Bee Health

Potential starvation risk!

apiarymanager Feeding Bees and Starvation, PBKA

Just to remind all beekeepers that the June gap can still happen and inclement weather, combined with large growing colonies and little or no available forage, can quickly result in a shortage of stores.

So be sure to check that your bees have enough food, especially if you have taken off any spring honey. Note that if you add extra frames of sealed stores you should keep them in the brood boxes, so as to avoid getting them mixed up in the honey supers. Also, if you have to feed directly, use a light syrup (i.e. 1:1 sugar/water ratio) with any honey supers taken off during the feeding process.

National Bee Unit Wales – Bee Health Events 2018

apiarymanager Bee Health

The NBU team will be getting out and about to local association venues this year and offering tailored support sessions to local beekeepers. The 2018 Bee Health events in Wales will be ‘drop in’ workshops, allowing attendees to come and go at a time of their choosing, and to focus on the issues of greatest concern to them.

The workshops will provide an opportunity for beekeepers to meet some of the NBU team in Wales, to get an understanding of the purpose and value of the Inspectorate’s work and, most importantly, to develop their knowledge and diagnosis of the key pest and disease threats to their bees.

The NBU will be bringing their ever popular diseased combs, displayed under special licence, to give attendees first hand and, we hope only, experience of brood disease. The NBU will also be providing stalls of information covering a wider range of pests and diseases and relevant good beekeeping practice, from varroa control to biosecurity and exotic pests.

Welsh Government and the Animal and Plant Health Agency, of which the NBU is a part, are keen that the events are made available to all beekeepers. As in previous years, associations are hosting our workshops but attendance is not restricted to association members – all beekeepers are welcome to come along. Full protective sanitary wear will be provided and the NBU will require attendees to comply with the biosecurity measures they will have in place.

The events will run from 2pm until 4pm at the following venues:

Saturday 16th June – Bridgend BKA, Coytrahen Community Centre, CF32 9DW

Saturday 30th June – South Clwyd BKA, St Collen’s Community Hall, Llangollen, LL20 8NU

Sunday 8th July – Gwent BKA, Goytre Hall, NP4 0AW

Friday 13th July – WBKA, Aberystwyth University, SY23 3FL

Sunday 15th July (10am – 12pm) – WBKA, Aberystwyth University, SY23 3FL