Annual General Meeting

The AGM will be held at Flitwick Village Hall on Saturday 25th  February. 

The day will run as follows:

10am                    Trading; Tea and Coffee

11am                     AGM commences

12.30pm               Lunch; Tea and Coffee, Trading

2pm                      Talk by Margaret Murdin “Communication in Honey Bees”

3pm                      Trading; Tea and Coffee

4pm                      Event closes

 During trading there will also be several stalls including:

  1. Bees Abroad with a raffle to support this charity (if you can please bring a prize donation)
  2. Bee 1st (our local beekeeping equipment supplier)
  3. Second hand equipment (members can bring items to sell, labelled with name and price)
  4. Association library
  5. Association notecards
  6. Membership subscription/renewal (only paid up members can vote at the AGM)

Please bring along a packed lunch, otherwise Tesco is close by for you to purchase food. We would also ask you to bring along your own mug or keep-cup if you have one. Teas and coffees will be available at different points throughout the day.

Finally, there will also be centenary birthday cake for you to sing to and of course enjoy. If you can bring a long a cake to share, that would be much appreciated.

There’s no need to book a ticket. 

Any questions please contact secretary@bedsbka.com.

DIY For Beekeepers – an online talk by Professor David Evans

You can register for the talk at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/480906322757

David says:

This talk covers topics as diverse as recycled For Sale signs, the number of jars of honey it takes to pay for a Toyota Hilux (and how to move hives slightly more economically), foundationless frames and wasp-resistant hive entrances. It is an entertaining look at some of the things that either aren’t available commercially, or that can be built at home both better and cheaper. None of the items discussed require any specialist, expensive (or even power) tools . . . though a pizza cutter will come in useful. Several of the items described have won prizes in beekeeping shows (for readers of The Apiarist, unfortunately not for me). This is the ideal talk for late autumn or early winter when beekeepers have a little more time on their hands … it is intended to convince you that the bees don’t need fancy woodwork, and to inspire you to build something yourself.

David Evans (The Apiarist https://theapiarist.org)

David Evans is Emeritus Professor of Virology in the School of Biology, University of St. Andrews. His research interests included the replication and evolution of human and animal viruses, and the biology and control of both Deformed wing virus (DWV) and Chronic bee paralysis virus (CBPV) of honey bees.

David is an enthusiastic beekeeper – an activity that pre-dates his research on honey bee viruses by several years – and a member of Fife Beekeepers, the East of Scotland BKA and Lochaber BKA. He runs about twenty colonies and is particularly interested in queen rearing and ‘pottering in the shed with bits of wood and a nail gun’.

His interest in DIY for beekeeping resulted in a regular column in the Warwick and Leamington Beekeepers newsletter Bee Talk which, over time, evolved into his personal beekeeping website The Apiarist. On this he covers topics as diverse as Varroa management, responsible mentoring, the price of honey and practical waspkeeping. New posts appear every Friday afternoon and he regularly discusses recent scientific advances on the biology of honey bees. The popularity of the website has resulted in numerous invitations to talk at local, national and international beekeeping meetings.

David now lives on the remote west coast of Scotland in one of the few remaining parts of mainland UK that is Varroa free.

You can register for the talk at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/480906322757

Trading Day – Member Pre-Order Pickup

This Trading Day event is for those members who have submitted pre-orders for equipment. You will be notified of the time slot allocated to you. Payment can be made by card, cash or cheque.

Please remember to bring the wax you are exchanging. If you have any additional clean or unrendered (dirty) wax to exchange or donate, please bring that too.

Beginners Beekeepers Course – Classroom

Our beginner courses are aimed at those who are interested in taking up or learning about the wonderful hobby of beekeeping. We are delighted to offer both classroom-based and online beginners’ training courses for 2022. The classroom course will be held on Sunday mornings over 6 weeks starting on the 20th February. The course covers basic theory and handling of bees and is delivered by experienced beekeepers.

See Introduction to Beekeeping for more details.

Beginners Beekeeping Course – Online

Our beginner courses are aimed at those who are interested in taking up or learning about the wonderful hobby of beekeeping. We are delighted to offer both classroom-based and online beginners’ training courses for 2022. The online course will be held on Tuesday evenings over 8 weeks starting on the 15th February. The course covers basic theory and handling of bees and is delivered by experienced beekeepers.

See Introduction to Beekeeping for more details.

Introduction to Beekeeping

This beginners’ course is aimed at those who are interested in taking up the wonderful hobby of beekeeping as well as those who just would like to learn more about beekeeping. We have modified our normal beginner training programme to an online course to ensure that it can go ahead whatever Covid-19 pandemic related restrictions may be in place in the spring. It includes eight weekly online sessions covering basic theory and handling of bees, delivered by experienced beekeepers.

The course fee of £70 includes all online sessions, as well as full membership of Bedfordshire Beekeepers Association until 31st December 2021 so that you will be able to join in other events put on by the Association and benefit from contact with more experienced members.

In addition, we very much hope to offer course members a taste of beekeeping at our apiaries, either at the Association teaching apiaries or with individual beekeepers. This is not part of the course and depends on what is permitted and possible under Covid-19.

To register please go to Webcollect

Beds BKA Annual General Meeting

The AGM will be held as an online meeting via zoom, comprising a short business session followed by a talk from Bob Smith on “Managing The Workers”. The AGM is a key event for the Association for which members’ attendance is important – mark the date in your diary.

The normal AGM trading event for pre-order pickup and wax exchange will be held on Saturday 26th February at Flitwick Village Hall. Details to follow.