Well, this year is already shaping up to be very atypical!! I’ve heard many people swearing that their hives had brood all winter, and I’m positive I had some right through to the January cold snap. And now I’ve heard of one member’s hive already swarming! So batten down the hatches, the season is truly upon us! And you’re going to have to balance your need to dive into your hives to see what’s happening against the risk of opening the hive in the lower temperatures we’re still seeing…
If you have any questions about preventing swarming, feel free to pose them at this week’s meeting. Here is a link to the well-reputed University of Guelph beekeeping videos on swarm control and splitting hives: https://hbrc.ca/colony-management/ [1]
This coming Thursday is the second Thursday of the month, so it is our next meeting:
- When: Thursday, April 11th
- Where: Brentwood Seniors Citizen Association, 1229 Clarke Rd, Brentwood Bay, BC V8M 1E2 [2]
- Agenda
- 6:30-7:00: Beginners’ Corner, Main Room, Don Lambert, Installing nucs, some swarm info if time
- 6:30-7:00: Intermediates’ Corner, Downstairs, Laure Newnham
- 7:00-7:40: Ms Tara Galpin, South Island Bee Inspector speaking via Zoom on AFB
- 7:40-7:50: Larry Lindahl – What to do this Month
- 7:50-8:00: Heinz Kaemmerer speaking on new mite control device
- 8:00-8:15: Club Business
- Financial Reports tabled from March meeting
- Swarm Group overview – Laure Newnham
- 8:15-8:45: Social Time with Colleagues and Cookies
A reminder – if you haven’t already, you will soon be hearing from Shirley Richardson, who is doing our Hive Survival Survey for this year – so if her name appears on your call display, do answer! She is not a telemarketer! It would be nice to get as accurate a picture as possible, especially after last year’s dismal 30% survival rate!…
Further to the presentation of AFB-vaccinated queens, I have learned that there is a veterinarian located in Chilliwack who provides access to the vaccine itself:
Dr Philip Chris, DVM
Greenbelt Veterinary Services, Chilliwack
phil@greenbeltvet.com [3]