East Waterford Beekeepers' Association

Lecture: Rearing Queens better than those you buy. Jonathan Getty
2021-03-10 19:30 - 21:00 (Europe/Dublin) | On-Line

Lecture: Freebees - bait hives for profit and pleasure - talk given by David Evans
2021-03-10 19:00 - 20:30 | On-Line
About this Event

Starting with a brief overview of honey bee colony reproduction David will cover the role of scout bees in identifying a new nest site, the process of swarming, bivouacking and then relocation to the chosen location. After a brief digression into capturing swarms he will discuss setting up bait hives, the choice of box, its location and contents. This covers both scientific studies and how these findings can best be applied to practical beekeeping. Discussion of the contents of bait hive necessitates another digression into building and using foundationless frames, which offer particular benefits for bait hives. The talk closes with a discussion of what you can expect to observe when scout bees find and favour your bait hive, and the things you need to do having attracted a swarm – these include moving it somewhere else and managing the Varroa that also arrive with the swarm.

About the speaker
David Evans is Professor of Virology at the University of St Andrews and has held previous academic posts in Warwick, Glasgow and Reading. He is a member of Fife BKA, the East of Scotland BKA and Lochaber BKA and also currently writes the monthly Q&A column for the BBKA Newsletter. He has been a beekeeper for more than a decade and manages about 20 colonies for research and pleasure. David writes a weekly blog post The Apiarist . In this he covers a diverse range of topics from the principles and practice of beekeeping to the science behind the biology of honey bees and their pathogens. His beekeeping interests include very amateur DIY and queen rearing. His honey bee research includes studies of the biology and control of deformed wing virus, rational Varroa control and the emergence and management of chronic bee paralysis virus.

Introduction to Beekeeping Course: Lecture 2
2021-03-09 19:30 - 21:00 | On-Line

Committe Meeting
2021-03-08 19:00 - 21:00 | On-Line

Lecture: Understanding Varroa Resistant Bees. Professor Stephen Martin
2021-03-04 19:00 - 21:00 | On-Line
Understand the evolution of natural Varroa-tolerance mechanisms in various beekeeping populations.

About this Event

Since the arrival of the Varroa mite from Asia, millions of honey bee colonies have died. For decades, beekeepers have continued to control Varroa populations by the use of chemicals and other invasive methods. However, throughout Africa and most of South and Central America mite-infested colonies survive without any form of mite-control. This has been linked with poor mite reproduction, although what causes this has remained unknown. Throughout, Europe the USA and Wales an increasing number of naturally evolved, mite-tolerant colonies are been discovered. The talk will discuss the various tolerant mechanisms and how honey bee populations in Brazil, Africa, USA and UK all appear to have evolved similar ways to combat the Varroa mite.
Professor Stephen Martin of the University of Salford
Stephen has studied social insects (bees, wasps, termites and ants) for most of his career. His areas of specialisation are the ‘hornet ecology’, ‘pest and diseases of honeybees’ and ‘chemical ecology of ants’. He holds a Chair in Social Entomology in the School of Environmental and Life Sciences at Salford University, Manchester. Prior to that he spent 12 years working at Sheffield University, 7 years with the National Bee Unit and 7 years in Japan conducting research into hornets.
Stephen is best known for his work on the Varroa mite and its association with viruses, especially the Deformed Wing Virus, but more recently his expertise in hornet biology is in demand, both nationally and internationally. His team of researchers at Salford, funded in part by beekeepers, are using the very latest molecular methods to read the genetic code of the DWV virus. The aim is to understand why some honey bee colonies have become naturally tolerant to Varroa and see if this information can provide beekeepers with a long-term solution to the problem.

Lecture : Its all in the Jelly! Richard Noel
2021-03-03 19:00 - 20:30 | On-Line
A talk about Queen Rearing and the Cell Builder with Richard Noel

Lecture: It's all in the jelly! A talk about Queen Rearing and the Cell Builder with Richard Noel
2021-03-03 19:00 - 20:30 | On-Line
About this Event

As promised, Cambridge Beekeepers are delighted to welcome back Richard Noel from his home in Brittany to talk to us about queen rearing and the cell builder!

