PRESENT: Frank Lindsay (Pres.), John Burnet (Sec.), and 23 members as listed in the attendance book.

APOLOGIES: Mary Ann Lindsay, Karl Segessenmann, Bob Porter, Fred Bayler, John Robson, Andrew Yung, Ken Breden, Peter Ratcliffe.

NEW MEMBERS & VISITORS: Kris & Jenny van der Merwe (Horokiwi)

MINUTES OF PREVIOUS AGM: Minutes of meeting held 14 July 2003 were outlined to members and subsequently confirmed (Prop: Andrew Beach, Sec: Amor Walter - Carried)

PRESIDENT’S REPORT: President advised he had been unable to complete his report prior to the meeting so would circulate this with next month’s newsletter

TREASURER’S REPORT: In Treasurer’s absence Secretary distributed annual financial reports, balance sheet and copies of the Asset Register. While all revenue and expenditure items balanced with bank statements, Secretary was currently unable to reconcile the Members Funds section of the Balance Sheet with the annual surplus/deficit. This was probably due to an error following adoption of the new depreciation policy. Secretary intended to identify and rectify this discrepancy before next meeting and advise outcome in due course. (Accounts accepted – Prop: Vicky Alexander, Sec: Andrew Beach)

Following a member’s question, Secretary advised he was unable to specify current value of B/L fund (this should have been identified in the annual accounts) but would determine this and advise this figure at next meeting.

President: Andrew Beach

(Prop: Vicky Alexander, Sec: John Burnet - Carried)

Vice President: James Scott

(Prop: Andrew Beach, Sec: Wrae Duncan - Carried)

Frank Lindsay (Automatic appointment)

Secretary: Richard Wickens (Prop: Amor Walter, Sec: Vicky Alexander – Carried)

Treasurer: John Burnet

(Prop: James Scott, Sec: Deborah Paterson – Carried)

Vaughan Kearns "

Wrae Duncan "

Claire Brown "

Auditor: No appointment necessary. Independent review of accounts only required

Librarians: Fritz Fuchs and Max Aston Re-elected unopposed

Supper Organiser: John Burnet (Purchaser) & volunteer at each meeting

Unchanged from last year - $20 (or $15 if newsletter received by email). $5 of each subscription was to continue to be apportioned within the Club’s accounts for B/L refund/disease purposes (Prop: James Scott, Sec: Amor Walter - Carried)

No claims received this year – however, President reminded members that B/L fund is also used for all disease identification, prevention and education expenditure e.g. Diseaseathons. It was intended fund would also cover expenses incurred in hosting Dr Pedro Rodriguez (US varroa treatment expert) on 3 July.

Bank Authority requires Treasurer and one other signatory to sign all cheques. Current retiring signatories - Mary Ann Lindsay & Richard Hatfield to be replaced with Richard Wickens (new Sec) and James Scott (new Vice Pres). New Treasurer will arrange appropriate authority and Change of Address forms.

No change to existing Internet Service Provider – current subscription $38 per annum. James Scott advised he was currently rebuilding and updating club’s website.

Constitution: James Scott (one of the authors of the proposed new constitution) advised that he had received some useful feedback from several members following publication of the proposed new constitution in the June newsletter. A minimum of 14 days notice to all club members was legally required if the constitution was to be changed and he therefore planned to include this notice in the August newsletter with a vote on the new constitution to be taken at a Special AGM which would be incorporated with the regular monthly meeting in Sept.

Appreciation: It was proposed a vote of thanks be extended to the outgoing President (Frank Lindsay) and also to the outgoing Treasurer (MaryAnn Lindsay) who had both given so much time and effort to the Club over many years. It was agreed Secretary will arrange for a bouquet of flowers to be sent to MaryAnn (Prop: James Scott, Sec: Vicky Alexander – Carried unanimously)

AGM closed at 8:25pm and was followed by the July General Meeting.

MINUTES: Minutes of meeting held 14 June as detailed in the July newsletter were confirmed.

• Varroa Update: Recent TV news item discussed which advised varroa had been discovered in the Oxford and Murchison areas. Frank advised this was very likely to be "contamination from the laboratory’ not an outbreak of varroa in these areas however full outbreak precautions & control measures had been taken by AgriQuality i.e. suspected hives were being minutely inspected before destruction.
• FGMO (Food Grade Mineral Oil) had been registered as an approved control method on 12 June however Minister’s signature was required for it to become official. Thymol registration was still about two weeks away.
• Dr Pedro Rodriguez’ FGMO treatment procedure was discussed. A cheap respirator (purchased from a local safety equipment shop) was shown. Cotton cord – purchase of a reel containing approx 1 km of 8-9mm cord was suggested as an economical option. FGMO in 20 litre containers was available at selected Mobil service stations. It may be appropriate for the Club to arrange bulk purchase of both cord and FGMO. Secretary to enquire about bulk purchase of Burgess foggers (normally about US$70 plus freight)
• Wairarapa Hive Movement Line is unlikely to be maintained much longer as varroa was now rife in Hawkes Bay and certain areas in the Wairarapa.

