Beginners Training Courses

Gareth John

Saturday's YABeeP meeting (14 April 2012) was primarily for those new to beekeeping and natural beekeeping. We tried to cover this huge subject in just over an hour. During the meeting we enjoyed some valuable input from Gareth John who also attended.

I was mentioned that Gareth ran beginners courses from his home in Oxfordshire. Whilst YABeeP has already agreed to use him again this year to deliver his advanced courses, it was felt by many at the meeting that they would like to do his beginners courses. Gareth has therefore kindly agreed to run some of these in Yatton - details below.

Dates

Gareth delivers two beginners courses, each taking one day 10:00 am to 4:00pm. We have agreed that these can take place here at St. Margarets (where we meet after the YABeeP meetings) on:

• Saturday 26th May 23 April - THIS DATE NOW FULL 
• Saturday 2nd June.

As there was such an overwhelming response to the suggestion we run this course and numbers need to be limited to 8 for each one, we are suggesting that we run the day 1 course on both of these dates to allow more people to attend. If there is then demand to continue with the second day this can be arranged separately. 

Cost

The cost will be £30 per person for each day. Teas and coffees will be provided but you will need to bring your own lunch.

Course Outline - Day one

10.15 (latest) Arrival, coffee, biscuits and comfort calls. 

10.30 -11.10 Honeybee Colonies:

Introducing a Superorganism

11.10 -11.25 Questions and Discussion

11.30 – 12.10 The Pulse of a Colony:

The dynamics of a honeybee colony and its interaction with its environment 

12.10 -12.25 Questions and Discussion

12.30 – 1.30 Lunch Break

1.30 – 2.10 An Introduction to Natural Beekeeping

2.10 – 2.25 Questions and Discussion

2.30 – 3.10 Practical Demonstration of Top Bar Hives:

Horizontal and Warre (without bees)

3.10 – 4.00 General Discussion 

Course Outline - Day Two

10.15 (latest) Arrival, coffee, biscuits and comfort calls

10.30 -11.10 The Pulse of a Colony: 

The dynamics of a honeybee colony and its interaction with its environment 

11.10 -11.25 Questions and Discussion

11.30 – 12.10 Natural Beekeeping Through the Year:

With particular attention to natural and assisted reproduction (swarms and splits)

12.10 -12.25 Questions and Discussion

12.30 – 1.30 Lunch Break

1.30 – 2.10 Varroa:

Bee/varroa dynamics and the natural defences of the bee colony

2.10 – 2.25 Questions and Discussion

2.30 – 3.10 Putting the Theory into Practice:

Demonstration on swarms, splits (without bees)

3.10 – 4.00 General Discussion

Booking

If you would like to book a place on one of these days please contact Gareth direct letting him know which date you would like to attend the Day 1 course and whether you would also like to attend a Day 2:

phone: only available to YABeeP members 

email: only available to YABeeP members 

This is a great opportunity for us to receive some excellent training at a very reasonable cost from someone who I believe to be one of the best trainers in natural beekeeping in the country. Gareth is also the chief moderator on Phil Chandler's Natural Beekeeping Network . If you want to take advantage of this book early as the spaces are limited.

Robin Morris

YABeeP

18 April 2012

Wild Bee Courses

I have now received a schedule of training courses Marc Carlton will be running this year over the water in the Chepstow/Monmouth areas.

Marc Carlton
(image © Marc)

Marc runs the excellent The Pollinator Garden website and has supported YABeeP in the past. Last year I attended his Bumblebees for Beginners course at the Gwent Wildlife Trust's Pentwyn Farm (see below) and had a really great day out; I thoroughly recommend it.

Gwent Wildlife Trust courses
To book these phone Gwent Wildlife Trust 01600 740600 or go to http://www.gwentwildlife.org/events.htm for more information.


