First Words … by the Editor

Welcome to the autumn edition of "Combings". As somebody before me said "the season of mist and mellow fruitfulness". Of all the four seasons, I think autumn comes out as my favourite. I do like to see the colours of the leaves changing from green to yellow, orange and red. Even an autumn as wet as this does not change the leaf colours. I have in my garden three Corylus avellana hazelnut trees, they are about eight years old and have for the first time produced a decent crop of nuts. I did have plans to keep them for Christmas, but they were so tasty that my wife and I ate them almost straight away. It is the same as apples picked off the tree, they taste so much sweeter than those bought from the green grocer.

I have regular contributors to "Combings" that supply me with the bulk of my material that got our magazine started. I want to broaden the content of the magazine to include subjects other than beekeeping. What I would like now are articles on other topics - either as a one off or on a regular basis, from a couple of paragraphs to a maximum of one side of an A4 sheet of paper.

Topics that I would like to include are:

	Gardening – What you can grow in you garden for bees to forage on, trees that are good sources of nectar, where avenues of limes for instance can be found, gardens in the locality that are worth a visit.
	Meteorology – A rundown on past weather, any unusual phenomena that occurred, particularly in the East, North and West Ridings, but further afield if it had an effect on us. Your own views on changing weather patterns.
	"In my Apiary" – A column where you tell us what you did with your bees. You do not have to explain your actions but it would help beginners to understand bees a little better.
	If there is a homemade winemaker among us, then one or two articles on mead making would be nice.
	Ornithology - To write about birds
	Lepidopterist - to write about butterflies and moths.
	I would like one of you to write about countryside matters in general. A farmer to tell us of his trials and tribulations and to give information about crops that are of value to our bees and sprays that he uses and how they are likely to affect the beekeeper and his views on the controversial GM crops.
	Is there is a humorist amongst you that can supply me with one line jokes on a beekeeping theme?

November, December, January and February when the weather is cold and wet and I am unable to get out into the garden, is the time of year when I set too and clean up all my beekeeping equipment. I have a shed with all my beekeeping equipment in it. I also have a portable gas fire that I light to keep me warm and I am quite snug. It is a good time because it is cold and bees wax and propolis are brittle and can be easily scraped of frames, brood boxes, and supers. After scraping propolis and wax off frames I take a long bladed knife and try to make the the face of the comb straight so that when two frames are together, their faces are parallel. This I believe helps my bees to draw them out parallel, thus making it easier for me to uncap later on. If one comb has a hollow in it, then bees are likely to build the opposite comb with a belly in it to fit that hollow. Both frames are now more difficult to uncap.

I always ask my customers to return empty honey jars for re-use, and winter is the time of year when I clean them up. I find that the labels I use peel off quite readily. Lids I throw away because they don't seal so well second time and use new ones. If you have to wash jars by hand then it is a chore. But with nearly a gross of jars waiting to be re-used I am going to be £15 or more in pocket - I consider it worth it.

On a recent visit my daughter brought me a bottle of "Fine Whisky & Fermented Comb Honey Liqueur" with the idiosyncratic name of "Stags Breath Liqueur". (An odd name but no worse than some of the names given to modern pubs.) It is produced in Scotland and the blurb on the box shows a bumble bee on a thistle, then goes onto say in a most lyrical manner "Here is the outcome of the mystical alchemy of distillation that transforms the grain of the bearded barley and cloud pure burn water into the golden liquid of the life of the Gaels … it has been married to another fermentation - no less magical - the crop of the honey bee working their quiet purpose across the slopes of the heather clad Highland hills". I found it a pleasant drink - sweet as all liqueurs are - with an after taste of heather honey. Ask your nearest and dearest for a bottle at Christmas and see what you think of it.

A cautionary tale …

The other day a friend of mine told me that while he was preparing a tub of honey for bottling, he found two dog hairs floating on the top of the honey. He was fortunate to find them. Had he not, and the consumer had and been of a vindictive nature and gone to Trading Standards, it would have caused my friend a lot of bother. If you have pets, keep them in another room while you are handling honey to reduce the risk of hairs getting into your honey. Having said that, fine hairs can float in the air for a while. Filtering liquid honey should remove them.