Richard loves queen rearing. “There is nothing more satisfying than raising your own queens with your own resources”.
From the many methods, Richard prefers the Mike Palmer method of the 10 over 10 cell builder box. In this talk he will go through the process he uses to produce super queens, with their cells still full of Royal jelly on the day they are born. Topics will include genetic selection, grafting, raising the queens from start to finish, drone colonies and subsequent mating.
Richard will demonstrate just how easy it is to raise good queens that can outperform any queens that you can buy and which are completely suited to your own area. His ethos is for everyone to completely understand the process which will enable anyone to raise queens in their individual situation, whatever size apiary and whatever resources they have. From 2nd or 3rd year beekeeper to the more experienced, this talk will help you in some way!

About the speaker
Richard was born and brought up in Jersey but moved to France 18 years ago. He began his life in Brittany as a landscape gardener but soon moved onto beekeeping and now he has over 200 production colonies, 100 nucs and roughly 60 mini mating nucs.
Not only is Richard a burgeoning bee farmer but he is a single parent to 3 children.
He writes a blog and has a strong media presence. You can find him on Instagram and Twitter as well as subscribe to his YouTube channel.

Introduction to Beekeeping Course 2021: Lecture 1
2021-03-02 19:30 - 21:00

Lecture: Recognising and Addressing Queen Events
2021-03-01 19:00 - 20:30 | On-Line
Live webinar with Dr Jamie Ellis

Lecture: Preparing for the Beekeeping Year Ahead. Stewart Spinks
2021-02-24 19:00 - 20:30 | On-Line
Stewart Spinks is from the Norfolk Honey Company and has many educational videos on YouTube

Committee Meeting
2021-02-19 19:00 - 21:00

lecture: Reactive Swarm Control with Wally Shaw
2021-02-19 08:00 - 17:00 | On-Line
This is the second of our talks about swarms and swarming this season and looks at what to do when queen cells appear…

About this Event

Re-active Swarm Control
This talk covers the methods of management that can be used to deal with colonies that have started queen cells ie when pre-emptive swarm control has failed. Artificial swarming is the method that can be used if the colony has not already issued a prime swarm. If the prime swarm has already departed there are other methods that can be used to prevent cast swarming and further loss of bees. The talk includes an explanation of the Snelgrove II (modified) method.
Wally Shaw
My wife (Jenny) and I have been keeping bees for 30 years – a joint activity in which we are equal partners. We started beekeeping in order to provide pollination for a newly planted orchard. One hive grew into two, then four and eventually into 50 in six apiaries. This escalation in number of colonies was mainly driven by a fascination with the honey bee. We are both ex-research ecologists and beekeeping became a sort of second (unpaid) career. Yes, we do make honey and it does provide a small income stream (in good years) which more or less covers the cost of the obsession. Apart from our initial colony, which was purchased from a local beekeeper of our acquaintance, we have never purchased another colony or a queen but from the outset made our own by splitting hives or collecting swarms. We are fortunate on Anglesey having had for many years only a trickle of bees from other sources coming onto the island so by virtue of natural selection we do have a locally adapted bee – which not the case everywhere in Wales.
The part of beekeeping with which we initially had the greatest problem was swarm control but over the years we have come to a better understand what is involved. I have written two booklets for the Welsh Beekeepers Association (WBKA) which have been delivered FREE to all members. Their titles are ‘There are queen cells in my hive – what should I do?’ and ‘An Apiary Guide to Swarm Control’. Both are available on the WBKA website and can be downloaded FREE of charge. Both booklets have also been published by Northern Bee Books and are available from them and on the internet.

Lecture: Why are Queens Failing?
2021-02-18 20:00 - 21:30 | On-Line
Why are Queens Failing?
with Jeff Pettis
Are your queens not living as long as in the past? Do your colonies fail to
Re-queen themselves after a swarm leaves or when you expect a queenless nuc
to rear a new queen? Queen problems are on the increase and Jeff will cover
some basic queen and colony biology and discuss some of the many things that
could be involved in why queens fail.

