Newbattle Beekeepers Association

EXPAND YOUR KNOWLEDGE

Are you looking to expand your honeybee and beekeeping knowledge? Then why not consider studying for one of the Scottish Beekeepers Association modules? The module exams will be available to sit this year on Saturday 23rd of March (in both online or written exam centre format), and you can book your place now by clicking here. This will take you to the new format 'jotform' where you can select your module and enter your details and payment. The closing date for registering to sit an exam is the 10th of February.

For information on all the modules and details of their syllabuses please click here.

There is a new module for 2024, Plants and Pollinators. 

This new module is designed to enhance a beekeeper's knowledge of the interactions between plants and pollinating insects and covers a wide range of topics including; how a plant grows and develops, the pollination strategies employed by plants and the pollination activities including transportation of pollen and typical plants visited by solitary bees, bumblebees, and honey bees.

More information on the full list of topics covered and the learning outcomes for this new module can be found by downloading the syllabus here.

The Microscopy exam will also be held this year, on Saturday 9th of March, so if you have participated in Microscopy workshops and would like to sit this exam, please click here to register before the 10th of February.

Just think of what you'll gain by embarking on this journey!

Brace yourself, 2024 is almost here. Time to start preparing for the ‘unknown knowns’ and perhaps making plans to try something new. Happy New Year from David!

Read the Apiarist Blog Post Here

January Webinar The Scottish Beekeepers Association  January Webinar is scheduled for Wednesday 10th of January starting at 19.30, when US Air Force Security Forces Veteran and Iowa Bee Farmer - Master Sgt Katie Flinn will discuss overcoming Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and mental health problems through beekeeping. She will also introduce the charity ‘PTSD and Pollinators’ that she supports to help veterans overcome PTSD. If you would like to find out more about this fascinating subject and book your free place, please click on the link below BOOK YOUR PLACE

Read the 2024 Review Here 

Synopsis: The annual review of the year on The Apiarist. What, when, where? What’s popular and what’s not … and what does this tell us about the state of beekeeping?

Read an article in the October 2023 edition of Ecological Indicators

Click Here to read the article

It can be irritating when things go wrong, or your best efforts are thwarted. David has been keeping bees for long enough and he has a long list of pet peeves.

https://Here are a few

Neil Rutherford has two National Brood Boxes and a manual extractor for sale

Take a Look Here

The Royal Mint will strike eight new coins inspired by the flora and fauna of Britain. One of the first to come into circulation will be a £1 coin which features bees. The two bees on the coin symbolise the 250+ species of bees in Britain.

Read more here: Coins of the Nation 

The National Bee Unit is asking  all beekeepers to please login to BeeBase and make a note of the total number of colonies they will be taking into the winter as of 1st November 2023. This task is quick and simple, just click here, login and fill in the short form. Even if you have no overwintering colonies this season it is still important to update your BeeBase record to reflect that. This survey will run until 31st December 2023.

Synopsis: Drones occupy age-related locations in the nest and exhibit coordinated periodic hyperactivity. How was this determined and do these insights help our beekeeping?

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