Varroa Control Equipment: Andrew Beach demonstrated his oxalic acid spray pipe and its purpose-built hole drilled in the side of the hive lid.

Ivan showed and described to how he administered formic acid to his hives using a sponge stapled to an upside-down wooden deep feeder board.

Extractor for sale: Secretary had received a letter from a Turangi ex-member who had given up beekeeping and was selling his near-new & seldom-used Lega 4 frame extractor. While no asking price had been mentioned, Secretary advised the current new price for this model was $673 therefore an offer of approx $500 would probably be realistic. (Note: vendor has subsequently advised he would consider offers around $350)

PRESENTATION: Frank Lindsay showed members via TV monitor, a number of digital photos he had taken showing Arataki Apiaries’ operation in Havelock North which NZ Beekeeping conference attendees had visited in late June.

Meeting closed at 9:15 pm. and members then enjoyed the usual supper.

‘Parsons Rock, Otemata, 2002’

Painting by Michael Hight, beehive painter

Varroa jacobsoni is an external (ecto) parasitic mite of pinhead size, adapted over millions of years in Java to live on Apis cerana bees, which are slightly smaller cousins of our Apis mellifera bees. About 60 years ago, V. jacobsoni transferred successfully to colonies of A. mellifera taken to the Far East to ‘improve’ beekeeping there. For various reasons what was just a nuisance to A cerana has proved a killer to A. mellifera. Mankind, by moving colonies or queens, has spread this pest worldwide so that only Australia and southern Africa are currently believed to be free.

An original infestation of only 10 to 50 mites is almost impossible to detect, and only in the third year are there obvious signs of trouble; in the fourth year the untreated colony dies. A further complication is that a virus or bacterium can enter bees via wounds infected by Varroa, and a secondary infections can sometimes be more lethal than the mite itself.

Although no country infested has yet been able to eliminate Varroa, experience shows that it is possible to carry on beekeeping and still harvest a crop of honey, using management systems and chemical controls at the right time.

Only mated female mites are found on adult bees. They are crab-shaped, 1.5 to 1.6mm wide by 1.1 to 1.2mm long, flat in profile, hairy and vary in colour from red-brown to fawn or grey. The hard outer shell forms a protective shield over the whole body, which has no division into head, thorax and abdomen. The eight legs are often not visible at all, and only the mouth parts protrude slightly; these have barbed lances which operate to pierce and rasp a wound, sucking the body fluid (haemolymph) of larvae, pupae and adult bees.

During the main breeding season 85% of the Varroa population live inside brood cells, causing multiple injuries to larvae and pupae. If only one female Varroa has been present in its brood cell, an emerged bee has a reduced life of only 8-10 days. With an infestation of more than one mite, its weight may be reduced by up to 25% and it will be seriously deformed with a very short life.

Queen larvae are only infected when the hive is really crowded with mites, or when no other brood is available, eg in queen rearing stocks.

The experience of many beekeepers in the UK over the past few years has been that for the first 2-3 years after varroa arrived, the level of infestation built up slowly, and varroa was easy to control with a single Autumn treatment, often applied quite late in the season.

However, after a few seasons, varroa suddenly became much harder to control and mite levels began to increase unexpectedly quickly, particularly where untreated colonies in the locality were causing serious mite invasion problems.

Beekeepers then found that it was vital to treat quickly. Many who treated too late, or who treated with ‘alternative’ treatments which were not sufficiently effective lost their bees – up to 30-50% of colonies in some areas.

After the phase of widespread losses, most beekeepers have found that varroa has become somewhat easier to control overall – probably as a result of reduced mite re-invasion following the loss of unmanaged and feral colonies.

However, the infestation has remained unpredictable and mite levels still often increase unexpectedly quickly, requiring a swift and effective response.

A new generation of successful beekeepers are now appearing, for whom the techniques of varroa monitoring and control are simply part of their routine bee husbandry.

Use some method of monitoring varroa – whether simple or complex. You need to know if the mite population is building up faster than you thought, or if your treatments are not proving effective. Don’t just treat and leave it to chance.

Don’t always assume that a single control method will always be sufficient. Aim to practice integrated-control of varroa using a combination of methods. This will give the most effective control.