In the September edition of "Combings" I stated that Bob Hirst's tenure as Chairman comes to an end at the AGM and that a new Chairman would have to be elected. While being strictly true, I have been asked to point out that the Chairman is elected by the Committee from amongst it's members and not at the AGM. The President, Vice President, Honorary Secretary, Honorary Treasurer and members of the Committee are all elected at the AGM.

The thorny problem of what price to ask for a jar of honey raised it head again when a member rang me and asked for my opinion. He had been contacted by a man to whom he had not sold honey before, who could not obtain supplies locally and had 'phoned our York member. We discussed this for a few minutes. An hour later, I got another 'phone call to say that he had obtained £3.00 per pound for heather honey in labelled 1lb jars. I thought it was a good price and reflects what we can get for our honey. This honey was going to a health food shop and would have the proprietors mark up added to it.

Pam Todd wants helpers to show what’s what on frames during demonstrations at her beginners class. You will be there to assist the chief lecturer in these demonstrations. If you are interested, then contact Pam on 01904 707408. Your assistance will be much appreciated.

Thorne's have announced that they are ceasing publication of their quarterly publication "Beekeepers News" in July next year. They will have produced 100 editions by then. Having under taken to produce "Combings", I am able to under stand better the amount of work that Thorne's put into their magazine. It is a good magazine and will be a loss to the beekeeping fraternity".

Annual General Meeting

This was held at the Murton Museum of Farming on the evening of Wednesday 16 October. Treasurer Pam Hirst and Committee members Bill Bell and Terry Nundy stood down from their posts and were given a vote of thanks. William Johnson from Moor Monkton volunteered to be our new Treasurer. Pam Todd, Jenny Smith and Sue Hesp put their names forward and were duly elected to the committee. I wish them all well in their new positions. Colin Hattee was re elected unopposed as Secretary. The Association’s accounts where presented to the meeting and after a lengthy discussion it was decided to increase subscriptions from £15.00 to £20.00 for the coming year.

The Association has received a letter from the Management of Murton Museum asking us to pay £12.50 per hour (£25.00 per night ) for the use of a meeting room. We currently donate £100 per annum to museum funds. The Association is going to negotiate with the Museum. The meeting was asked for a volunteer to look after the bees at Murton and Tom Robinson has under taken the task.

Honey Show

The Honey Show was held in a room adjacent to the AGM which gave judge Ivor Flatman more room to work. Fourteen members brought seventy exhibits in fourteen classes. The most popular class was class 1 (Honey light clear) with nine entrants followed by class 5 (Honey, soft set) and class 13 (Honey fruit cake made to the standard recipe) with eight entries each. Class 3 (Honey dark clear) only attracted one entry. The show winner and winner of the Alf Race Memorial Cup was Colin Hattee with 20 points, followed closely in second place by Ron Waites with 18 points and third place went to John Bowes with nine points.

Healthcheck by David Aston

Remember to remove the strips from your colonies - Please remember to remove Bayvarol or Apistan strips from your colonies as this reduces the potential for the resistance of varroa to the acaricide in these products to build up. Good ventilation and freedom from damp - The greatest hazard to bees over wintering is damp. Over 20 litres of water in a vapour form is generated from the food consumption of a well fed colony. This vapour has to be removed from the hive otherwise condensation will encourage fungus and moulds to develop. In addition poorly ventilated hives will build up carbon dioxide in the hive and this in turn will promote the germination of some moulds and fungal spores. These will stress the bees.

The following points should be adhered:

	Ensure your hives are on stands off the ground so that there is a good ventilation below the floor to keep it dry;
	Ensure any high vegetation is removed from around the hive and keep the entrances free of fallen leaves;
	Ensure the hive is sloped slightly forwards to enable any water or condensation to drain out of the entrance;
	Ensure the holes in your crown board are not covered, this helps good ventilation;
	Ensure your roofs are sound and use a brick or stone to weigh them down to stop any strong winds dislodging them;
	Ensure you fit mouse guards or use entrance blocks with small entrances to prevent mice getting into the hives;
	Ensure you have adequate stores - your colonies should have adequate stores, but if you have colonies that are still light and need feed then it is possible to feed strong syrup to them in small quantities at a time. Alternatively, I always have a couple of un extracted supers that can be used.

