Dean Forest Beekeepers
for beekeepers in the Forest of Dean and the Wye Valley
Useful infoThis section contains leaflets, articles, notes and links that we think will be helpful to our members. If you have something you would like included in this section, please send details to the Webmaster. Note: The links and files are from a variety of acknowledged sources. Dean Forest Beekeepes does not necessarily endorse their contents. Please use at your own discretion. For general information it is well worth getting to know:
|
|
Apiary managementIan Craig’s series of articles explaining what to do throughout the beekeeping year (27 pages) contains excellent advice, but bear in mind the climate difference between Gloucestershire and Scotland. The BBKA have an information leaflet on Beekeeping Records, which makes suggestions on how to keep records and includes an example Hive Record Card. At our apiary we use our own record card, which you can download as a Word document or as a pdf document. |
|
What to do each monthA useful reminder list is available on this page: Monthly tasks For a view of how the hive population changes over the year, with useful notes added, take a look at this one page Year Chart |
|
Hives and equipmentIf you want to build your own National, WBC, Langstroth or Smith hive, go to the Scottish Beekeepers Association Downloads page: SBKA Downloads where you will find Technical Data Sheets which give full measurements and instructions. There are descriptions of the hives commonly used in the UK and Ireland with dimensioned drawings of most parts on Dave Cushman’s web site . If you are interested in beekeeping with skeps, then take a look at Martin Buckle's site where you can find out how to make skeps and how to keep bees in the traditional way. (You can buy skeps in Gloucestershire, from David Chubb.) |
 |
Swarm controlThe BBKA have a leaflet titled Swarm Control for the Beginner which you can download here: BBKA leaflets Brenda Davies has written a useful review of swarm control methods. |
|
Queen rearing and introductionOn the Kent Beekeepers web site there is a very good guide to Simple Queen Rearing The BBKA have an article titled: Practical aspects of Queen Rearing. There is a Beedata nutshell article by Brian Palmer explaining how to use a mini-nucleus such as the Apidea: Mininucs. The BBKA have an information leaflet on Queen Introduction. For those interested in breeding, we can recommend the very large Bee Breeding section of David Cushman's site. |
 Adding a queen cell to a mini-nuc |
Honey processingBeedata have an article by Matthew Allan about honey processing: Basic Honey Processing. There is a good explanation of the process with lots of photos on the Reigate Beekeepers web site. Make sure that you pay close attention to food hygiene at all stages of processing. This guide from Hampshire Beekeepers Association is useful: Honey hygiene Hartpury College offer a one-day course in Food Hygiene. Details are available on their web site. The packaging and labelling requirements for a small scale producer are explained in this Labelling summary If you want a full detailed explanation of the labelling regulations, the BBKA site has one Labelling requirements
|
|
FeedingThis detailed article by Dawn Yates covers all aspects of feeding: Feeding bees There are useful downloads in the Technical Data Sheets section of the SBKA web site too. |
|
Bee healthThe first requirement for healthy bees is the maintenance of good hygiene in the apiary. The BBKA leaflet on this subject is well worth reading, even if you have read it before! | |
|
In addition, every beekeeper should be inspecting their hives regularly, monitoring the incidence and extent of any pests or diseases, and taking appropriate action. New beekeepers can learn to recognise problems at an early stage by taking part in our apiary sessions, held every Thursday from April to October. There are links to detailed information on pests and diseases in the next section. The BBKA have recently produced The Healthy Hive Guide, a 48 page photographic reference book. It is designed to help new and improving beekeepers
spot the early signs of trouble in their hives and take appropriate action. |
 The BBKA Healthy Hive guide |
Pests and diseasesBrian Dennis has written a good article describing all the common disorders. It is divided into four sections: Brood diseases, Adult diseases, Management problems, and Pests. You can read the article and download a pdf copy at the BBKA web site, Articles section. |
|
|
Unfortunately Brian's article has no photos, but Edinburgh and Midlothian Beekeepers have an excellent section on pests and diseases on their web site, where you will find a series of information sheets and they have very good illustrations: SBKA 'Honeybee diseases' page FERA’s booklet on managing Varroa can be downloaded here: Managing Varroa The mid-Bucks Beekeepers Association’s site has a good explanation of an Integrated Approach to Varroa The Image Gallery on the BeeBase web site has some good photos of pests and diseases, as well as images of normal healthy brood:
BeeBase Image Gallery  |
 Managing Varroa from FERA |