East Lothian Beekeepers' Association

(Founded 1887 – Scotland's Oldest Local
Association)

www.eastlothianbeekeepers.org.uk

Newsletter 158                                                         October
2011

Winter's on its way!

Despite this season's unpredictable weather my bees stored
away enough honey for me to take a little for myself. I think this was largely
due to the good weather while the oil seed rape was flowering, but that's good
enough for me. However there has been a lot of chalk brood in the colony and a
significant drop of varroa mites during
autumn treatment. Maybe this is related to the miserable late summer
conditions?

This drives home the fact that good varroa control is vital
for a healthy hive. In addition to autumn treatment, a winter treatment with
oxalic acid is a good way to mop up any remaining mites. This link gives
further information:

http://www.dave-cushman.net/bee/wallyshaw.html

I look forward to seeing you at the winter meetings and our
social dinner.

Jo Dodds – ELBA Secretary

Winter Meetings – Haddington Town House, 7.30pm

Everyone
welcome! Come along to hear talks on beekeeping topics, followed by time to
chat to fellow beekeepers over tea and biscuits. Please note that all meetings
are on THURSDAY this year.

Thursday
10 November – 'The Scottish Beekeepers' Association:
100 Not Out'. Una Robertson, the SBA's Library Convener, will speak about the
SBA's work and centenary in 2012. This meeting will be open to interested
members of the public, so please spread the word and put up the attached poster
locally if you can.

Thursday
12 January – Association AGM and 'My Method of Beekeeping' by Graeme
Sharpe, Apiculture Specialist from the Scottish Agriculture College at
Auchincruive.

Meetings
will also be held on Thursday 9 February, Thursday 8 March and Thursday 12
April. Speakers to be announced soon.

ELBA Social Dinner – Thursday 24
November, 7.30pm

We are determined that the Association's
honey-themed social dinner will go ahead this year, following last year's cancellation
due to the snow! The Avenue restaurant at the Victoria Inn, just opposite the
Haddington Town House, has created a mouth-watering three-course menu to
showcase our local honey for £21 per person. To book your place please
send your name and a £5 deposit (put towards the cost of the meal) to Jo
Dodds by Monday 31 October.

Beekeeping Courses for Beginners

If you'd like to attend Mike Bain's beekeeping
course in the new year please let him know by filling in the form at the bottom
of our web page.

Varroa Mite Resistance to Apistan and Bayvarol
– Alan Riach

I’ve carried out a CSL-Beltsville test on
the bees at the EMBA Apiary and have found Pyrethroid resistance. Resistance
will likely be fairly widespread in the Lothians (contact Jo Dodds for testing
method). This means that we can no longer depend on Apistan and Bayvarol as an
effective treatment for varroa.

Remember the main task is to monitor and be aware of the
mite levels in the colonies. Natural mite drop is the best monitoring method
– use the population calculator on the Beebase site: https://secure.fera.defra.gov.uk/beebase/public/BeeDiseases/varroaCalculator.cfm

If you have fairly high levels in your hives it would be
wise to treat in Dec (no brood period) with the Oxalic acid method
–don’t purchase too far ahead of treatment as it degrades with
time.

A Tribute to Gordon Biggar by
Donald Smith

Members will be sad to hear of the
recent death of Gordon Biggar. When I first joined the Association as a novice
with a hive of bees and little knowledge or skills, Gordon was quick to offer
to go through my bees with me and show me how he did what then seemed
impossibly complicated things like making an artificial swarm. He turned up in
his red, open-top, two-seater Austin Healey Sprite, some spare beekeeping bits
and pieces for me in the passenger seat, and as we went through the bees he
explained what he was doing and how it fitted into his "system".

He was quite explicit that this was
just his way of doing things, but it was not the only way, and that it was
important to always be thinking about what you are doing. The best piece of
advice he gave me, one which he had inherited from his beekeeping mentor, was
to work your way through problems by asking what it is that the bees are trying
to do, to ask what the bees are saying to you? Why is there no honey in the
super? Why is that hive so tetchy? Why is there no young brood?

At first I was bewildered by the
contradictory advice about all beekeeping matters that I received from
different beekeepers, and it took me a little while to understand that what you
did with the bees only made sense in relation to the whole year of apiary
management. Gordon worked his bees to avoid oilseed rape and so moved his bees
into Edinburgh in the summer, to the heather for the autumn, and wintered at
his home at Fushiebridge. He also made sure that beekeeping didn't interfere
with his summer holiday plans by confining them to a single Smith brood box in
the Spring so as to force them to swarm early in the year. Then with all
the artificial swarms set up he could relax - as least as far as the bees went.

Those who spoke at his funeral
described his lifetime pursuits of geology, hillwalking and other outdoor
activities, travelling around the world, and maintaining his vintage cars - he
proudly showed me the original receipt for his boyhood racing bicycle (which he
was still using). But it was poignant for me that all the speakers also
mentioned that he was a beekeeper, and that their memories of Gordon were
flavoured with that of the honey he always brought along to sell. The
Association has lost a great stalwart, and the bees have lost a good, patient
and thoughtful beekeeper.

Beekeeping Demo at Edinburgh
Botanics

I've been asked by Edinburgh
Botanic Gardens if we could put on a beekeeping demonstration in their John
Hope Gateway building for a day during the Edinburgh Science Festival (March
31-April 15 2012). They have in mind something similar to the Haddington Show
stand. If anyone has any ideas or would be willing to help please get in touch!

Gifford Flower Show Prizewinners

George Hood Memorial
Trophy for most points in Novice section – Michael Hill

Gifford Horticultural Society Trophy for most points
in Open section – Jim Bell

George Turnbull Trophy for best exhibit – George
Barton

OPEN SECTION

Jar Clear Medium to Dark
Blossom Honey - 1st J Bell, 2nd G Barton

Jar Clear Light Blossom Honey
- 1st M Hedderwick, 2nd J Bell

Jar Naturally Granulated Honey
- 1st J Bell, 2nd Mark Hedderwick

Jar Soft Set Honey - 1st
M Hedderwick, 2nd J Bell, 3rd G Barton

Jar Liquid Heather Honey - 1st
G Barton, 2nd J Bell, 3rd M Hedderwick

Cut Comb Blossom Honey - 1st
J Bell

Cut Comb Heather Honey - 1st
J Bell, 2nd G Barton

Shallow Frame Blossom Honey -
1st J Bell, 2nd M Hedderwick

Shallow Frame Heather Honey -
1st J Bell, 2nd J De Pree

Wax Candles - 1st J
Bell, 2nd M Hedderwick; Piece Beeswax - 1st J Bell, 2nd
M Hedderwick

Honey Cake - 1st J
Bell, 2nd M Hedderwick; Honey Tablet - 1st M Hedderwick,
2nd J Bell

NOVICE SECTION

Jar Clear Blossom Honey - 1st
R Carthy, 2nd M Hill, 3rd D Mackay

Piece Beeswax - 1st
Sandy Boggon, 2nd M Hill, 3rd R Carthy

Honey Cake - 1st D
Mackay, 2nd M Hill, 3rd R Carthy

Jo Dodds – Secretary

20 King's Avenue

Longniddry

East Lothian EH32 0QN

01875 852916

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