Greater Wax Moth

Tom Robinson rang me on the 30 September and told me that he had found a hive, which on his last visit had been full of bees, was now full of greater wax moth. Tom brought a sample to the AGM and passed it round for all to see. The larvae are nearly an inch long - you cannot possibly mistake them for anything else, and as Tom said, they cause a lot of damage if not found early. Tom has a friend who lives at St Leonards on Sea where the greater wax moth is a problem and this friend reckons the only sure way of ridding badly infested frames of wax moth is to burn them. Tom's infestation was so bad that he did just that. Coincidently, the very next day, October's edition of Beecraft landed on the mat and the first article was about wax moth written by an American lady called Ann Harman. She maintains that adult moths mate outside the hive during the summer, with only the female returning to lay eggs, of which she will lay between 300 and 600 in small crevices. In the winter, any moths that emerge from cocoons will stay in the hive and reproduce there. Eggs hatch in three to five days in warm weather and up to 30 days in cooler conditions. It is at this stage that the larvae cause all the damage eating wax, honey, pollen and the cocoons left behind by emerging bees. They will also feed on floor debris. In moving about they leave the familiar tunnels that we have all seen.

One thing Ann Harman said that I did not know and I find surprising - wax moth larvae can and do, travel up to 150 feet to infest another hive! The cure for wax moth has been covered before in "Combings" - PDB crystals and freezing. Ann mentions Certan. Certan is a preparation of Bacillus thuringiensis that is sprayed onto the face of the comb and specifically attacks wax moth. Thorne's sell it for £11.09 for a 120 ml bottle, enough to treat 120 frames. Suitable I think for a small bee keeper, but very time consuming for larger bee keepers.

Finally, wax moth does not kill bees or infest strong colonies, only weak colonies that are dying out or stored frames. They will leave the hive clean and ready for re colonisation.  Wax moth is natures way of cleaning up empty or abandoned nests and making the fit for reuse.

Question: If AFB or EFB caused the colony to die out, will the spores of these ailments live on and re infect the incoming bees?

One of many visits to the Moors … by Bill Bell

One of the more vivid memories of over 40 years trips to the heather moors arises from one evening in early August 1989. If I am moving bees any distance, I always transport them in the dark since, if any escape, they will crawl rather than fly and so present less of a hazard. On this particular night I was taking 12 colonies on a journey of about 40 miles from pollinating a field of beans near York to the heather above Hutton-le-Hole in the North Yorkshire Moors.

As my wife is allergic to bee stings, I normally do this task on my own. This time however, she fancied a quick trip to the moors, as long as it wouldn't take too long. These particular colonies were already well prepared for travel as they were in the bean field on a modified car transporter trailer I used as a mobile apiary. I told my wife it would take a few minutes to close the entrances, then an hours drive to the moors, half an hour or so to set up, remove the wheels ( to deter theft ) and another 45 minutes home. If we set off about 9 pm we should be back just after 11pm - if all goes to plan.

Ten days or so prior to shifting the bees I called at the farm near the moor to check local conditions as I usually do when moving bees. The hay in the field was cut and just about ready for bailing. The farmer said the field would be clear in time and I was welcome to bring the bees as planned.

Two nights before the move, the heavens opened and we had torrential rain. The night arrived and we set off in good time just after 8.30 only to find on arrival that the trailer was standing in a sea of water about six inches deep. It was impossible to get near with the car. Also, it was a humid night and three of the hives had large clusters of bees on the outside. Two problems. I set of to the farm half a mile away to see if I could borrow a tractor. Thankfully there was one available and so all I had to do was get the bees inside their hives. This proved to be impossible so I decided they would have to travel on the outside. We left the bean field and arrived at the moors only slightly behind schedule at about 10.30. Access to the field was up a steep bank three feet high and through a gateway. I headed for the gate and was over half way through when the car began to skid on the rain soaked grass. We slid backwards and sideways, eventually coming to a halt with the trailer wheel resting against the gate post. Now I couldn't go forward for skidding nor backwards for the post.

