Dear Member,

This is the month that keeps beekeepers on their toes. Colonies should be building up steadily - in fact some members are reporting that with the mild winter their colonies are already full of new bees as the queen has been laying throughout the winter. Perhaps our bees are taking on the characteristics of Italian bees - if only we get the same summer weather to support them!

Some Rugby members attended the Warwickshire Beekeeping Association AGM at Stoneleigh last month where the new constitution was unanimously approved. The Birmingham branch have asked for a review of one aspect of the constitution which relates to branch funds, but this will be discussed at the executive meetings.

It was good to see how many certificates were handed out at the AGM to beekeepers across the county who had undertaken the BBKA modular exams - at least five people, including our own Sam Peckett, received the Advanced Theory Certificate which means they have successfully completed 7 modular exams - quite an achievement.

Do have a look on the BBKA website to see what learning opportunities are available to beekeepers - not all are exam based, the General Husbandry route is open to beekeepers with 5 years experience and is a practical assessment of your beekeeping practice, while you can also do a correspondence course alongside the modular exams or just for interest, not taking the exam.

Several of our newer beekeepers intend this year to do the Basic Assessment this year which is a good way of confirming that you are on the right track with your beekeeping practice and is the stepping stone should you want to take any of the exams or further assessments.

Peter Spencer, who gave an excellent and thought provoking talk on doing swarm control without finding the queen at our last meeting, was appointed Warwickshire Beekeepers new President and he handed out our certificates at the AGM.

The RBKA committee has been running an Introduction to Beekeeping course attended by 12 enthusiastic prospective beekeepers. Hopefully some of these will join the association and go on to keep bees. They will attend a session at the branch apiary and we also hope this year to schedule regular Apiary meetings once a month on the first Saturday of the month which will replace the monthly evening meetings held over the winter.

Please check the Events dates and come along to see how other colonies differ from yours, chat to other beekeepers and maybe pick up some practical tips for managing your beekeeping. All welcome, but clean bee suits and gloves please. We are also planning some social events for everyone to attend.

Regards,

Margaret Holdsworth