Lectures: Geographic Origin and Authenticity of UK Honey Samples and Flower Power – The Science of Pollination. CABK
2021-02-15 19:00 - 21:00 | On-Line
Lecturer 1: Ayla Paul, University of Reading

Geographic Origin and Authenticity of UK Honey Samples

Ayla is now completing her PhD thesis and will speak about her research on the origin and authenticity of UK honey samples. She will give insights of the various methods – mass spectrometry, trace element (geology) analysis and pollen analysis – that she uses to develop an “Isoscape” for the UK. Is it possible to determine the geographic origins?

Lecturer 2 : Hamish Symington, University of Cambridge

Hamish Symington

Flower Power – The Science of Pollination
Hamish explores how pollination works, how much of our food relies on insects, and how research at the university’s Department of Plant Sciences aims to make flowers more efficient at being pollinated, thus helping to feed the projected 2050 global population of 10 billion people.

Lecture: Swarm Control
2021-02-11 20:00 - 21:30 | On-Line
Swarm Control
with Ged Marshall
Swarm control without the nine day checks . . .
how to survive the Summer without repeatedly inspecting the brood chambers
and still get large yields.

Lecture: Queen Management Essentials
2021-02-03 20:00 - 21:30 | On-Line
Queen Management Essentials
with Juliana Rangel
How to manage queens successfully including some of the common causes of
queen problems. Juliana will show us how to determine whether a queen is
aging appropriately and if her colony is doing well, or if she is failing and it is
time to replace her with a new, more vigorous queen. Good detective work in
the hive will increase our chances of managing productive, healthy colonies.

Lecture: Nutritional requirement and supplemental feeding
2021-01-28 19:30 - 21:00 | On-Line
Marin Anastasov talk: Nutritional requirement and supplemental feeding
Nutrition is a basic biological need and the pre-requisite for a healthy and productive colony.
Carbohydrates provide bees with the energy for flight, movement and heat, while protein, fats, vitamins and minerals are needed for the growth, function and development of the colony.
This talk will cover the importance of different nutrients to both individual bees and to the colony and will look at the different types of feed required at different times of the year. It will describe when, how, and what to feed bees, the different types of food available, and the various types of feeders.

About Marin Anastasov, NDB
Marin started beekeeping in his teens and developed his initial beekeeping knowledge and skills while studying towards BSc in Animal Science in Bulgaria. Later, he completed an MSc in Organic Farming at Aberdeen University. He is passionate about sustainable food production and his entire working career has been in organic food and farming. Marin is a Master Beekeeper and gained his NDB in 2017. He currently manages 30 colonies in Gloucestershire.
Marin is Trustee of Gloucestershire Beekeepers Association and is the Chairman on the BBKA Examinations Board. He is an assessor for the Basic, General Husbandry and Advanced Husbandry certificates and has contributed to the development and running of the General Husbandry and Advanced Husbandry training programmes for the BBKA. Marin is co-author and led the implementation of the BBKA Certificate in Honey Bee Breeding, including providing the training and support to both future candidates and assessors.

Lecture: Landscape and Bees
2021-01-27 20:00 - 21:30 | On-Line
Wednesday 27th January, 8pm
Landscape and Bees
with Jane Stout
Bees are highly mobile organisms and use different habitats in the landscape for
feeding, nesting, mating and overwintering. The diversity and arrangement of
different types of habitat, and its quality in terms of providing resources for bees,
affects how bees can live in and use landscapes. Jane will discuss how we can use
our knowledge in this area to manage landscapes for bees

lecture: Impact of Pesticides on Bees
2021-01-19 20:00 - 21:30 | On-Line
Impact of Pesticides on Bees
with Jeff Pettis
We know that pesticides in the environment can harm bees. Jeff will cover some
of the ways pesticides and bees interact and a unique defence strategy that bees
have to isolate contaminated pollen called entoumbed pollen. He will discuss
the role of monocultures and changes needed in agriculture to protect all
pollinators and the environment

Lecture: Conservation of our Native Bee with Pat Deasy
2021-01-13 19:00 - 20:30 | On-Line

Lecture: New Year Management UBKA
2021-01-12 20:00 - 21:30 | On-Line
New Year Management
with Ged Marshall
Everything you need to do before your bees start moving up into the first super.
Prepare for the season ahead and pre-empt problems.
Ged uses over-wintered nucs as part of his system and will cover the
management of these also.

