GBKA Registered 
Charity Number : 1014600
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GBKA Registered
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now
is the time to prepare your extraction setup. If your bees are within reach of heather take off all honey at the end of this month because if the heather gets mixed in you could have trouble extracting it. John
Holden has been requested to collect samples of ragwort honey for CSL. If you
have any please contact him 01873 831273 You
will identify it because it is VERY nasty. If you see any ragwort growing pull
it up and destroy it, apart from the unpalatable honey it is poisonous to cattle
and horses. I have had two verbal responses to the question of badgers. Gerald Cole says that he knows that they definitely eat wasps nests, so when he became aware of the presence of badgers near him he put up a sturdy fence round his apiary site. John Holden says that all those who have been to his lesson on the beginners course will know that he regards badgers as a menace. Once they have found a bee colony they will return to plunder it whatever precautions you take—they can bite through heavy gauge wire fencing. If they have found a colony the best thing is to move it somewhere else. On the other hand they can walk past an apiary for years and never discover there is anything edible there. June has been an active month in the apiary. Eric will be writing about the method of queen rearing that he used this year. Because of the state of the colonies some of the manipulations had to be done on a non apiary day, but on Sunday June 20th he explained what had been done and we all had the opportunity to try our hands at grafting young larvae into queen cups. We then had a very select tea party with too much cake. It is very pleasing to be able to have cups of tea at the apiary after a hot beekeeping session and chat about what has been done. Since then Eric reports that he has produced 7 queens successfully which have been used to requeen queenless colonies and made into nucs. Comment I have had a rather disastrous
month. I’ll tell you about it so that if you have had one too you’ll
feel better. First the TBH (Tasmanian) swarmed. It was a very small colony to
begin with so this was a foolish thing to do. There was a queen cell, but it
must have failed as now they are stocking a new one. There are of course no
eggs. I have given them a chunk of comb cut from a brood frame with a few intact
eggs. I’ll let you know how they do but I am not hopeful, it was a very small
colony to begin with. Then disaster struck
my largest and strongest colony (in a deep brood box). Suddenly one day it
wasn’t flying. When I looked inside the floor was 4” deep in dead and dying
bees. I asked the bee inspector to come and he has sent a box full of bees to
CSL for poison analysis, and another pot full for viral analysis. The colony has
completely died now and I’ve sealed it against robbers. Within days of the
sample being sent I had a letter from CSL and phone calls from the Welsh
Assembly, so they do take possible
poisoning incidents very seriously. The other colonies are still OK. Curious. If
you have had a similar experience do let me know, especially if you worked out
what killed them. This is main flow time of year. The blackberry is doing well and there is a lot of clover round here. We could do with some warmer weather perhaps. Is swarming over???? If any one has a child’s beesuit which they no longer require please would they get in touch with Keith John 01443 833009 who needs one. Honey
Labelling Regulations The new regulations which came into force on 25.09.03 actually have to be used from 01.08.04. If your label is non-compliant then you have to prove that the label was put on before 01.08.04 and complied with legislation at the time. The following is a synopsis produced by the honey packers association and assumes you are aware of the current rules. “The label must show the name, the best before date and the weight in the same field of view. Type referring to weight has size requirements but the rest has to be clearly legible and indelible, also uncluttered. Just the name and country of origin is enough if for direct sale. There are still prescribed weights. The names in the Honey Regulations have to be used in order to comply with the Labelling Regulations. The packer’s or seller’s name and address must be on the label.”
Note ,picked up from BBKA News June 2004 Referencing labelling of our honey. Detail can be viewed at item number 14. on BBKAs web site under the section "articles". "Honey sold ‘at the beekeeper’s gate’ has to have on the label only the word ‘honey’ or a reserved description where that is mandatory, and the country of origin. This relaxation also applies to sales at farmer’s markets. The Honey Regulations apply to honey for direct sale, including Regulation 4 (q. supra) which stipulates the labelling needed for baker’s honey, for example."
Hartpury College runs short courses in beekeeping. They started in January so they are a bit late advertising them, but it is good to know they exist, some for a day (£30), some a weekend (£75) and some Mon-Fri (£125). Reductions for the unemployed and people on benefits. Tel 01452 700629 CSL request The Central Science Laboratory would like to offer all beginners a free health inspection when they purchase bees. So please would everyone make sure that John Holden has your name and address so that he can inspect your bees and help you understand how to control mites. John’s tel. no: 01873 831273 BBKA Basic exam No-one has responded to this. It is an exam that is worth taking, it costs £10 at the moment but I am told the cost will be spiralling to £16 next year. Phone John 01873 831273 or Janet 01291 690331 BBKA news—New members If you have not yet had your membership cards please be patient, they are coming but there have been some teething troubles.
( This was found by Gerald Cole, whilst surfing the web "I couldn't resist it, it was such a pretty picture and suggests several good uses for those old WBC's
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Whilst the domains gbka.co.uk & gbka .org .uk are owned by G Cole. The web pages under these domains are published for the Gwent Beekeepers association and its members , in order to publicise our association's news, aims, activities, and the art of beekeeping.
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