people make all the decisions. Refreshments as usual ; more details later. June Directions Take the B4224 Eign Rd from Hereford (signposted to Mordiford). Go past the old Bulmers orchards into Hampton Bishop, past the Bunch of Carrots then it’s the last turn on the left before Mordiford Bridge, signposted Village Hall. Take the right hand fork at the church and the first left brings you into the Car Park. From the Ross area cross Mordiford Bridge on theB4224 towards Hereford and take the 1st turn right after the bridge, then as above to the hall. Past Events Saturday 1st December- Stand at Wyevale Garden Centre. Many thanks to Bryn Brooks, David Bannister and Geoff Dutson who helped us to put up the stand , man it and take it down and bring it back at the end of the day. Saturday 8th December. Pre-Christmas Lunch The Axe & Cleaver Much Birch Hfds. On 8th December, around forty members of the association met at the Axe and Cleaver, Much Birch to enjoy our Christmas Lunch. June had yet again organised a lovely venue with friendly staff and a delicious varied menu, including a fantastic selection of local ice-creams! It was a great opportunity to meet up with other members and discuss the highs and lows of this beekeeping year over a good meal, and it was particularly nice to see the students from this year's beekeeping classes and the honey show cup-winners collecting their awards. The Christmas Raffle was well supported and we must thank the landlord of the Axe and Cleaver for his kind donation of a bottle of wine for the draw. Lastly on behalf of all the members who attended, I would like to thank June for all the time and hard work that she put into organising this event for us and making it such a lovely occasion for us all.Suzanne` ObituaryIt is with the greatest regret we have to inform you of the death on November 17th of Betty Showler of Hay on Wye aged 81years. She and Karl ran their bee book business together and had kept bees together for 50 years. They moved to Herefordshire in 1986 and had been members of Wye Valley BKA since. Betty was well known and respected in the Bee world. She was an honorary member of BBKA and IBRA and for many years she organised the ticket sales at Stoneleigh Annual Convention. We were always used to seeing her on their stall at the Welsh Beekeeping Convention etc. She also won many awards for her wonderful honey cakes. She was very involved in the W.I. at local and county levels. She was also in demand as a teacher of fine sewing at the WI’s own Denman College and in Ireland. It was very fitting that one of her hand embroidered quilts was draped on her coffin at Hereford Crematorium. She will be sadly missed and our heartfelt sympathies go to Karl from all of us
Apiary notes for January The dreaded woodpeckers are about so do watch your hives. Protect them with some form of netting if necessary. Towards the end of this month you will need to be looking carefully at the food situation, and if necessary put a block of candy on. February and March are the main months when they will start to consume ever more food as they expand. You will see if the colony is active by the small pieces of debris at the entrance which is a tell-tale sign that everything is ok. Dave Contributions by the 20th month please to :- June and Dave Williams, Golden Valley Apiaries, Long Lane, Peterchurch, Hereford. HR2 0TF Tel: 01981 550320 dj@gva.efhmail.com |