Our Bees have had yet another difficult year to contend with, with many bee keepers wondering if their bees had survived the Beast from the East, followed by the worry of when would the forage begin. Begin it did it with some wonderful weeks of sunshine and extreme heat, I know I was very pre-occupied with ensuring that water was available at all times and often found the odd bee in the kitchen sink helping themselves.
Our Honey Show this year was well represented by 13 members with an entry on the day of 79 exhibits. A number of novice bee keepers entered and did exceptionally well. Our judge John Home made reference to the quality and standard of the honey being shown, and suggested that they were of a standard that could be entered into the County Show, and one or two being of of a standard to enter the National Honey Show. Our members need to be more confident and enter these shows.
First Apiary Day Saturday 21st April
The Sun shone as we all arrived. Lots of anticipation and excitement as we all donned our suits and walked over to the Apiary. We started with a briefing from Margaret around safety and dos and don’ts. We then all had the opportunity to light our Smokers and get familiar with smoke control and some good tips on what to use.
The Rugby Beekeeper's Association will be attending the following events in 2018:
We have had an interesting year for our bees, with at times a full range of extreme weather conditions through the spring and summer. We are hoping that many of you will have a good honey yield this season and will be keen to show other members not only your Bees' hard work but also yours.