A Lecture for Children 22/12/2020
2020-12-22 14:00 - 15:00 | On-Line
Book at : https://www.bbka.org.uk/Event/why-do-the-bees-buzz-a-christmas-lecture-with-margaret-murdin

Lecture: “The Coming Season - Are You Prepared?”
2020-12-15 19:30 - 21:30 | On-Line
Roger Patterson presents “The Coming Season – Are You Prepared?”

About this Event

Many beekeepers switch off as soon as they bed their bees down for the winter, then put their feet up, only to panic in the spring.
There is a lot to think about. What went wrong last year? How can we overcome the problems and improve next year? What can you study so you understand your bees better, so make fewer mistakes? What other management techniques can you use? Can you make your bees more productive and healthy? Can you enjoy your beekeeping more?
This presentation is packed with suggestions for improving your bees and your beekeeping.

This event is kindly sponsored by Bord Bia, whose purpose is to bring Ireland’s outstanding food, drink and horticulture to the world, thus enabling growth and sustainability of producers.

Roger Patterson
Roger Patterson, who lives in West Sussex, started keeping bees in 1963, soon after the hard 1962/3 winter, and at one stage kept 130 colonies. He is a practical beekeeper, concentrating on the basics and keeping things simple, but based on observation and understanding of the colony. He has always been heavily involved with his local and county BKA’s and manages his local BKA apiary, where there are usually a large number of colonies for instruction, including queen rearing. He has been a demonstrator since the early 1970s and believes beekeeping should be fun.
For business reasons, Roger had a break of about 15 years without his own bees, but kept involved with his local BKA. On his return to active beekeeping he noticed a problem with queen performance, which he has highlighted and written about in the bee press.
Roger lectures and demonstrates widely, where his practical approach is appreciated. He is often accompanied by his border collies Nell and Rosie. Since COVID-19 he has presented many webinars. He is a past BBKA Trustee, currently BDI Vice President and BIBBA vice chairman, the latter doubling up with Events and Education. He arranges speakers for events held by the National Honey Show, BIBBA and the Central Association of Bee-keepers.
Roger owns and maintains Dave Cushman’s Website www.dave-cushman.net, probably the most comprehensive source of beekeeping information on the Internet.
Roger has also published a book, “Beekeeping. A Practical Guide“, with four others and has several booklets in the pipeline.

Beeswax Candle Making
2020-12-14 19:30 - 21:00 | On-Line
Waxing Lyrical with Joyce Nisbet

Waxing Lyrical, Joyce Nisbet, BBKA, 14th December 2020 7.30pm
Joyce will describe some of the techniques that can be used to produce candles and other attractive beeswax items, whether for showing or as gifts.
Having started beekeeping in 1990, Joyce is now a Master Beekeeper, BBKA Honey Judge, BBKA Trustee and Chair of the BBKA Spring Convention Committee. After being impressed by high-quality wax exhibits in Honey Shows, Joyce improved her wax preparation skills by attending lectures and workshops on the topic. This then led to her being involved in creating wax items for displays by North Shropshire Beekeepers at the National Honey Show.

{Please note in order to attend you will need to register via the Zoom registration link you will receive in your email once you have ‘checked out’ at the shop}
These talks are free but we would welcome a donation to one of our appeals
Save the Bees or Apiary and Education

Book at : https://www.google.com/url?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbka.org.uk%2FEvent%2Fwaxing-lyrical-with-joyce-nisbet&sa=D&ust=1608288777633000&usg=AOvVaw0Hmlwxy2MRZBi7kvtu8Yoc

Lecture: Preparing Honey and Wax - for Christmas gifts or for show - Joyce Nisbet, Master Beekeeper
2020-12-10 19:30 - 21:00 | On-Line

Lecture: Diagnosing queen problems: is it the queen, the colony, both, or neither?!
2020-12-09 19:30 - 21:30 | On-Line
Diagnosing queen problems: is it the queen, the colony, both, or neither?!

