Dear Members

The year still keeps flying by. By the time you get this the Honey Show has gone and our thoughts are turning to Christmas and to our Planning for next year! We’re going to Em’s with our friends for the weekend. We were thinking of a barbecue but the weather has turned so bitterly cold all of a sudden it’s going to be a take-away probably with the fire lit!

June.

We are pleased to welcome 2 more new members this month:-

Mrs Catherine Larke from Llangybi, Usk  Mr Peter Woodward from Ewyas Harold

Both Peter and Catherine completed our Beginners’ Course this year.

There are quite a few of you now who will be receiving your newsletters by e-mail. With a bit of luck this will commence this month!

Dr Ferguson is from Longhope, Glos. and was Deputy Keeper of the Herbarium at Kew Gardens, also the head of the Pollen Unit. He is a keen and accomplished photographer and will show us his slides as well as taking us through the world of pollen grains. Neighbouring associations will be invited but if you belong to a like-minded group e.g. gardening club etc, anyone will be made welcome. There is no charge, but donations towards tea would be welcome. Although not obligatory it would help us with catering and seating if we had some idea of numbers expected. The meeting is in the large hall and as we are paying for a professional speaker it would be nice to have a good audience.

If there is anything you are particularly interested in or would like to see included in our programme please contact me or any committee member before this meeting.

Dave will teach you the methods of diagnosis of Adult Bee Diseases such as Acarine, Nosema and Amoeba. He will bring his microscopes along.

This is the event where we give out the certificates awarded to our newcomers for their Basic Exam passes so we want them all there especially! Also the Honey Show Trophies are re-awarded having been suitably engraved. Venue details etc. next month.

Our thanks go to Bryn Brooks who helped us set the stand up and stayed until lunch-time and to David Bannister who came in the afternoon and helped take it all down. It was a very quiet day by Wyevale standards but there was some interest shown. They made us very welcome and allowed us access to their staff room where tea and coffee was available as and when we wanted!

We are putting the stand on again on 1^st December when it should be a lot busier. If anyone wants to come and help and bring Christmassy items such as candles, gifts etc let me know.

Because the Hereford store does not do it’s own ordering but has what the buyers send to them, they do not sell local honey! Because they are anxious to support local producers they are willing to allow our members to book a time and take a table to sell their local honey if they like. This is a personal thing, quite apart from us taking the Wye Valley Stand. Please contact Jenny on 01432 266261

Here we are at the end of another season. I hope by now, you have all taken your strips out and given your bees sufficient stores for winter. If you have given your bees 40 to 50 pounds you should not need to touch your bees until mid-March, which is when they will start to progressively use more of their stores. There will be a small amount of brood, which naturally makes bees consume stores. Now is the time of year to consider your requirements for next year. Depending on your style of beekeeping things to consider are frame replacement, clean floors, clean excluders. You need to try and estimate what you will need for the coming season. This is not an exact science, but you need three or four new frames and foundation in each colony to keep your brood nest in good order. Of course, it goes without saying, if your frames were all new last year there should be no need. It is quite a good idea to have a spare floor or two so that you change and clean them. I do not recommend any movement of equipment to other hives unless it has been sterilised. Get into a good husbandry mode and always sterilise your equipment. Try and mark your supers and return them to the same hive. If you practice this it is immensely helpful. Always examine your brood for disease before you put your supers on. If you have previously marked your supers you will be able to tell which hive they came from. It is very easy to do; simply put a chalk mark on them. Keep a movement book and record where you take your bees, with a date and place and where from. You will find this very useful indeed when you are trying to trace where your bees have been when you find disease. With these simple steps you are keeping control. If you are unlucky you will have more control over the situation. Never have too many bees in one place, and always think about other beekeepers. When moving your bees into new areas try and ascertain who is in the area. Remember not to over stock, this is bad practice on your part and will not do you any good. Most hobbyist beekeepers will get away with three or four it.

Most of these suggestions have been proved over a number of years of commercial beekeeping.

Sadly we have come to the end of an era! Karl has given up his book business so that he can devote his energies to his domestic duties. Ever since I first came into beekeeping over 31 years ago Karl has always been an important part of ‘bee’ life. We remember with thanks his generosity over the years, always giving us a book or two for our raffles at functions and in recent years he has supplied all our new beekeepers on the Practical course with a book about Plants for Bees which were very welcome. We wish Karl and Betty all the very best for the future.

The book supply has now gone to:-

Mr Chris Arden, Bookseller, Radnor House, Church St. Hay-on-Wye.

If you would like to receive your newsletters by e-mail then please contact us. Obviously you will get it quicker and it saves the club postage.