We were well and truly stuck. The solution was to unload the hives and then pull away with the empty trailer up into the field. Remember those three hives? The bees had survived the journey and were scurrying around in the semi dark of a cloudy, intermittently moonlit summers night. This meant more time lost as I put on my gear so that I was protected and could see any individual crawlers showing up on the white of my suit. Bees off loaded, we came to moving the trailer. With the car wheels spinning, we managed to pull off and edged across the field. About half way to the site, the car stalled and there was an ominous stench of burning. My dread was that I'd burnt out the clutch. At midnight, in the middle of a wet sloping field, with angry bees, on the moors and a storm brewing. The weather wasn't too promising either.

When we'd first arrived at the field, my wife had taken one look at the conditions and suggested that we go to the farm to ask for a tractor. But no, I didn't want to be a nuisance. Now I had to swallow my pride and hope there was someone still up. A light was on in the farmhouse so I approached with trepidation and knocked, half hoping they had gone to bed. The door opened. The farmer stood there in his nightwear, quickly joined by his wife, both looking very anxious. Apparently their son had gone out for the evening in the car having passed his test just a couple of days earlier. They were relieved to see not the police but a sweaty, mud splattered bloke in a white all-in-one suit with a funny hat. They were positively entertained by my story and were only too willing to oblige. I didn't want to cause any more trouble than necessary and said there was no need for them to bother, just tell me where the tractor was and I'd be away without disturbing them any more. Stan the farmer, said the tractor had a flat battery and was parked at the top of the hill near the moor so that it could have a running start down the slope. Stan dressed and came to help. It was pitch dark by now, it being nearly 1 o'clock and the clouds having gathered. Stan couldn't see the boulders so asked me to run in front of the rolling tractor, dodging rocks, cow muck and gorse bushes whilst lighting the way with a torch!

As we were attaching a rope from the tractor to the car, Stan, in his broad Yorkshire accent, started telling me a story. "When we 'ad tawd Nuffield wit' four wheel drive front 'n' back, we used t' bale more 'ay 'round t'axle 'n in't bailer". What is he on about I thought. Then the penny dropped - hay. The hay was still in the field as it had been flattened by the storms and Stan had to wait for it to dry out. We jacked the car up to discover a tightly wound ball of hay the size of a football jamming the prop shaft. The hay was so tight it was nearly impossible to cut with a knife. I hacked away as best I could, but it was a tedious, time consuming job as I could only get a few strands at a time. The son had arrived home and joined us.

My wife, Stan and his son stood patiently exchanging beekeeping stories. Stan himself used to be a beekeeper but gave it up as it took too much time. After several hours I managed to free the prop shaft and move the car onto the road. We hooked the trailer to the tractor, retrieved the hives and moved them to the site without anyone being stung. I removed the wheels and very carefully released the by now very angry bees. It was 4.30 am. Stan insisted we join him and his family for a cup of tea. His wife was up and had kindly prepared breakfast. We stayed and ate a hearty meal before leaving them to start the farm day at 5.30. We were home by 6.30, just in time to milk the goats before going to work. So much for a quick ride out to the moors.

The Trials and Trepidations of a Learner Apiarist … by Ann Johnson

My greatest concern being a beginner is the fact that I have to carry out a MAJOR operation within the hive. I need to transfer all the frames in the present hive to a new hive in order to hand it back to its rightful owner. Perhaps experienced beekeepers forget what it's like to carry out such a mammoth task when you first begin. I have many unanswered questions - when will it be warm enough to do the job? - how can I prevent losing the queen if she is not clipped? - Will the bees like their new home or will they just BUZZ OFF? - Should I be doing anything with it in preparation for the transfer? All these points are relevant to a beginner and it is quite scary not knowing.

Now I have further excitement, before Christmas an artist colleague of mine mentioned that a local apiarist was wishing to reduce the number of hives he had as the work involved was getting rather too much for him. His 40 plus hive's , would he felt, become a burden if he didn't trim them down. I contacted the person in question who agree to let me buy one of his hives. I might mention that the person is over 80 years of age and has been keeping bees for many years, in his younger days he worked with Manley, "The Beekeeping Manley".

