February is just round the corner and still the beekeeper in Ireland does not feel that winter has really arrived.
The mild weather means that many honeybee colonies have been more active that usual over the last few months – and in consequence require extra feeding. In winter, most beekeepers use baker’s fondant – the bees can’t take down liquid feed in cold weather.
The new year has begun for the Co Dublin BKA. We had our AGM this week and elected a new chairperson, John Killian. The association’s in good health – and for the first time in living memory we have over 200 members. On Monday week, the sixth of Feb we have our first spring lecture – Mary Montaut will talk on bees and plants. On the following day our beginners’ course starts – it is practically full, so if you want to try for a place, contact Ann (details here) immediately.
It’s that time of year again when the beekeeper’s relatives are racking their brains for bee-related presents (hint!) and beekeepers are wishing they’d kept more honey back to serve as Christmas gifts. In no time at all it will be 2012.
After the success of the Year of the Honeybee 2011, early in 2012 we have the International Bee Health Symposium - on Saturday, on 24th March in the Citywest Hotel. It has just been announced that the deadline for early bird registration has been extended until the 11th of January next year. According to an email just received from the organisers:
“In a novel approach, The International Bee Health Symposium will feature roundtable discussions between beekeepers and leading scientists with the aim of transferring knowledge between the two groups, creating practical solutions to dramatically reduce colony loss.
Experts have been invited to report briefly on current advances in the field and then participate in roundtable discussions which will be facilitated by the scientists and leading beekeepers. These experts have been chosen not only for their research but also because we know they communicate this very well to beekeepers.
Professor Robert Paxton, (Martin Luther University, Halle-Wittenberg, Germany) – Nosema
Professor Ingemar Fries, (University of Uppsala, Sweden) – Varroa Viruses & Foulbrood
Dr Romée van der Zee, (Netherlands Centre for Bee Research, NCB, Netherlands) – Colony Losses
Professor Francis Ratnieks, (University of Sussex, UK) – Bee Behaviour & Hygienic Behaviour
Speaker TBC – Veterinary Regulations of Treatments
The programme will consist of 3 state-of-the-art plenary lectures, (open to all), delivered by invited experts followed by 3 concurrent roundtable discussions led by the experts and facilitated by beekeepers and researchers. This format will be repeated in the afternoon with 3 further topics and the meeting will conclude with a short plenary discussion session.”
This idea of bringing the expert beekeepers and scientists together to address the bee health issues together seems a good one, as there is frequently a difference of opinion between the academics and practitioners. Early bird registration costs €50. To book, visit the website http://www.beehealth2012.ie/
Of course, this is just one of the beekeeping events in Dublin during 2012. You can check out our latest calendar of events including our spring lectures and beginners’ course here.
Finally, the Dublin Honey Show is upon us. The cups are polished and ready for this year’s winners, the Dublin Beekeepers’ Association honey is bottled and labelled ready for sale, the volunteers are all signed up and ready to make the show run like clockwork, and throughout the county and wider country, competitors are putting the finishing touches to their entries.
The Irish did very well at the UK National Honey Show last weekend as you can see here, and some of the winning entries will come to Dublin to try their luck. There are a number of competition classes that are designed for beginners, including the ‘dark jar ‘ class where the honey is judged on taste and aroma alone, so if you are relatively new to beekeeping competitions, do try a quick entry – you never know! The entry form and rules can be found here.
We look forward to welcoming you all to our honey show. As well as a beekeeping competition it’s a chance to buy honey from Co Dublin and to browse the craft stalls which are always popular. It’s held at Christ Church, Rathgar D6, from 10:30am to 4pm this Saturday, 5th November.
We look forward to welcoming you! As per last year, the entry fee is €2, which goes to this year’s charity, the Royal Hospital, Donnybrook.
As every beekeeper knows, the beekeeping year ends with the harvest. For Dublin beekeepers, the harvest is in and it’s time to start the new year by preparing the bees for winter. By this time most of our bees will be fed and tucked up for the winter.
It is in the colder months that beekeepers have more time to learn, to socialise and to repair equipment. The Co. Dublin beekeepers’ association’s programme of events for members starts next Monday, 3rd October, with the first of our autumn lectures at Wesley Hall, Leeson Park, D6 – we hold three in autum and three more in spring. Monday’s lecture is on how honeybees fly, given by yours truly, Simon Rees.
There are two more lectures to come before Christmas (as you’ll see from our online association diary) – and of course, our Honey Show. That’s on Saturday 5th November in Christ Church, Rathgar. For the beekeeper it’s a chance to enter competitions and win kudos and prizes – and for everyone else it’s a chance to buy top-quality local honey, learn about beekeeping and buy some early Christmas presents at the craft fair. If you are in the market for honey, you might need to arrive early – last year we sold out of run honey by lunchtime, such was the demand and the short supply. Mind, this year we have more to sell, happily.
It’s that time of year when the thoughts of beekeepers in Ireland turn to Gormanston. The excellent FIBKA beekeeping summer school is the highlight of the beekeeper’s calendar in Ireland, so if you are a beekeeper already or are interested in learning about bees, do consider taking a day or more to travel up to Gormanston for the summer school at the end of July. It’s great value. With the motorways now it’s easy to to a day trip, and there may even be some accommodation still available. For other opinions you can check out our Gormaston page here. Last year Claire and I made some video interviews at Gormanston, so maybe check them out.
And finally, below is a brief video interview with Richard Jones of IBRA, the International Bee Research Association at Gormanston last year. The boffins from Cardiff will be at Gormanston again this year, so if you want to order any special IBRA books from their bookshop – for example Eva Crane’s excellent World history of beekeeping and honey hunting – get in touch with IBRA’s bookshop! This writer has ordered a signed copy of their Welsh honey recipes.