Bumblebees for Beginners
Saturday 9 June, 10.30 to 3, at Pentwyn Farm, Penallt, between Chepstow and Monmouth off the B4293. Entrance near the War Memorial,  park in Trust’s car park adjacent to the Bush Inn (Grid ref SO 523 094). Cost £16 , must book in advance through Gwent Wildlife Trust 01600 740600 .  Consists of a presentation about bumblebee lifestyles and how to identify the seven common species that we see in gardens. Then course members spend time in the wildflower meadows of the adjacent reserve having a go at identifying bumblebees themselves. This covers the subject from scratch and does not assume any previous knowledge. As it is a course for beginners Marc does not cover the rarer species in any detail.

Gardening for Wild Bees
Saturday 28th July. 10.30 to 1 at Seddon Court, near Dingestow, NP25 4ZX between Monmouth and Raglan. Cost £7. Must book in advance through Gwent Wildlife Trust 01600 740600. Seddon Court, where the wildlife trust has its HQ, has a beautiful large walled garden full of interesting perennial flowers. After giving an illustrated talk about wild bees and flowers I use this garden for a ‘min-field trip’ and take the course members round the garden to look at the flowers and their interactions with bumblebees and solitary bees. What you see insect-wise depends on the weather, but even if it is cold and wet you can still discuss the flowers.  This course is the fun one – it is not very technical and is aimed at gardeners. As it finishes at 1pm people could combine it with an afternoon visit to Monmouth, the Wye Valley or Usk, all of which are close by.

Flora Locale course

 a new more detailed course about insects and flowers on behalf of the charity Flora Locale http://www.floralocale.org/content.asp?did=23773 Note that their normal £100 fee does not apply to this course:

Gardening for Bugs, Bumblebees and Butterflies
Thursday 14th June, in Chepstow. 0945-1600 (approx).  Cost £40 (or £25 for Buglife and Butterfly Conservation members) payable in advance to Flora Locale. You must book this course in advance; places are limited. This event will look at the needs of pollinating insects, and ways in which gardens can be planted to attract a wide range of pollinators. We will be discussing the role of non-native garden flowers, and ways of using wild flowers in a garden setting. We sill discuss how different classes of insects (e.g. bumblebees, solitary bees, butterflies, moths, hoverflies, beetles) use flowers as a food source, and also how different flowers are adapted to serve different insect pollinators. Includes a visit to Marc Carlton's garden, which is smallish back garden in the centre of Chepstow.

If you have any queries about these courses please contact Marc direct.

Red tailed bumble feeding

My red tailed queen
(Click photo to enlarge)

After a very mild winter Spring seems to have arrived over the last few days with sunshine and warm weather prompting the bees to fly.

I'm very pleased to report that all four of my honeybee hives (all no-treatment low intervention) have bees flying and brining in a steady supply of pollen - see short video clip here.

I have also seen several bumble queens which have presumably emerged from hibernation and are in the process of fattening up on nectar before starting their new nests.

Only yesterday I was photographing bees on the crocus when I noticed a queen red tailed bumble (bombus lapidarius) who seemed to be in trouble - she was struggling to stay on the flowers and kept falling too the grass below. She was either cold or hungry so I intervened (you can smack my hand later) by holding her in the sun and giving her a couple of drops of my honey - see video below where, if you maximise the video, you can clearly see her tongue protruding from her maxilla. It did the trick and within 10 minutes she was off flying and collecting her own nectar. Let's hope she sets up a strong colony and I look forward to a garden full of bumbles.

Feeding on 'safe' honey - see tongue working

(click the 'You Tube' icon bottom right of panel to view full screen)

The same bee recovered.

Warning:  It can be very dangerous feeding honey to any species of bee as most shop bought honey is a blend of honeys from all over the world and contains virus spores for bee diseases. We are fortunate in that some of these diseases are not endemic to the UK. However feeding bees infected honey introduces these diseases and may can easily result in many colonies in a 5 mile area around the infection having to be destroyed to keep the disease out. Please therefore don't feed them honey under any circumstances, instead use jam or a simple sugar/water solution. In this instance I used honey from one of my own hives which I knew to be disease free so I could make an exception.