Before I could receive a hive, he first had to take the supers off that where full of honey then he would contact me again to say that the hive was ready for us to collect. On arriving at the out apiary he proceeded to block off the entrance and lift the hive on to a trolley, very ingeniously made for transporting bees. After going over very bumpy ground we eventually loaded the hive into his car and headed for our home. It was interesting that the person we obtained the hive from had a notice to go into the back of his car saying "Bees in transit". I thought this was very interesting as he travelled quite slowly so as not to disturb the bees.

When arriving at our house the hive was unloaded and placed in front of some trees by the side of a track, it was interesting to watch the two hives and it soon became obvious that the No. 2 hive was not as active as the No. 1 hive. But we had placed the second hive wrongly, it was mainly in the shade and no sun came over the hive until about 2pm. I needed to change the location. On discussing this with my new mentor, I was informed that I could only move the hive three feet or three miles, with the explanation that if they were moved further than three feet they would automatically return to the place where the hive had originally been, as they wouldn't recognise the new site.

If moved three miles this prevented them from crossing old foraging routes and there fore created no problem. My major problem was that I had to make a first move of 12 feet across a track to enable vehicles to pass if necessary. This we did, as we really didn't have any option but many of the foragers went back to the old site. The evenings were still very cold and even though I placed a cover for them, many died. This saddened me as I felt it was my own fault and I had lost many of the foragers who were bringing in early honey and pollen. I was also informed that in high summer the bees needed some shade to protect them from the hot sun and also that some shade prevented swarming. I'm not too sure about our sun and the heat emitted by it.

After collecting the new hive, I was informed that the bees needed feeding, help, horrors; this was new to me again. I wasn't sure about my first hive, should I feed that one also. After reading in "Combings" telling one to feed bees rather than find the whole lot dead, I was uncertain as to what to do, I had been informed that they would be OK but much of the food must have been consumed by now. Being new to this I couldn't remember how heavy the No. 1 hive had been last year, so I couldn't compare it with it's present weight. This of course is pure lack of experience. I was further advised to give them a feed to boost them. I contacted Thorne's who put two feeders in the post without delay. I then realised that to put the feeders on, I needed either an extra brood box or two supers, I only had one super that accompanied my first hive and therefore I rang my mentor to find out if he would loan me three supers so that I could put the feed on. Having received the feeders I made up the syrup. After checking in one of my books where it stated 8 lbs of sugar to 8 pints of water, this was made up. I placed these on the hives and within two days both were empty. I gave a second feed to my No 2 hive. By this time the bees were out foraging and quite happy.

I now need to look towards buying more equipment and will attend bee sales with this in mind. I do feel that although you don't need much equipment to start off, it seems that when you need some piece of equipment it is now and not tomorrow or the day after. I will be glad when we have got through our first year, at least then we will know what to expect. It is the unexpected that causes the major alarms. When you know about these things it's OK.

Our mentor tells us that if the bees are foraging on rape then the honey needs to be taken off immediately. What did he mean?. Is this within an hour, a day or what. Does it need to be capped or do you remove it each day as the bees fill up the cells. How is one supposed to know! Perhaps someone should invent a system where a jar is placed out side the hive, it would save the bees entering. They could just deposit the rape honey in the jar and all you have to do is replace the jar. I'll think about that!! But when someone new is told to remove honey immediately what does this mean? Wait for the next issue of "Combings" to find out how we coped.

Editors Note: Ann must have been doing the right thing. She entered six classes in our honey show and took away a second prize card. I think she is to be commended on her perseverance.

Honey Cookery … by Debbie Hattee

Honey – Nature’s Sweetener

Honey is nature's natural sweetener and so easy to use, it gives an instant boost to our energy levels. The following are some quick and simple ways to incorporate honey into our meals:

	Spread on hot toast
	Add to porridge to provide a wonderful warm breakfast now that the weather is getting colder
	Natural yoghurt is a healthy start to the day, but add a teaspoon of honey and perhaps some chopped fresh fruit and you have a real treat
	Make a "smoothie", using fruit, orange juice and honey and whiz up in a blender
	A honey sandwich is a great snack and very quick to make
	For a tried and tested drink to soothe a cold and sore throat, put a teaspoon full of honey into a mug, add a slice of lemon, perhaps a clove or two, and fill up with very hot water.
	For a teatime treat spread butter and honey onto toasted crumpets.
	On Shrove Tuesday when you make your pancakes use honey instead of lemon juice or sugar or syrup as a natural alternative.
	Using honey as a sweetener in tea or coffee instead of sugar is a good idea, but use less as honey tastes sweeter than sugar.
	As a topping for ice cream instead of a sauce it is a great alternative, and adding a banana makes a healthy pudding.
	Just to boost your energy levels a teaspoon of honey has a great effect.

