NEWBKA skep making day held in February, 2018

On the 17th February twelve NEWBKA members enjoyed a day of building their own skep, organised as part of the NEWBKA social calendar. The day involved instruction from the well known straw skep maker Mike Townsend, who demonstrates all over the country at BBKA events. The day was full of skill building, chat, fun and great home made food (Sandwiches, cakes and biscuits and especially the soups on a cold February day). 



Asian Hornets

As you may have heard in the news, there has recently been an Asian hornet found in Lancashire. This is possibly the first Asian hornet that has overwintered in the UK.

The National Bee Unit news story is http://www.nationalbeeunit.com/public/News/news.cfm#198 This page also has useful links to identification documents and what to do if you think you have found an Asian hornet.

If you are not already registered on the FERA beekeeper's website 'Beebase' we would strongly recommend that you do so at https://secure.fera.defra.gov.uk/beebase/public/register.cfm?. Registering (for free!) allows the FERA bee inspectors to know where your bees are kept and you will then be emailed if there are any disease outbreaks or non-native pests found near you.

Ensure you feed your stocks or they have sufficient stores!

It was essential to look in my beehives last weekend 24th/25th March and it soon became apparent the hives are completely out of stores. Due to all of the cold weather, and despite trying to bring in pollen for the small amount of brood and nectar from the willow catkins nearby, candy immediately on top of the brood nest is required. I had an opportunity to take some close up pictures of the brood at all stages, from new matchstick eggs, to pearly white larvae to sealed brood cells. See if you can spot these elements in the picture above.

Committee Meeting on Monday 5th March

We held our quarterly committee meeting last night, and covered events for the remainder of this year. Please see the 'meetings' and 'where we meet' pages to stay up to date for further details. In the meantime, we are delighted to be working on your committee this year.

From left to right:    Chris Tomlin, Ann Winspear, Kate Chase, Tim Vivian, Alan Woolhead,
                               Bob Powell, Alex Bignall and Greg Hunt.

Novice course frame making progress on 23/01/2018 at Bromsgrove School

The 25 students on the beekeeping novice course being held on Monday nights at Bromsgrove School practised their skills putting together both Manley self-spacing and Hoffman style frames last night. Using all parts making up a frame, the pictures show their use of the wax sheets, top and bottom and side bars, gimp pins and hammer and pliers as required. We were impressed by the results and the Biology Lab tables are still in 1 piece after this practical session!

Refresher Course

So you did the Novices' Course a year or two ago, and it gave you the confidence to get started in beekeeping.  Maybe you went to apiary meetings or asked an experienced member when you had problems in those early months.  This new Refresher Course is intended to help you with key two areas where people frequently need advice or assistance.  

Chris Broad, a very experienced beekeeper, is going to run two workshops in early 2018 to help people with some beekeeping experience to gain confidence in dealing successfully with swarms, and with pests and diseases.

The sessions will be held at Bromsgrove School on Mondays from 7:30 to 9:30 pm:

          On 29th January the topic is Swarm Control and Management.
          On 5th February the topic is Pests, Diseases and Queen Issues.

The cost of each session is £5.  If you wish to attend, please contact Alan Woollhead (wychbold.bees@gmail.com)

AGM main points

At the AGM held on Thursday, 16th November, the following were elected to serve on the committee for the forthcoming year:

Kate Chase - Chair

Ann Winspear - Secretary

Bob Powell - Treasurer

Greg Hunt

Nicola Martin

Chris Tomlin

Alan Woollhead

Association subscription rates for 2018 would remain as in 2017.

Trophies won at the Joint Honey Show held in September were presented to Jane and Marion, and BBKA exam certificates were presented to Alan and Bob.