Hon. Newsletter Editor:
Peter Edwards
E-mail: beekeepers@stratford-upon-avon.freeserve.co.uk

 JULY APIARY MEETING - MY APOLOGIES

My apologies for missing the July apiary meeting from 'Coming events' last month. I am afraid that we were in wedding mode - our daughter, Jane, was married on 3 July. Of course I did say in the April newsletter: 'Note that meetings will then be held on the third Sunday of each month from May'…

However, I understand from David that five or six people did attend (so somebody read the April newsletter - well done!), checked the colonies for brood and found laying queens in all of them, reduced the entrance on the nuc (although it may not have enough bees to survive) and removed an excellent second crop amounting to twelve good supers.
Peter Edwards

Volunteers are urgently needed to help with our stand at this two-day event. If you can only manage a couple of hours this would be a great help. Please ring me now!
Peter Edwards

We were very fortunate to have such a perfect day for our Safari - sunshine, fairly light winds and a good flow on.

Next to Keith's apiary at HRI, where we arrived just one minute late - not bad going! It was interesting to see Keith's apiary of Langstroth hives in a beautiful setting by the reservoir (although I shall not be volunteering to help him carry his crop to the nearest track - perhaps 75-100 yards from the hives). Two added bonuses here were the hundreds of dragonflies flying over the reservoir and a large patch of Phacelia tanacetifolia just yards from the hives.

Our next stop was for lunch at Wilmcote where we sat at the picnic tables in the pub garden for a ploughman's and a welcome pint.
Peter Edwards

John Sheppard now takes up the story:

Joining the Safari at lunchtime, I was able to enjoy a pleasant lunch before we set off across the field to visit one of Peter Edwards' apiaries.

As we approached the hives a few bees "dived bombed" us so we put on our veils! Richard Lindsey, our SBI, got to work on inspecting the colonies. There was very little evidence of varroa mites. In one colony, which had drone cells at the sides of the brood frame, the odd mite was found when Richard uncapped the cells with an uncapping fork. This enabled the larvae to be lifted out of the cell, exposing any mites present on the larvae.

Richard was very careful to disinfect the hive tool and uncapping fork after each hive had been inspected. It was also noted that disposable gloves were worn over thin plastic bee gloves. The disposable gloves were changed for each apiary inspection.

The weather was warm and sunny and there was a good nectar flow on. Richard followed the same careful procedures as before, i.e. disinfecting tools and changing gloves.

When I looked at my bees in May there was quite a lot of brood and the bees were going up into the supers on two colonies. One colony had raised a queen cell, which I should have left, as the bees were going to supersede the queen. I panicked and removed the cell and then found that there were no other queen cells.

I carried out another inspection on 13 July. There were no queen cells in any of the colonies and not many bees in the supers. The lavender is now in full bloom so I may get a small amount of honey. All the brood chambers have at least four combs solid with this year's honey.

The hives are modified Dadant which have a brood chamber just a bit bigger then the British modified commercial brood chamber and I am now wondering if the brood chambers of the Dadant hive allow too much spare space for honey storage with the bees using that space rather then the supers.

The weather here in North Provence has been very hot, with no rain since February except for an occasional shower. There were also a lot of drying winds in May and June. On my colonies the outlook for a good honey crop is poor.
John Sheppard

"Will we be able to eat any French honey ten years from now?" asks the French newsmagazine Marianne. Millions of bees are being killed by poison every spring, causing the national production of honey to drop from 45,000 tons in 1989 to 16,000 tons in 2000. In a single week, one beekeeper lost his 450 hives - 22 millions bees! Many honey producers blame agricultural chemicals such as pesticides, especially the cheaper and more potent products that are imported illegally. Some farmers have even added used engine oil or bleach to their chemicals for greater effect! If nothing is done, "there is a risk that French honey will become merely an object of folklore", says Marianne.
(from March 8, 2003 Awake! magazine under "Watching the World")

I will be ordering fondant for feeding in the near future. The price will be £7.90 per 12.5kg block - provided that I receive cash with order before 20 August.

Note that there will probably be only one order and it is unlikely that there will be any 'spare' fondant available later - if there is, it will be charged at £9 per 12.5kg.
Peter Edwards

I have had no reports of any problems of honeybees being poisoned by lime this year, other than the possibility of a problem at Ron and Rhoda's apiary, seen during the Safari, where a small number of bees could have been affected. One of my own apiaries is located in the centre of the town and has worked lime every year since 1982 with no visible ill effects, so I think it unlikely that it is the type of lime that is a problem. However, there is a report of bumblebees being found dying under lime trees at Snitterfield.

In Plants &Beekeeping (1945), Howes suggests that honeydew from lime may be toxic to some extent to bees and that the flowers of three lime species (T. petiolaris, tomentosa and orbicularis) may have a harmful effect as it is common to find dead and dying bees under them. Hooper also mentions petiolaris and orbicularis in Guide to Bees & Honey (1976). However, these are not commonly planted and are certainly not the limes found lining some of our streets. Incidentally, Howes also gives lime as the second most important honey source in the UK after clover - but remember that this was written in 1945.

Bailey, Honey Bee Pathology (1981), states that honey and pollen from limes generally (Tilia spp.) 'may be toxic' (!), but then concentrates on lime honeydew suggesting that it is some of the higher sugars in honeydew (melezitose, galactose and mannose) that are the cause of the problem. Galactose and mannose are toxic to bees and occur in both honeydew and the nectar of limes.

Of course, nectar and honeydew production (and the proportion of each in the overall total) from limes will vary greatly from year to year as it is very dependent on weather conditions; any problems are therefore likely to show similar variations. However, it seems safe to say that, on balance, limes are a 'good thing' for bees and their keepers.
Peter Edwards

We are invited to participate in the Birmingham and District Honey Show, which is held at Kings Heath Park, Birmingham as part of the Gardeners' Weekend Show. The classes are very similar to ours, but with money prizes and several splendid cups. Well worth a visit, with at least 9 other flower and gardening sections taking part. Schedules for the honey show can be obtained from me.
Mike Osborne