Dear Member
Following our AGM, as you can see above, Martin has formally taken up the role as Secretary. We are very grateful as this post holds together the organization of the branch and it is a relief to know it is in capable hands again. Please do look at the reports and minutes from the AGM.
Dear Member
Towards the end of this month, if the weather starts to warm up, you should start to see your bees bringing in pollen. The flowers they will be foraging from at this time of year are crocus, snowdrops, helebore, mahonia and pussy willow. It is a good idea to have some of these planted in the vicinity of your hives as while the weather is still cool, the bees cannot fly too far, about 100 yards maximum, before getting chilled and then they are unable to fly back to the hive. They won’t be bringing nectar in until the temperatures get to around 15degrees C, so keep hefting your hives and feed fondant if necessary.
Dear Member
Happy New year to you and your family (and your bees!). Let us hope that 2019 is a good year for bees and their other pollinating buddies and that we beekeepers get a good honey harvest as a bonus.
Dear Member
At our November meeting Margaret Murdin gave an impassioned talk about the Asian Hornet and the threat it poses not only to beekeepers but to pollinators in general. Apparently in France it is estimated to have decimated the pollinator population by 30%. You can imagine the impact this will have on agriculture and the general economy, so she says the UK government has committed to a policy of total eradication of this non-native species. She outlined the panoply of agencies that come into play when a sighting of an Asian Hornet is confirmed, but essentially it will be down to the team of bee inspectors to do the detective work in finding and destroying nests.
Dear Member
Well it has been a busy month for Honey shows and for those brave souls who have put in entries and received awards.
Congratulations also to those six people who gained their Basic Beekeeping Assessment certificates and badge: Fran Payne, Tim Belk, Gillian Berridge, Andrea Clark, Hayley Kenney, Martin Wibberley. This is a recognition that they are on the road to becoming good beekeepers and means they can continue their education through the BBKA modules or general husbandry route. With this ‘driving licence’ they are now safe on the road (and in the Apiary)!
