WELCOME TO ALL
Welcome to the Mid-Kilkenny Beekeeper’s Blog site. We are a organisation of about 22 beekeepers, both new to the craft and long term beekeepers. We meet during the Autumn to Spring at Lavistown Study Centre, which is also where our apiary is located. Besides business, there are guest speakers, questions and answers and always refreshments.
During the summer months we have a series of demonstrations ranging from at the hive demonstrations to taking off honey methods.
Our meeting are announced in the Kilkenny People Newspaper and KCLR radio community announcements. New members or interested individuals are always welcomed.
For upcoming meeting and events information please scroll down to “Events to Come” at the bottom of this page!
- Chairman: John Ryan
- Vice Chairman: Michael Walshe
- Secretary: Gypsy Ray
- Treasurer: Inga Reed
- Apiary Manager: Kieran White assisted by Fergal Walsh and Stephen Walsh
Mid-Kilkenny Beekeepers Begining Course
Information Meeting on 8th February, 2012, Orchard House, New Orchard Road, Kilkenny at 7:30pm
Schedule
March 14th: Occupants of the hive, the hive, equipment and protective clothing, Inga Reed and Kieran White
March 21rst: Apiary management throughout the seasons, hive hygene,Fergal Walsh and John Ryan
March 28th:Foraging and important plants for honeybees, harvesting the honey crop, Eva Holmes and Gypsy Ray
April 4th: Swarming and swarm prevention. Introduction to diseases of the hive. Possible Guest Speaker with John Ryan and Kieran White
April 14th at the hives
April 21rst at the hives
What Your Local Association Can Offer You
*Monthly meetings-where you can discuss issues and problems
*Informative Talks-these are some we have already had-
Flora for bees. Species of bees other than the honey bee. Wax reclamation and cosmetics . Hygiene in the hive.
*Annual Insurance and affiliation to the National Federation of Irish Bee Keeping Associations, (Insurance is essential if you keep bees).
*Access to the Federations’s Dvd and book libraries.
*Support from mentors.
*Access to the association’s apiary and it’s honey !!
* Use of the Associations extracting equipment, nucleus and demonstration hives
Course costs €80 for six weeks for an individual. This covers the course and membership in the local and national asssociations
For a couple at the same address cost is €80 for first person, €60 for the second person
Existing Members cost is €40
TIPS FROM MKBKA
Time to put on fondant!! You can either make your own or buy ready made icing sugar (make sure it is bakers fondant) in a supermarket. Wrap it in cling film, poke a few holes with a fork and put it on top of an opening in the crown board.Just to comment on feed for bees – some icing manufacturers use saccarine or other substitutes in their products – these are not good for the bees. Bakers fondant is made with sugar and is good for the bees. As an alternative a 1:1 sugar syrup solution will also give them a boost at this time of year.
For information about MidKilkenny Beekeepers please contact John Ryan, Chairman at
#056-444-1375
#087-4148496
or Gypsy Ray, Secretary at gypsyray@eircom.net
Our Blog is currently maintained by Eimear Burke and Gypsy Ray.
Please post a comment or suggestion.
Dr. Brian Durrans, retired anthropologist from the British Museum and Museum of Mankind in London visited Mid-Kilkenny hives to learn about bees.
Our current members are;
John Ryan, Eva Holmes, Padharic Tynan, Stephen Walsh, Eimear Burke, Inga Reed, Kieran White, Michael Walsh, Sheila Walsh, Jill Daoud, Gypsy Ray, Finola Walsh, Una Hayes Michael Fitzpatrick, Francis Nesbitt, Francis O’Halloran, Michael O’Halloran,
Peter McKenna, Helen Carroll, Jim Purcell, Monica Hayes, Fergal Walsh, Andrew Fogerty, Eimear Clarke, Ben Clarke, Sinead Cranwell, and James Powell
During the October Bank Holiday weekend Mid-KilkennyBeekeepers put up a stall at the Savour Kilkenny Festival to talk about beekeeping to all interested. Over the two days we received numerous visitors and over 50 people
signed up to be updated on our events and upcoming 2012 Beginner’s Course.
All interested will be notified and kept updated.
Once again at the end of January Mid-Kilkenny Beekeepers Helen Carroll and John Ryan were featured on “Ear to the Ground” on RTE 1 television showing Helen taking off her first crop of honey.
David Bokslag from Callan learns about bees at a Mid-KIlkenny Beekeeper's hives
We now have an events committee to determine what events to schedule during the year. Lectures during the cold months, apriary demonstrations during the beekeeping month
Membership dues €40 per year. €18 is sent to the Federation which pays for membership there and insurance for your beekeeping. The rest goes towards maintaining the apiary, funding guest speakers and events, providing materials like DVD’s, postage and mailings, etc. Dues are due in January, 2012 and cover the entire year. Any dues paid later cover until January 2013.
MORE GOOD NEWS!!! We received a Kilkenny County Council Environmental 21 grant to upgrade our apiary late in 2011. With it we will be able to add a hive and buy some much needed equipment, including an extractor for all the members to use.
GOOD NEWS!!! We did receive a Greencommunities Award from An Taisce which will enable us to purchase a nuc oberservation hive, a child size bee outfit and some hive tools to use for both teaching in our apiary and giving community presentations. As part of the award member Michael Fitzpatrick travelled to Wales to represent us.
As part of the grant Inga Reed, Helen Carroll and Gypsy Ray gave a talk and demonstration at Johnswell National School on the last day of school.
We now have an events committee to determine what events to schedule during the year. Lectures during the cold months, apriary demonstrations during the beekeeping months.
Our apiary is now up and running with two hives. Kieran White and Fergal Walsh are managing it .
Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!
