Course for 2021
Aims of Course
This course is suitable for those who wish to:-
- Discover more about beekeeping and/or
- Decide whether beekeeping is a suitable hobby and/or
- Start beekeeping.
Structure
The 16 hour course over 13 meetings is divided into:-
- Theory – 10 Hours via Zoom (due to likely Covid restrictions in 2021).
These sessions normally take place at Bishops Cannings Village Hall, 2.5 miles from Devizes, Wiltshire, but we have adjusted the format this year because of Covid-19. - Practical – 6 Hours at one of the Club Apiaries, close to Bishops Cannings or at a Member’s apiary. Again, we will adapt the sessions to incorporate the most up to date Covid-19 rules with only 2/3 students per teacher/hive
Theory Sessions
Theory sessions will be held on Thursdays, between 7:30pm – 8:30pm, each week (excluding weeks with bank holidays)
Meetings: See Education main page for course dates
The theory will cover:-
- Life cycle of the honey bee; nature of the colony and the individual bee; forage
- Equipment : personal, hives and frames
- Beekeeping Year: inspecting the bees throughout the seasons
- Keeping the bees healthy: recognizing a healthy colony; managing pests and diseases.
- Swarm management
- Honey extraction; other products of the hive
- Getting started: setting up an apiary; health and safety issues; purchasing bees and equipment
Practical Sessions
These sessions will be held mostly Saturdays for 2 hours between 12 noon – 2 pm or 2 pm – 4 pm.
Exact times and dates are weather dependent.
Meetings: See Education main page for course dates
After kitting out – bee suits available to borrow – and practising how to light smokers, teams of 1 teacher and 2/3 students will work on a hive.
Teachers will demonstrate what to look for and how to handle bees during an inspection but mostly these sessions are an opportunity for students to gain hands on experience.
Course Extension – the Apiary is open for various weekend sessions throughout the season for course members to gain further experience handling bees. These may be limited in 2021 due to Covid government regulations.
Further Learning
Due to Covid-19 we are not yet sure how the apiaries will work for 2021 but we will try to make them available for various weekend sessions throughout the season for course members to gain further experience handling bees. New beekeepers will be especially welcomed at these sessions.
Teachers
Most of the teaching team have considerable experience and expertise in both beekeeping and teaching beekeeping and are well recognized at County level and above. The team includes the Wiltshire President, a bee farmer and seasonal bee inspector.
Cost of Course:
- £36 for members. The total cost for the course and full membership is £84. Membership includes affiliation of both County and National organisations, in addition to helpful emails from the National Bee Unit and the BBKA’s monthly magazine. It also includes insurance (please see the membership page of our website for full details).
- £52 for non members without bees, this includes associate membership (£16) which gives access to all of Kennet facilities, especially apiaries and library. Non members with bees will need to become full members.
Application
Early application is advised as the course. It also enables applicants to gain some of the membership benefits before the Course starts. Priority will be given to local members who make early application.
Please contact Emma Morley, Education Co-ordinator, for the full details and an application form.
Click this link or see Contacts page for contact details.
Completion of the Form with payment will confirm your place on the Course.