About this Event

Practical advice—based on empirical research—looking at different symptoms and attributing whether or not the problem is the queen’s fault. A lesson in showing how we blame the queen way more often than it’s actually her fault.

This event is kindly sponsored by Bord Bia, whose purpose is to bring Ireland’s outstanding food, drink and horticulture to the world, thus enabling growth and sustainability of producers.

David R. Tarpy is a Professor of Entomology and the Extension Apiculturist at North Carolina State University since 2003. As Extension Apiculturist, he maintains an apiculture web site dedicated to the dissemination of information and understanding of honey bees and their management, spearheads numerous extension projects (such as the 2005 New Beekeeper Cost-sharing program that created hundreds of new beekeepers within the state). He launched the Beekeeper Education & Engagement System (BEES) — an exciting online learning resource for knowledge and understanding of bees and beekeeping.
His research interests focus on the biology and behavior of honey bee queens in order to better improve the overall health of queens and their colonies.
David was the guest lecturer at the FIBKA Summer School in Gormanston in 2019, and his lectures proved very popular so we’re delighted he’s back to speak to us again.
Read the article “Meet David Tarpy” in Bee Culture Magazine.

Zoom Committee Meeting
2020-12-08 19:00 - 21:00 | On-Line

Managing Bees on Oil Seed Rape
2020-12-02 19:00 - 21:00 | On-Line
Lecturer
Tom Shaw. FIBKA Certified Lecturer

Lecture: "Stay Cool: How We Can Use Honey Bee Thermoregulation To Keep Better Bees"
2020-12-01 19:30 - 21:30 | On-Line
Chelsea Cook presents “Stay Cool: How We Can Use Honey Bee Thermoregulation To Keep Better Bees”

About this Event

Stay Cool: How We Can Use Honey Bee Thermoregulation To Keep Better Bees
In this lecture, Dr. Cook will discuss thermoregulation of bees, both in the summer and in the winter, and how beekeepers can use cold storage of honey bees to keep better bees. This lecture was written specifically for beekeepers.

This event is kindly sponsored by Bord Bia, whose purpose is to bring Ireland’s outstanding food, drink and horticulture to the world, thus enabling growth and sustainability of producers.

Chelsea Cook is an Assistant Professor in Marquette University, Wisconsin, USA. Her research lab at Marquette University studies social behavior, from genes to the collective, using honey bees as their model system.
Chelsea is also co-founder and chief science officer at HiveTech Solutions, a company that develops tools to help beekeepers keep healthier bees.

Chelsea’s recent research has indicates that there are curious bees and single-minded bees – a really fascinating read.

Lecture: "Viruses: ongoing epizootic threat for our bees"
2020-11-26 19:30 - 21:30 | On-Line
Robert Paxton presents “Viruses: ongoing epizootic threat for our bees”

About this Event

Viruses are arguably the single most important cause for poor bee health and colony loss. Robert will talk on the diverse impacts of viruses on honey bees, as evidenced by recent literature and his own group’s researches. A particular focus will be on Deformed wing virus, among the most prevalent viruses worldwide, and he will also cover potential means of its control.

This event is kindly sponsored by Bord Bia, whose purpose is to bring Ireland’s outstanding food, drink and horticulture to the world, thus enabling growth and sustainability of producers.

Prof. Dr. Robert PaxtonChair of General Zoology, 2010-present
Institute for Biology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Germany
A graduate of Sussex University, where he undertook a PhD on sex ratios in solitary wasps in 1985, Robert subsequently held postdoc positions at Cardiff University, researching bees and pollination, Uppsala University, working on bee population genetics, then the University of Tübingen (Germany), researching the genetics of social evolution. In 2003 took up an academic post at Queen’s University Belfast from where, in 2010, he moved to the University of Halle (Germany), to take up a chair in zoology. His main research areas are: social evolution, host-parasite relations, pollination and conservation genetics, with a taxonomic focus on bees.
