Quiz - Saturday 16 June 2012

EAST ESSEX SMALLHOLDERS GROUP

FUNDRAISING QUIZ

SATURDAY 16^TH JUNE 2012

ULTING AND LANGFORD VILLAGE HALL

Maldon Road, Langford, CM9 4SS

7PM FOR 7.30PM START

PROFESSIONAL QUIZ MASTER

TICKETS £5 PER PERSON – MAX 6 PER TEAM

“COME ALONG AND ENJOY A FUN NIGHT OUT”

RAFFLE IN AID OF RARE BREEDS SURVIVAL TRUST

               

          BRING YOU OWN DRINKS AND NIBBLES

TEA AND COFFEE WILL BE AVAILABLE TO BUY

Contact Helen for tickets & info:

Helen@eastessexsmallholders.org.uk

Or call 07793363035

www.eastessexsmallholders.org.uk

Bees are dying in their Millions - what do we do?

Bees are dying in their millions. Martha Kearney, BBC 4, explores this worrying phenomenon.

It is an ecological crisis that threatens to bring global agriculture to a standstill. Introduced by Martha Kearney, this documentary explores the reasons behind the decline of bee colonies across the globe, investigating what might be at the root of this devastation. Honey bees are the number one insect pollinator on the planet, responsible for the production of over 90 crops. Apples, berries, cucumbers, nuts, cabbages and even cotton will struggle to be produced if bee colonies continue to decline at the current rate. Empty hives have been reported from as far afield as Taipei and Tennessee.

In England, the matter has caused beekeepers to march on parliament to call on the government to fund research into what they say is potentially a bigger threat to humanity than the current financial crisis. Investigating the problem from a global perspective, the programme makers travel from the farm belt of California to the flatlands of East Anglia to the outback of Australia. They talk to the beekeepers whose livelihoods are threatened by colony collapse disorder, the scientists entrusted with solving the problem, and the Australian beekeepers who are making a fortune replacing the planet's dying bees. They also look at some of the possible reasons for the declining numbers - is it down to a bee plague, pesticides, malnutrition, or is the answer something even more frightening?

Go to BBC 4 documentary - Bees are dying in their millions to watch this interesting and worrying documentary.

In a contrasting documentary, by the same author, Orlando Clark is an urban beekeeper, he keeps his bees in various locations around the city of London, from Brixton to King's Cross. His bee losses have been no higher in the last few years than they have been in any winter. In fact, last winter was better than ever before. Ironically in the city, there seems to be more and cleaner food for the bees to eat. London and a lot of urban environments are actually quite green, with an abundance of parks and gardens dotted all around. The diversity of the plants you have in the urban environment may help the bees, as there is almost always something in bloom all year round. In the countryside, particularly with modern agricultural practices, you have whole swathes of land supporting just one crop, which may bloom for only 2-3 weeks. The city is probably one of the best locations to keep bees at the moment, as there is plenty of forage for them and they don't have all the problems they have in the countryside with insecticide and pesticides being sprayed on them and their food.

Go to Urban Beekeeping

Also visit Ulting Beez for other information on Bee Keeping

POST YOUR COMMENTS!

Beekeeper - Glenn Mayes from Ulting - checking the hives summer 20010

checking the hive for disease, brood, honey

two hives - one on left is called Buckingham Palace,
the one on the right is called Wonderland.
we had loads of problems last year with Buckingham Palace - there's a surprise!

honey - dark "bits" are pollen

Lovely honey on a good laden frame

Honey Extracting

putting frames into the honey extractor

frame of honey - the dark "bits" are pollen

two hives made by Thomas Bickerdike
there is also a homemade nuc which is housing a small swarm following intruders knocking over one of the hives
and splitting it.

the homemade nuc - we use a glass chicken water feeder to provide fresh water for the bees
all through the season.  so that the bees can take water easily, stones are put into the lip so that
they don't drown.  dead bees don't produce honey!