Topics: Quarantine & Inspection
Presented by: Ross Rickard
Tonight we will be visited by Ross Rickard from The Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS). They were the Australian government agency responsible for enforcing Australian quarantine laws, as part of the Department of Agriculture. Australian wide expert on Importation of varroa jacobsoni on Asian bees in Townsville.
Agenda: Artificial Swarm
If conditions are favourable, we will create an artificial swarm. If you haven’t seen this before you will learn how the bees are drawn to move from their colony to follow the queen.
Over the last few months, we have been developing a new home for us on the internet. It includes all the information from our traditional website plus a host of new information and an online beekeepers shop where you can purchase equipment, book courses, download information on collecting swarms and much much more. The traditional website will coexist for a few more weeks yet but eventually we will merge the two sites together to work as one. Please visit our new website at the link below and go to the contact page to provide any feedback or suggestions you may have.
Visit our New Website HereLast month at our night meeting, Dr Ros Cloag presented some very interesting facts on the Asian honey bee and it’s arrival in far north Queensland. Our field day focussed on hive management for spring. Thanks to Dr Cloag and all who participated.
We are now over the halfway mark for 2016 so we have half price memberships are available. Members are invited to attend our monthly meetings and make yourselves known to your fellow beekeepers and the committee. You can purchase a single half price membership here.
The beekeepers shop is now again open each Thursday morning and at our monthly Thursday night meetings and Sunday field days approx. 30 minutes before the meetings commence. While Ivan is away on his annual pilgrimage to the old country, Penny will be taking charge in the shop so if you need to contact the shop about supplies please contact Penny on 0438 207 292
We are currently collecting names of members interested in travelling to the Tocal Annual Field Day. The field day is a free event so if you wish to make your own way there is no cost. Order your place on a specially chartered today!
We now have 4 good honey extraction kits available for members. These kits include, a 3 frame honey extractor, heated knife, uncapping fork plus wax cap bag to spin excess honey from your wax. There is a bond plus a nominal fee of $20 to cover repairs and maintenance of the equipment. For more information please see our website or see someone the bee keepers shop.
Visit our Store Here
The Illawarra Beekeepers Assoc. Inc. is committed to your safety when visiting our apiary. Therefore you must agree to our terms and conditions when visiting us. These terms are now published on our website and can be viewed here. You are advised to read and understand them completely before your next visit to our apiary and museum. If you have any questions relating to this, please contact us.
As you know, varroa is probably the biggest threat to the bees world wide so it’s important to be aware of threats and learn how to detect them. The Australian Honey Bee Industry Council (AHBIC) issue regular updates on this and many other important news. To find out the latest news on Apis cerana & Varroa Jacobsoni in Townsville [currently update 12] go to the link below.
View News Here
Members are advised to be cautious when purchasing package bees at the moment. There has recently been some reports of package bees having American foulbrood (AFB). For this reason, a safer option is to purchase a nuc hive from a reputable beekeeper that has tested the original colony is AFB free. On this month's field day, we will demonstrate a safe alternative to purchasing package bees and showing the ways to to test for AFB. AFB is the most widespread and commercially significant bee disease that is currently present in Australia. A major factor in successful management of this disease is early detection. However, AFB can be difficult or even impossible to detect visually in the very early stages of inspection.
More Info HereSpring is here and we have recorded a list of members names who are qualified and willing to collect swarms when the calls come in for help. If you’d like your name added to the ABA swarm collections list and you are competent to collect swarms, please record your details using your access code on the ABA website at the link below. Also, and keep the record up to date as regards availability to do so, furthermore let our secretary Geoff know at the next branch meeting that you are seeking swarm(s) so that he can adjust his record including when your requirements are met.
Beginners Beekeeping Courses: New Dates Coming Soon
We have already booked out on the first 2 courses for Spring 2016. New courses will soon be announced so keep an eye out at the links below.
Over the summer break, we have set up a new twitter account where you can see all the news and up to date info from our club. We will also feature an exciting live feed soon. More info will be released there when it’s finalised but in the meantime you can find us on twitter @illabees so check us out there and follow us please.
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