Autumn is approaching and the nights are drawing in: after a hot and busy summer it is time to start / continue with your final preparations for over-wintering your bees.
Queens will be in the process of laying the eggs that produce winter bees: all being well, these will live through until the spring and so the primary task is to ensure that the colony has sufficient stores to see it through: around 20kg of honey per colony together with some pollen for protein. Syrup can supplement forage until the temperature drops below about 10°C and then replaced by fondant – the bees will only take what they need.
Hives should be checked to ensure that they are dry, appropriately ventilated and bee tight and they should be protected from large animals that might dislodge the hive (badgers and livestock) as well as smaller predators such as green woodpeckers and mice. Entrances need to be reduced / mouse guards put in place to ensure they are less than 7mm deep to keep mice out. You might also want to consider strapping hives to their stands and insulating roofs. The final task is to plan your winter treatment for varroa control – this is critical to ensure that you can manage mite numbers as brood and bees increase again in the spring. (It goes without saying that there is also likely to be kit to clean and frames to make but that’s far less “romantic” 😉…….). (Adapted from The BBKA Guide to Beekeeping, 2018)
Good luck – I hope that all goes well.
Our September meeting combined the Kennet BKA Honey Show with the 2025 AGM and a great session in which we sampled a variety of honey from around the world.
Steve Double organised a very professional honey show that was judged by Claire O’Brien – there were many excellent submissions – here, Sophie and Sandra receive their prizes from Claire.
At the AGM, new members were elected to several offices:
Elaine Lewis announced her intention to resign from the secretarial post earlier in 2025 after efficiently and effectively fulfilling this role for (at least) seven years. Members’ appreciation and thanks for all of Elaine’s hard work were expressed in the presentation of vouchers to be spent at Thornes and are noted again here.
A sampling of honey from around the world (kindly facilitated by Sophie) was the final event of the evening! Sophie provided tasting notes so that participants could give an “educated” description of their perceptions……. what I learnt was just how different and subjective individual perceptions of taste are (and also how much work Honey Show judges must put in to develop their palates).
Wednesday 1st October 7.00pm for 7.30pm: Jeremy Percey will give a presentation entitled:
“It’s not just about the honeybee – a hopefully entertaining wander through the lives of the earth’s insect populations: the good, the bad and the terrifying”
Module I – Honey Bee Management – from Thu 2nd October for 7 weeks. This will be particularly useful for newish beekeepers who want a greater understanding of the theory and practicalities of beekeeping. Contact pdosborne2@googlemail.com for details & to register.
Module 2 – Honey Bee Products and Management – will run on Tuesday 30th September for 7 weeks. Those who would like to produce quality products for showing will benefit from the content of this course. Contact Rachael.Banyard@gmail.com for details & to register.
KBKA Open Apiary sessions: Saturdays 4th and 18th October tbc – arrive from 1pm for 1.30pm start. As noted above, beekeeping tasks continue even in the absence of colony inspections: for example, kit needs to be cleaned and mended, wax needs to be removed from old frames and sterilised and so on….. lots of tasks which new beekeepers can continue to learn and practice without a bee (or a wasp) in sight! Please continue to come along if you can but check and confirm on the Apiary WhatsApp first.
This all-day event takes place at the Corn Exchange in Devizes. As well as the activities described in the poster there will be free talks by the following well-known beekeepers and educators: Marin Anastasov, Stephen Fleming, Richard Rickett and Roger Patterson – all are entertaining speakers and well-worth coming to listen to.
In addition to entering your honey into the show itself (don’t wait, do it now), as you can also sell your honey on the day, see the link below. It is a busy event with members of the public coming from far and wide to spend their money! See the show website for more details: Wiltshire Beekeepers Association Bee & Honey Day 2025
After demonstrating the basics of mead making in August, Hive Mind have offered us a special price of £50 (using your own honey) for their mead making course in Caldicot IF 15 people sign up by the end of September (non-beekeeping friends and partners are also welcome). If you would like to make your own mead come along on 1st November between 12.00pm – 4.00pm; hopefully there will be time for bee chat afterwards.
Sign-up and payment details are here: https://www.kennet-beekeepers.co.uk/shop/product/mead-making-with-hive-mind/
Follow BBKA for all links
National Honey Show at Sandown Park, Esher, Surrey
October 23rd -25th: National Honey Show
There is no dedicated Bee Inspector for Wiltshire. Current contacts are:
To date, the BBKA report that there has been a total of 462 sightings of YLH in 2025 with 118 nests found, confirmed and destroyed.
For regular online updates join the BBKA YLH Channel on WhatsApp here
That’s all for now – if you’ve got thoughts about items you’d like to see noted or covered in this newsletter, please get in touch
B/w
Andrea
Andrea Waylen
Chair, Kennet Beekeepers Association
Email: andrea.waylen@gmail.com Tel: 07876 157826