Talk to other local beekeepers about how you are controlling varroa. Aim to overlap treatment periods with them, to help reduce re-infestation problems.

Never leave infested colonies unmanaged, as they will be eventually killed by varroa, and in the meanwhile they will re-infest the colonies of other local beekeepers who are trying to control the infestation. If you can’t manage your bees you should consider selling or giving them to others who can.

Remember that what worked last year may not necessarily work this year. Be prepared to be flexible and adaptable, and to change your control programme as circumstances dictate.

The suggestion the pastoral sector does not rely heavily on bees for pollination of pasture legumes and clover has been disputed by Federated Farmers Bee Industry Group national executive member, Lin McKenzie.

In presenting his submission at a board of enquiry into th4e Varroa National Pest Management Strategy (PMS), Mr McKenzie said the greater pastoral sector would be disadvantaged without bees and associated pollination services.

(However) Members of a dairy farming group opposing the PMS said they were not now as reliant on clovers. A 5% reduction in clover nitrogen fixation from the impact of varroa could easily be recovered by the dairy industry’s present farming systems, they said. Mr McKenzie acknowledged this, but questioned the sustainability of "other systems". He and beekeeper Norman Harris presented their submission at a meeting in Dunedin on 28 May on behalf of the Nth Otago branch of BIG. They represented 25 beekeepers operation 8000 hives. 39 submitters supported the PMS and 13 were opposed. Four did not clearly state their preference. In general, the strategy aims to keep the South Island free of varroa for as long as possible by reviewing and tightening border control measures at Cook Strait.

The annual cost of the PMS by the Varroa Planning Group has been estimated at $750,000. It is proposed beekeepers will be levied $2 a hive, which submitters said was "cheap insurance" in comparison to treatment costs for varroa once it was established. The balance of funds will come from regional councils and other stakeholders. It was suggested the split of costs between regional councils was allocated on the basis of land value, which is consistent with their policy of levying rates.

The proposal says most of the costs of varroa will impact on the horticultural, pastoral and arable sectors (95%). However, the strategys first-year funding cost allocates 27.4% of the cost to beekeepers, which some believe is inequitable.

Beekeepers opposing the PMS said the benefits of varroa reaching the South Island included new practices being developed, increased returns from all bee products, increased pollination fees because of fewer hives and higher honey prices.

However, Mr McKenzie did not believe there would be any benefits derived from varroa and did not accept honey prices would rise. He questioned where this has been the North Island experience:

"Our honey prices are governed by world prices. The absence of varroa is more likely to have a strong positive effect on the demand for honey."

Ex-member Trevor Reynolds has a Lega stainess-steel, 4 frame extractor (non-reversible) for sale and he will consider
offers around $350. (New price at Eckroyds is currently $673). It was
purchased new in 1998 and with only four hives for 5 years was seldom used.

His phone number is
(07) 386 0909 (Turangi) and his email address

Michael Hight is a 40+ year old painter who has been inspired by an array of images from rural New Zealand including among others: features of the landscape, rural architecture and construction debris.  While abstracting these images he has at the same time, within his own thoughts, associated them with fragments of art history.  A series of works (Four Strong Winds, 1996) based on the four rivers Whanganui, Mokau, Waipa, and Waikato (the first highways in colonial New Zealand) were linked with Bernini's Four Rivers Fountain in Rome.  Over the past five years he has nurtured an abiding interest in beehives.  His enthusiasm for these objects from everyday rural life extends not only to their formal qualities in a modernist abstract sense, but also conceptually as 'ready-made sculptural installations' embodying a wider array of concerns.  Hight's ongoing interest in beehives has absorbed his creative drive to the point where he has referred to himself as a "phantom beekeeper".

'Seven Rivers' (1995) heralded the beginning of Hight's interest in bee hives and consisted of abstract representations of hives using materials as diverse as wax strips, resin, raw canvas and oil paints. Since the late 1990s, he has also painted several predominantly realist series of hives set in dramatic New Zealand landscapes. His last Auckland exhibition, Omarama/Place of Light, in 2002, sold out prior to the opening.

The beetles mimic young bees, which stimulates the bees to feed them. The adult beetles are capable of flying more than 10km which means they are easily spread in this manner or by the transportation of bees, beekeeping equipment or soil. They are also spared through infected fruit and bumble bees, which are also hosts.

However, on a positive note – Dr Pedro Rodriguez, during his recent New Zealand speaking tour, advised that use of the ‘Big Smoker’ (fogger) in the varroa fight will also eliminate the hive beetle – an unexpected but very welcome bonus discovery made during Dr Rodriguez’s anti-varroa experiments.