The Healing Powers of Honey

Maybe Winnie the Pooh has the right idea after all! Most people think of honey as something that has to be spread on bread, but few realise the many uses it has. Its unique properties mean that it is found in foods, cosmetics and it even has a place in health care and healing.

One word of caution - honey should not be given to babies under one year of age.

Research being carried out around the world suggests that honey helps in the healing and sterilising of wounds and ulcers, in the growth of new skin, and has many antibacterial properties. The reason for this is the unique combination of properties honey has. Honey is high in sugar, low in protein and quite acidic. These factors combine to make honey free from contaminants itself and help it to kill the contaminants it comes into contact with. Honey has a hygroscopic nature. This means that when honey is exposed to air it draws moisture from the air. This is very useful as honey may help to:

	prevent scarring by keeping the skin moist;
	help the growth of new tissue;
	stop bandages from becoming stuck to an open wound if applied to the bandage before use.

Here is Ron Waites recipe for his Honeyed Fruit Cake that won first prize in class 14 of the Honey Show (Honey cake to your own recipe):

Ingredients:

225 gr (8 oz) plain wholemeal flour
1½ teaspoons bicarbonate of soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
225 gr (8 oz) currants, washed and dried
125 gr (4 oz) sultanas, washed and dried
2 large eggs, beaten
75 ml (3 fl oz) vegetable oil
200 ml (7 fl oz) milk
225 gr (8 oz) clear honey, slightly warmed

Method:

Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and cinnamon into a large mixing bowl, add any residue of bran left in the sieve. Stir in the currants and sultanas. In another bowl, whisk the eggs, oil and milk. Pour mixture into dry ingredients, add the honey and mix thoroughly. Pour mixture into the tin and level the surface. Bake for 1½ hours at 150° C or until the cake has risen and feels firm to touch. The use of oil instead of butter results in a moist texture.

What you all wanted to know …

It is said that a queen can lay over one and a half million eggs in her life time and the resulting larvae require 120 lbs of pollen to sustain them during one season. When they swarm, 70% of workers under ten days old will go with a prime swarm. This accounts for the speed with which new comb is drawn out as these young bees are wax producers.

Yorkshire BKA Foundation Offer

The Yorkshire BKA every year do an offer on foundation and Bayvarol where considerable savings are to be made. An order form is included with your copy of "Combings". Complete your order form as soon as possible and send it with your cheque to Pam Todd no later than the 1 January 2003. Pam will collect the York order and bring it to our February meeting.

For Sale

1lb squat honey jars are available from Colin Hattee, phone 01430 860972.  Colin will bring jars to meetings or you can pick them up at his house by prior arrangement. Price £25.00 per gross.

Past Events

Wednesday 18 September

A Committee meeting was held at Murton. Matters discussed included next years annual dinner, the trip to Stoneleigh, and the honey show. It was announced that Bill Bell and Terry Nundy are to stand down from the Committee at the AGM in October. It was also announced that Pam Hirst will also be standing down as treasurer. Pam has done the job for six years now and done it well. She will be sorely missed.

Wednesday 25 September

Twenty four members attended the first meeting of our winter programme that was held at Murton. Gerald Moxon from Hull was to have spoken "On Preparing Exhibits for Show". Unfortunately Mr Moxon was unable to be with us, and his place was taken by Dudley Gue of Beverley who spoke on the same topic. Mr Gue stressed all the way through his talk that attention to detail and cleanliness are paramount when exhibiting. Give your self plenty of time to prepare your exhibits.

Wednesday 16 October

YDBKA Annual General Meeting and Honey Show. A detailed report appears else where in the magazine. 28 members attended.

