BASIC BEEMASTER CERTIFICATE            SYLLABUS  Revised 1994

 

We will be meeting at 8.00pm in the Tyneside Tavern Haddington to go through and discuss the syllabus. Please bring along any beekeeping textbooks you have as we will want to refer to them.

Please come prepared to discuss the subject for the session. The more preparation you put in the easier it will be.

 

January 20th

 

1.0  Equipment  - 

The candidate should be able to

 

 

1.1  discuss the personal equipment needed to open a colony of honeybees;

 

1.2  name the principal parts of a modern hive;

 

1.3  describe the significance of the bee space in the modern hive;

 

1.4  assemble a frame and fit it with wax foundation;

 

1.6  discuss the spacing of combs in the brood chamber and super for both foundation and drawn comb and methods used to achieve this spacing.

February 3rd

 

 

2.0  Manipulation of the Colony 

The candidate should be able to

 

2.1  explain the need for care when handling a colony of honeybees;

 

2.2  describe the reactions of honeybees to smoke;

 

2.3  state possible reasons for opening a colony;

 

2.4  assess the adequacy of the stores;

 

2.5  open a colony of honey bees and keep the colony under control;

 

2.6  demonstrate the use of the smoker;

 

2.7  demonstrate the use of the hive tool;

 

2.8  remove combs from the hive and identify worker, drone and queen cells or cups (if present), and to comment on the state of the combs;

2.9  identify the female castes and the drone;

 

2.10 identify brood at all stages;

 

2.11 demonstrate the difference between drone, worker and honey cappings;

 

2.12 identify stored unripe honey, honey and pollen;

 

2.13 take a sample of worker bees and put them in a match box or similar container;

 

2.14 state the number of worker bees required for an adult disease diagnosis sample;

 

2.15 demonstrate how to shake bees from a comb and how to look for brood disease.

 

February 17th

 

3.0  Practice of Beekeeping

The candidate should be able to

 

3.1  give an elementary description of how to set up an apiary;

 

3.2  describe the precautions which should be taken to avoid the honeybees being a nuisance to neighbours and livestock;

 

3.3  describe the possible effects of honeybee stings and to recommend suitable first aid treatment;

 

3.4  give an elementary description of the year’s work in the apiary and of the management of a colony throughout the season;

 

3.5  describe the preparation of sugar syrup and how and when to feed honeybees;

 

3.6  discuss the need for, and the timing of, the addition of supers;

 

3.7  give an elementary account of one method of swarm control;

 

3.8  describe how to take a honeybee swarm and how to hive it;

 

3.9  describe the signs of a queenless colony;

 

3.10 describe the signs of laying workers and of a drone laying queen;

 

3.11 discuss the dangers of robbing and how it can be avoided;

 

3.12 discuss reasons for uniting honeybees;

 

3.13 describe one method of uniting colonies and any precautions necessary;

 

3.14 describe the preparation of colonies for a particular honey flow;

 

3.15 describe methods of securing stocks prior to mowing;

 

3.16 state the risks in transporting live honeybee colonies;

 

3.17 describe a method used to clear honeybees from supers;

 

3.18 describe the process, which is suitable for the small beekeeper, of extracting honey from combs and filtering and bottling it;

 

3.19 discuss the need for good hygiene in the handling of honey for human consumption;

 

3.20 state the legal requirements for the labelling and sale of honey;

 

3.21 give an elementary account of the harvesting of beeswax.

 

March 3rd

 

4.0 Natural History of the Honeybee

The candidate should be able to

 

4.1  give an elementary account of the production of queens, workers and drones in the honeybee colony;

 

4.2  state, in each case, the periods spent in the egg, larva, pupa and adult stages by a queen, worker and drone;

 

4.3  give an elementary description of the function of the queen, worker and drone in the life of the colony;

 

4.4  give a simple description of wax production and comb building by the honeybee;

 

4.5  discuss the importance of pollination to flowering plants, and consequently to farmers and growers;

 

4.6  name the main local flora from which honeybees gather pollen and nectar;

 

4.7  give a simple definition of nectar and a simple description of how it is collected, brought back to the hive and converted into honey;

 

4.8  give a simple description of the collection and use of pollen, water and propolis in the honeybee colony;

 

4.9  give an elementary description of swarming in the honeybee colony;

 

4.10 give an elementary description of the way in which the honeybee colony passes the winter.

 

March 31st

 

5.0  Disease, Poisoning and Pests  The candidate should be able to

 

5.1  describe the appearance of healthy brood and how it differs from diseased brood or chilled brood;

 

5.2  describe the signs of the bacterial diseases American Foul Brood (AFB) and European Foul Brood (EFB);

 

5.3  describe the effect on a colony of Acarapis voodi a mite), Nosema apis (a protozoan) and Braula coeca (a wingless fly);

 

5.4  distinguish between Varroa jacobsoni and Braula coeca;

 

5.5  describe methods for detecting and monitoring the presence of Varroa jacobsoni and describe its effect on the colony;

 

5.6  state the notifiable diseases pertaining to the honey bee;

 

5.7  state the national and local facilities which exist to verify honeybee diseases and advise on treatment;

 

5.8  state where to obtain assistance if any poisoning by toxic chemicals is suspected;

 

5.9  describe how comb can be stored to prevent wax moth damage;

 

5.10    describe how mice and other pests can be excluded from hives in the winter.

5.11     

 

April 14th

 

Review of Syllabus

 

BOOK LIST RECOMMENDED FOR THE BASIC BEEMASTER CERTIFICATE

 

Title

Author 

Publisher

A good introductory text

 

Beekeeping for Beginners    

A Richards

NBB

Bees at the Bottom of the Garden

A Campion

Trafford

 

 

 

Recommended texts

 

Guide to Bees and Honey

Ted Hooper

Blandford

 

An Introduction to Bees

     and Beekeeping

 

Scottish Beekeepers’Association

 

Beekeeping Study Notes (Basic)

Yates & Yates

BBNO

 

 

 

 

Other suitable general textbooks are:—

 

Principles of Practical Beekeeping

R Couston

NBB

Beekeeping - A Seasonal Guide

R Brown

Batsford

 

 

Disease

 

Honey Bee Brood Diseases    

H Hansen

 

Diseases of Bees — Bulletin 100

 

MAFF Publications

Common Diseases of the Adult Honey Bee — P3015

 

“

Foul Brood of bees: Recognition and Control - P306

 

“

Varroasis:    A parasitic disease of honey bees - P834

 

“

 

 

 

Members may borrow books from the Moir Library.