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

THE SMALL HIVE BEETLE AND OTHER MATTERS - DAVE SUTTON

Employed by the National Bee Unit at the Central Science Laboratory, Dave's job is to inspect for and deal with notifiable bee diseases and pests, such as EFB and the Small Hive Beetle.  It is essential that we are familiar with our Regional Bee Inspector's work, keep up-to-date with and recognise bee health problems, and know how to deal with them.  Make sure that your hives are not the source of an outbreak of disease in the Stratford area!  A film about the S.H.B. will be shown.
Mike Osborne

THE BBKA ANNUAL DELEGATES MEETING

On January 12^th I attended the British Beekeepers Association’s Annual Delegate Meeting on behalf of the Stratford Association.  56 delegates, representing some 11,200 beekeepers, discussed the annual accounts of the BBKA and their budget for future years, which despite some questioning of the details, were duly approved.  Income for 2007 was £215,055, with an expenditure of £216,726.  Net assets were £278,192, although it is intended to eventually increase these to twice the annual expenditure, supposedly in line with the Charity Commission’s requirements, but it seems excessive to me.  As a result an increase in next year’s capitation fee to £14.00 per member was agreed, which I voted against.

I also voted against the BBKA membership being on-line (until greater consideration has been given to its security), for a new category of ‘Junior’ BBKA membership (we already have this), for not employing anyone on the Sex Offenders Register at BBKA events (impractical and probably unnecessary), and for arranging for local associations and individuals to contribute to bee research funding (this was passed).  The last has come up because despite the Government agreeing on bees making a £165M contribution to the agricultural economy, “there is no way in which the Government could find additional money for bee research”.

The BBKA is to launch a campaign to try to reverse this, but offering our own money does not seem to me to be the answer at present.  I voted in favour of a new leaflet aimed at the general public on bee identification, and on the placing of small hive beetle traps in the neighbourhood of fruit importation sites.  Further general details of the meeting will be in a future issue of BBKA News.
Mike Osborne

MOLLINGTON MUSINGS

When I moved from London to Mollington in northernmost Oxfordshire in 1979 I found that everything in which I was interested happened south of Oxford, west of Warwick and east of Northampton. I was in a black hole.  However I joined Oxfordshire and Warwickshire Wildlife Trusts, the Ramblers, the RSPB and Stratford BKA.  To date I have not attended any of their meetings!  Reading our BKA newsletter and magazines I occasionally find myself itching to comment.  It also seems that Peter contributes most of the newsletter content and could do with some support.  So this is my first musing. (I may turn out to be a bit of a Luddite - I hope this motivates you to respond ).

As background you should know that I started my beekeeping in 1953 courtesy of my grammar school metalwork master's beekeeping club.  The bees were kept on the flat roof of the school kitchen to protect the boys from the bees and bees from the boys.  (The school caretaker said that a group of angelic 12 year olds could reduce a cubic yard of concrete to dust in 20 minutes!)  Access to the roof was via the staffroom through a sliding sash window which gave me a great source of prestige and gossip.

I bought my first bees in 1955 from an elderly beekeeper who was giving up beekeeping.  I acquired 2 WBC hives with bees, honey extractor, steam wax extractor etc.  All this was then some 25-30 years old.  I am still using the galvanised honey extractor.  As it does not comply with the current food hygiene regulations I do not sell any of my honey.  [Members should note that it is now illegal to even give away honey that has been in contact with galvanised equipment. PE].  I keep my bees in Smith hives in my large back garden.  They are a mongrel Black/Italian and originated from a stock living in the wall of the village church.  They are still in residence in the church and have been there since I arrived in 1979.  I winter 2 stocks on single brood.  In April I unite them using newspaper and give them 3 supers.  When they produce queen cells I form an artificial swarm or if I am not quick enough I catch the swarm and house the original stock and the swarm each on single brood with 2 supers.  A month later I check that the new queen is laying.  Through the summer I remove the honey crop as required.  Examination is limited to observing activity at the hive entrance.  In August/September I treat with Bayvarol, feed for the winter and fit mouse guards.  Well that's me and my bees.  Next month another musing perhaps.
Geoffrey Bywaters

NOT BEES THIS TIME!

The recent problems at Heathrow reminded me of this snippet which appeared in the press last year:

LONDON (Reuters) - A passenger plane was forced to land after flying into a swarm of bees, leaving hundreds of holidaymakers stranded.  The Palmair Boeing 737 had to return to Bournemouth Airport, Dorset, shortly after take-off at 8:10 a.m. on Thursday following an engine surge.  The pilot decided to abort the flight to Faro in Portugal and returned for safety checks.  The plane's engine was thought to have become clogged with bees, which may have caused possible damage to a fan, the company said on Friday.

Huge clouds of bees have been seen around Bournemouth during the past few days, a spokeswoman added.  About 90 passengers were on board, with a further 106 waiting in the Algarve for the return flight.  A replacement plane finally left at 7:15 p.m. -- about 11 hours later.
Peter Edwards

PIGEONS AND BEES

The Daily Northwestern Monday, January 28, 1889 Oshkosh, Wisconsin

A Pigeon fancier of Hamme, Prussia, made a bet that a dozen bees liberated three miles from their hive would reach it in better time than a dozen pigeons would reach their cote from the same distance.  The competitors were given wing at Rynhern, a village nearly a league from Hamme, and the first bee finished a quarter of a minute in advance of the first pigeon, three other bees reached the goal before the second pigeon, the main body of both detachments finished almost simultaneously an instant of two later.  The bees, too, had been handicapped in the race, having been rolled in flour before starting, for the purposes of identification.
Found on the Internet

RECIPE - TUNA WITH HONEY MARINADE

Are you making the most of your honey?  Perhaps you use it in baking, but have you tried putting it in a marinade?  This one is particularly good with tuna, but could be used with any fish.  The quantities are not critical and can be adjusted to taste: these are sufficient for a couple of portions.

1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp groundnut or corn oil (not worth wasting good olive oil on a griddle)
1 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp soy sauce
Juice of half a lemon

Mix well together and marinade the tuna for at least half an hour.  Cook on a very hot griddle so that the tuna is well-coloured on the outside but still pink inside - do not overcook it!  A couple of tips:

Tuna is usually sold pre-cut into thick steaks, but if you ask your fishmonger nicely he may cut it into thin slices for you - these cook very quickly and are delicious.

Cook the tuna on one side until browned, then turn it over and turn off the gas so that it finishes cooking by residual heat.  After plating the tuna, add any remaining marinade to the pan with a splash of white wine, allow it to boil and then pour it over the tuna.
Peter Edwards

MEMBERSHIP MATTERS

A list of our current members is included with the month’s newsletter.  Email members will have received this electronically.
Peter Edwards

GLOOM and DOOM!

Believe it or not, I always hesitate before writing about the potential problems that we, and our bees, are facing from pests and diseases.  Although I find these subjects interesting, I am well aware that, for many, they are not.  Indeed, the lowest attendances at beekeeping meetings tends to be for those covering disease, and the best supported are usually ones about gardening, butterflies, bats or the like!

But this is not an apology.  Sadly, the days have gone when we could practise ‘let-alone beekeeping’ and those without some understanding of the unprecedented problems that our bees face will simply watch them die.  At times, even those with great experience will struggle - as recent events around the world have shown only too well.

So I will continue to bring your attention to what I believe you really ought to know, and try to coat the pill with items of a lighter nature.  Of course, I am always grateful for contributions!
Peter Edwards