Wednesday 30 October

A Committee meeting was held at Murton. David Aston was elected Chairman to replace Bob Hirst whose term of Office has ended. Pam Todd has taken over as Education Officer to replace Bill Bell who has retired from the post and Alan Johnston has taken over as Spray Liason Officer from Terry Nundy who stood down at the AGM. It was announced to the Committee that negotiations had taken place with the Management of Murton Farming Museum regarding their proposal to charge us £25.00 per meeting for the use of a meeting room. The £25.00 has been dropped and we will increase our donation from £100.00 per annum to £150.00 per annum." We have been asked to man the beekeeping pavilion at weekends during the height of the summer. Volunteers are asked for, to do this. One day is all that is asked, but if you can spare more time all the better. You will be there to talk to the public about bees and beekeeping and as a bonus you can sell your honey. Contact Colin Hattee on 01430 860972 with the dates you can spare. We have also been asked by the management of Murton to wear some form of identity when we go to do anything at the bee pavilion. This is to help them with their security - a reasonable request I think.

Wednesday 20 November

Twenty eight members turned out to listen to Robin Dartington who travelled from Hitchin in Hertfordshire to talk to us about the Dartington Long Deep Hive that he has been developing over a number of years. Long hives are nothing new originating in the late 1880's. When you first see Robin's long deep hive, you think how big it is. Robin then demonstrated that his hive is no bigger a 1½ brood box National with three supers, all of which has to be stripped down to get to the brood box for examination and then rebuilt afterwards, all of which contributes to beekeepers having bad backs. The same manipulation in the Dartington Long Deep Hive only entails lifting off four five frame supers placed horizontally at waist height. Manipulations in the brood box are then carried out at the same height thus eliminating all the bending associated with the conventional arrangement. There is a void space at each end of the hive where bees start to cluster when they develop the swarming urge. When this happens you split the brood box with a dummy board - the queen being at one end and queen cells at the other. Because the brood nest is expanding horizontally and not vertically, a queen excluder is not necessary, except if like me, you use drone base foundation in your supers. Robin finished off his talk by telling us that his hive complete is £60 cheaper than a National. You can purchase Dartington Long Deep Hives from Stamfordham Ltd on 01661 886219 or more information from Robin himself on 01462 450707.

Thank you for reading this issue of "Combings". Let me wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Prosperous New Year.

Forthcoming Events

With the proximity of Christmas, there will be no meeting in December.

Wednesday 15 January

Tony Eayrs "Talking of Mead". There were only six bottles of mead entered in our last honey show. With Mr Eayrs help you too will be able to make exhibition standard mead.

Saturday 18 January

Stoneleigh, British BKA Annual Delegates Meeting.

Friday 7 February

"The Gateway to York Hotel" on the Hull Road at Kexby will be the venue for the YDBKA Annual Dinner. You will have already received a copy of the menu and reservation form. Please send in your completed reservation form as soon as possible. This is an increasingly popular event and the new venue should ensure more room for your spouse and friends. The event is not just for YDBKA members.

Wednesday 19 February

Philip Askham on "Marketing Honey" Mr Askham sells large quantities of honey in jars under his own label. His advice will help you do the same.

Tuesday 11 March

Mike Booth of Hull will talk about "The Work of the Bee Inspector". A bee inspector of many years standing. He knows bees inside out and is now familiar with foot and mouth disease!

Wednesday 16 April

Michael Badger, ex President of the British BKA and ex Chairman of Yorkshire BKA will be speaking to us on "Beekeeping & Heather Honey Production".

Saturday 26 April

Spring Lecture Convention & Exhibition, Stoneleigh. It is anticipated that we will run a coach trip as usual. More details later. More information direct from the Honorary Director, Mary Dartnell on 02380 775445.

Tuesday 6 May

The first of eight classes for beginners to be held every Tuesday at the bee pavilion. The cost will be £25.00 per person. Pam Todd is coordinating the class, contact her on 01904 707408 for more information. Spread the word around.

Saturday 24 August to Friday 29 August

38th Apimondia International Congress, Ljubljana, Slovenia. Bob Hirst 01904 706111 has details of a coach being organised by BIBBA going from the UK to Ljubljana. There is a web site at www.apimondia2003.com for more information.