Wild Bees
It saddens me that so many bee groups and associations completely ignore our wild bees and only interest themselves in the exploitable honeybee. It's true that only honeybees produce honey that we can eat, but the bumbles and solitaries are so interesting and it is them that do the majority of our flower and crop pollination - around 80% of it. Thank you YABeeP for supporting all of our bees!

Robin Morris
YABeeP

3rd March 2012

YABeeP Hive Building Day - 2012

For information this is the text of an email sent to YABeeP members:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'm pleased to be able to announce the details for the YABeeP Hive Building Day for2012. 

As explained in my 11th February email to members we are changing the format this year. For 2012 those taking part will get a fully pre-cut flat-pack hive which they will assemble on the day under guidance and tuition from YABeeP. This workshop is designed so that even if you've never picked up a screwdriver before you will be able to take part.

Peter & Ray, with a little
help from your's truly, preparing
for the Hive Building Day

Not only will this give you a low cost Warré hive, but having constructed it yourself you will have a more intimate knowledge of its component parts and what functions they perform. You will also be able to proudly show off a hive you built yourself!

We are very lucky in that Peter Land, ably aided by his glamorous assistant Ray , who were so brilliant at last year's workshop, has very kindly agreed to use his equipment, joinery expertise and time to source the materials and do most of the preparation work up-front. I am so grateful to Pete for stepping forward to take on this massive task for YABeeP - without his generous support this year's workshop would not have gone ahead.

What's on offer:

Those booking a place on the day will receive a flat-pack, self assembly, standard Warré hive which they will assemble at the YABeeP Hive Building Day – see below for dates. This will consist of:

A standard Warré hive consisting of:

• 3 x bee boxes, each with viewing window
• standard Warré quilt box, 
• standard Warré roof 
• sump box floor (modified Warré to facilitate cleaning, varroa inspection and emergency bottom feeding)
• standard Warré top bars
• bee box internal dimensions: width 300 x depth 300 x height 228 (height is +18mm deeper than the  standard Warré) 

Materials used in the kit:

• untreated kiln dried rough sawn pine
• 25mm thick timber for bee boxes
• 20mm thick timber for quilt, roof and sump floor
• perspex viewing window with timber covers in each bee box
• No8 2.5" screws (Screwfix Quicksilver) and PVA glue are also supplied
• animal bedding grade saw dust for quilt filling

What is not supplied - you will need to do yourself after the day

After the day and before you can introduce bees you will need to:

• supply and fit hessian sacking for the quilt box & bee proof-barrier
• paint your bee-proof barrier with a water/flour mix 
• you will need to treat the outside of your hive to weatherproof it using an insect-friendly wood preserver, paint or natural treatment
• supply your own bees - this is the big challenge, but see this post for ideas

Optional 

• supply a security strap or alternative wind anchorage – optional but recommended for all but the most sheltered sites (see picture below)
• fit varroa screen and/or bottom feeding tray

An instruction page showing how to do all these simple tasks will be posted on the YABeeP website before the hive building day. 

When & where is it?

The hive building day is to take place on Saturday 28th April 2012 – 10:30am to 5:00 pm in Yatton.

Because the build takes place outside we will not be able to continue if the weather on that day is foul. We are therefore booking Saturday 19th May as the contingency day should we be forced to postpone – please ensure that you are able to attend both dates. 

Cost

3 box standard Warré
with sump box floor
(click to enlarge)

Cost of the flat-pack hive for YABeeP members attending the hive building day is £65. This price is only applicable for the hive building day. Further flat packs may be available for unassisted assembly after the day, but these will probably be at a significantly higher cost.

