Jenny Buckle with a class

2009, a busy year

And not just looking after our bees – we have been sharing our wonderful hobby with as many people as possible.

Members have given up their time to exhibit their produce and promote beekeeping at village shows and information days. A wide range of organisations locally have had our beekeepers to visit to talk about the craft. The Women’s Institute have been particularly interested following their resolution this year to save the bees.

Many schools became involved with the Devon Beekeepers’ Association activities at the County Show. Submissions for the Furze Cup competition were plentiful and of a high standard. This was followed up by numerous visits to schools. These are always rewarding and relatively simple to do – turn up with a smoker, bee suit, some capped honey and polish and the questions start coming. The pupils are naturally inquisitive and enthusiastic.

photo Ray Ford

Our stand at the beekeeping information day at the Barn Owl.

photo Terry Clarke

In addition to our shows, talks and school visits, we especially thank those members who support new beekeepers with evening classes, lectures, demonstrations and the upkeep of the branch apiary. Members of the public are welcome to attend all of these as an introduction to beekeeping or to talk to an experienced beekeeper for advice on how to get started.

We have also supported our members with information and news through the local newsletter, the Devon ‘Beekeeping’ journal and of course, our website. Our branch was also very supportive of the two ‘Nosema Survey’ days in Devon, where hundreds of samples of bees were examined for the disease.

So how can we help this small army of volunteers deliver the same next year?

There are dozens of ways you can join in – the social benefits alone make it immensely worthwhile. We need more members who could come along and talk about their beekeeping experiences. Are you knowledgeable about any of these – beekeeping, wax, queen breeding, bee plants or indeed anything about the craft? Sit in on a talk given by someone else and see how informal it can be.

We also need help with all the things which make our ‘events’ possible – refreshments, transport, make a model, share some photographs or write a short piece about any aspect of beekeeping [for the newsletter or website]. Some help in the branch apiary would be especially welcome. We need people with beekeeping experience to bring on the novices and we need people to help with the general maintenance and development of the apiary site – it could be grass cutting, hive cleaning, honey extraction or winter feeding. As a beekeeping association, promotion and education are cornerstones of our activity – but we do need your help to take this forward.

If you think you could help with any of this, or would like to know more, please contact:
 Ruth Mountford
 01626 834577
 E-mail: ruth.mountford @ tiscali.co.uk.
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