Peter Russell-Clarke’s Honey Cookbook

Richard will assist with your requirements for woodwork. He will also purchase your old wax as described above. Phone 528 7780.

While removing honey I noticed most hives have a large amount of brood. Does this indicate another flow, a mild winter/ early spring? I wish I knew.

Unfortunately in some hives, this brood rearing has chewed through the stores which would have normally supported them through to next spring. Those like me, who have taken honey off early may have to feed some (or sugar) back so hives have a full super of honey to winter on.

I am now extracting, and it’s only when you remove the surplus that you find out how hives have done. As predicted, production is very mixed; some apiaries produced well, while other apiaries have only managed a super.

This is the difference between commercial and hobby beekeeping. One or two hives in an area can produced up to 50 kilograms or more each, whereas ten to twenty hives produced substantially less due to competition. Still some years when everything goes well, (ie the wind doesn't blow), these hives will also produce 50 kg or more.

It pays to analyze how this year went. Record how you did and note down how you could improve things for the next El Nino year.

Now is the time to prepare your hives for next season. Get all the work done before the bees close down for the winter. Requeen, replace old or rotten woodware, and work dark, frames with drone comb or broken frames to the outside of the supers, or if full of honey - replace them. While you are looking through the hives, keep a watchful eye out for BL. It pays to inspect all frames at least twice a year, (spring and autumn when removing your crop). Although the incidence is very low in Wellington area, it is still possible for your bees to get this disease.

Close down entrances so mice can't get in and this will also keep wasps and robbing bees out. Clear away scrubs that will block winter sun from the hives. Keep the grass down and make sure the hive footings are sound. One or two of my hives toppled over this year when they became top heavy, mostly due to rotten supports.

Wax moth are prevalent now and can easily get into exposed frames, so keep them covered or place a sheet of newspaper between each when stacking them for storage. Fumigate the supers by placing a little PDB in each to kill any moths. Unfortunately this doesn't kill eggs so you will have to repeat this procedure in a month or so to make sure they are protected.

New Zealand beekeeping has an enviable reputation for effective surveying and control of endemic and exotic bee pests and diseases.

Honey Bee Health Status: Honey bee diseases present in New Zealand (NZ) producing identifiable symptoms are AFB, nosema, chalkbrood, sacbrood, chronic bee paralysis, and black queen cell. Most of the other known bee viruses have been found in NZ, including acute bee paralysis virus, cloudy wing virus, bee virus X, bee virus Y, filamentous virus and Kashmir bee virus. These viruses have only been detected by injecting dead bee extracts into healthy pupae, and exist in honey bees in NZ as inapparent infections. Amoeba disease is present in NZ, although serious effects of amoeba infestation are not known. Several species of harmless external mites have been found. These are Melittiphis alvearius, Acarapis externus, A. dorsalis and Neocypholaelaps zealandicus.

Exotic Bee Disease Surveillance: NZ is fortunate to be free of a number of economically significant honey bee diseases found elsewhere in the world. The NZ government believes maintenance of such a disease status is important, and therefore funds an exotic bee disease surveillance programme. Government personnel inspected 491 production apiaries throughout the country as part of this programme in 1995-96. The apiaries are chosen for their proximity to risk areas, including ports, rubbish dumps, and tourist areas. All hives in each apiary are inspected for visual symptoms of European foulbrood, with any suspect larvae analyzed (anaerobic culture) at a government bee disease diagnostic laboratory. At least 100 drone pupae in each hive are also visually inspected for the presence of Varroa and Tropilaelaps mites. A sample of at least 400 adult bees is then taken from each hive and analyzed at the government lab for the presence of Varroa mite and Tropilaelaps mite (alcohol wash), and Acarine mite (dissection).

In addition to these targeted surveillance inspections, every apiary in NZ which supplies either queen bees or package bees is also sampled for exotic bee diseases. The samples (400+ bees) are processed by the government bee disease diagnostic lab. In the 1995-96 production year, a total of 509 production apiaries were sampled for exotic bee diseases.

All suspicious bee disease symptoms reported by beekeepers are also investigated by government apiculture personnel, with samples analyzed by the bee disease diagnostic lab. In the 1995-96 production year, 48 such samples were analyzed, all but one for European foulbrood. All results were negative.

An on-going education programme is carried out with beekeepers to explain the threats to the NZ beekeeping industry posed by exotic bee diseases. In 1995, a four page colour pamphlet identifying exotic diseases was sent to every registered beekeeper in NZ.

The foregoing material was written by Cliff Van Eaton, Apicultural Advisory Officer with MAF Qual, to describe the systems that underpin our claims regarding freedom from most of the economically significant bee pests and diseases. Figures were updated in October 1996 to provide the figures for 1995-96.

Don’t forget that the Club will be holding its annual Honey competition at the March Meeting. The aim of this competition is to get members to prepare and present a sample of their honey. It is NOT a competition about honey taste.

Note that the mead competition has been deferred until a meeting later in the year when members have had more time to make a winning brew.

The secret in this competition is to take great care in filtering your honey to remove impurities, to get rid of air bubbles. You should also start with only the best honey which has a low moisture content (so it will keep).

There are three classes in the competition as per last year:

1. Liquid Honey. This is the standard honey produced from extraction, and the emphasis is on quality of presentation. No air bubbles or particles, no granulation, and a suitable low water content.
2. Creamed Honey. The emphasis is once again on presentation, with the aim being to have a smooth and consistent texture to the honey.
3. Comb Honey. Entries to be a frame of honey which would be suitable for cutting and packing as comb honey. Emphasis is on the presentation of the frame. Please bring a complete frame.

The club encourages members to take the time to prepare some of their honey to the best possible standard and to enter it into the competition. There is a cup awarded to the best entry in the Liquid Honey class (along with a miniature for the winner to keep).

Last year, the club introduced new classes in response to demand from members, so please support the other categories as well. If you are producing creamed honey, or have good comb then bring it along to find out how it compares with similar products from other members.

Judges comments from previous years have indicated a high standard of entries, but there have been some recurring problems with impurities (eg bees legs), air bubbles, and excessive moisture content. Pay particular attention to these things in order to come up with the winning entry.

Your honey sample (limit of one per member in each of classes 1 & 2) is to be presented in a clear glass 200g jar (coffee jar size) with a well fitting lid. No labels or markings on lid/jar please.

For a full range of Ecroyds Beekeeping Supplies

Phone 0800-5BEEHIVE (0800-523344)
or 06-324 8224

We will trade Honey, Beeswax or Pollen for Gear

Contact Marjorie or Kevin Kibby
for further details or to place an order

An opportunity for all beekeepers to learn about bees and hive management.

Admission $5, family $10. Morning and afternoon tea provided. Hands-on for new beekeepers; Queen rearing and re-queening, how to remove honey (various methods), and extraction, club competition, sausage sizzle etc.
Finish about 3pm. See you there.

Members wishing to use one of the Club’s extractors will receive an account when collecting the extractor from 26 Cunliffe Street, Johnsonville. This fee should be paid at the time of collection. Extractor is to be returned to the Treasurer at above address. Note: that there is a one week limit per hiring.

Our secretary, John Burnet, is currently planning some interesting sessions for this year. Please mark these dates in your diary and come along.

If there are any topics of particular interest which you would like discussed at future meetings, or if you know of an interesting speaker who is able to talk about a topic of relevance to beekeepers, then please advise John Burnet.