On the Hive Building Day members will be assisted to assemble their flat pack hives under guidance. Necessary tools and advice will be supplied at the workshop. Subject to having reasonable weather we anticipate completing the hive assembly on the day. You will also need to arrange transport to take your assembled hive away after the day.

How to book

Spaces on this workshop are limited and will be awarded to YABeeP members on a first-come-first-served basis. Please ensure that you have let me have your completed 2012 Membership Form before booking. Bookings will remain open for members until14th April. Any spaces unfilled at this date will be offered outside YABeeP to other natural beekeeping groups.

To order a flat-pack hive and book a place on this workshop you need to send a completed application form (currently only available to YABeeP members) plus cheque for the full £65 to the Hive Building Day coordinator (again currently only available to YABeeP members).
Note to non-members: To protect member's privacy I am unable to issue the form and send out the details of where to send your cheque until you have been accepted into membership. Please don't send cheques to me.

Cheques must be made payable to Peter Land. You will receive an email confirmation once your payment is received confirming your booking. 

Homework 

YABeeP promotes responsible natural beekeeping. If you are going to keep bees then you need to learn about these wonderful creatures yourself so that you can care for them properly, recognise any problems and become a responsible natural beekeeper.

You will therefore need to start learning about the following:

• principles and philosophies of Warré beekeeping. 
• bees, their biology, physiology and needs
• bee diseases and other challenges they face

Hive Building Day
production line

Membership of YABeeP is a great start on the road to learning these skills, but you will also need to read about and study your new craft. I am currently drafting a series of pages on this website that updates our 2011 page designed to point you at the best resources. This should be published in the next week or so. If you can't wait see the 2011 Warré Hive Introduction page. 

Helpers on the day

We have already received some offers to help out on the day from members who won't be assembling hives themselves. If you would also like to join in as a helper then please email me (Robin) as I will be coordinating the assembly day itself. 

That's it. Please address all enquiries about booking a flat-pack plus a space on the hive building day and any queries about the flat-packs themselves to the Hive Building Day coordinator, not me.

For enquiries about helping out on the day please contact me by email.

Robin Morris

YABeeP

24 Feb 2012

2011 Hive Building Day

Bristol Sustainable Bee Group

YABeeP is pleased to host this page on behalf of the Bristol Sustainable Bee Group (BSBG).

• YABeeP welcomes members from Bristol and beyond, however, we appreciate that some Bristolians prefer not to travel and support a local group; some are even members of both.
• The content of the box below plus any links to BSBG documents is supplied by the BSBG and does not necessarily represent the views of YABeeP.

The Bristol Sustainable Bee Group (BSBG) Formed in June 2010 when a nucleus of YABeeP members living in Bristol realised there was probably enough momentum to start a spin-off Bristol group.  The BSBG's aim We are a group of people interested in sustainable/natural honey bee keeping. We want to share and learn from each other. 2012 Bristol BSBG Meetings The BSBG meets monthly on the last Saturday of every month. They meet at The Canteen, Hamilton House, 80 Stokes Croft, BS1 3QY (map) between 11am – 12.30am. Meeting dates as follows: 18th Feb 2012 - Click here to read the meeting note 31st Mar 2012 - Meeting theme:  ‘Spring; populating hives, feeding and what’s going on at the hive entrance’ 28th Apr 2012  - Meeting themes  to be agreed at prevoius month's meeting. 26th May 2012  30th Jun 2012  28th Jul 2012  25th Aug 2012   29th Sep 2012 27th Oct 2012 If you would like to join one of these meetings please come along and make yourself known, though it would help us if you could email Misty (see contact details below) to let us know that you are coming. BSBG Contact For further information about the BSBG and to let us know if you plan to attend a meeting please contact: Misty Tunks email:  mtunks[at]hotmail[dot]com (click the link or reconstruct this anti-spam address) telephone:  07791 492737 Some smaller Bristol sub groups are starting to form under the BSBG umbrella, email Misty to find out more.