[…]many opportunities during the summer to raise new queens with little effort needed by us. “Bee Improvement for all” is a one day course that is designed to help beekeepers use these opportunities to improve their bees, as well as giving information to those who wish to raise more queens. Some speakers and books don’t serve the beekeeper with a […]
BIBBA encourages the formation of local queen rearing groups to aid the improvement of local bees and to support the objectives of BIBBA to improve and propagate the native and near native honey bees. Benefits of Local GroupsMany beekeepers only have a small number of colonies, so they find it easier to work with others. A group will have beekeepers […]
[…]aims and are careful to keep local bees. This means that we are able to make good progress in bee improvement. We also like to encourage other groups in the county and beyond and have helped some of them achieve dominance in their own locality. We also help with the local association’s policy of encouraging native bees and help manage […]
Cornwall Bee Improvement and Bee Breeders Group was founded in 2002 to assist Cornwall beekeepers in their quest for bees that reduced varroa enough to control them to non-lethal levels. So far, we have found several behaviours, most in the research literature, which lead to the removal or death of mites. Our inspiration was Alois Wallner who had attained a […]
[…]by a group of Cheshire-based BIBBA members, to help form local queen rearing groups to aid the improvement of local bees and support the objectives of BIBBA; to improve and propagate the native and near native honey bees. The CHIP members have formed a collective queen rearing group and are each helping other local individuals and groups to enter into […]
[…]‘The Principles of Bee Improvement’. Lecture Title: “The Principles and Practice of Bee Improvement” A practical approach to ‘Bee Improvement’ aimed at showing that the selection and refinement of local bees is a better long-term approach than the constant import of bees of other sub-species. The talk emphasizes that ‘Bee Improvement’ is relevant to all beekeepers and that rather than […]
[…]has recently taken over the role as BIBBA Groups’ Secretary. Lecture Title: “Bee Improvement in Cornwall, Achievements and Aspirations” There are a number of Bee Improvement groups within Cornwall, and these will be discussed during Nick’s presentation. The groups being BipCo, CBIBBG the Cornwall Bee Improvement and Bee Breeding Group, and B4 (Bring Back Black Bees). Their principle aims are […]
[…]a lot to cover here so I’m breaking this into two sections – part one was Simple Bee Improvement in last month’s edition, here is part two and the final part will be in next month’s edition. Starting Stock Once a beekeeper or group has mastered simple bee improvement you may wish to expand your activities and as well as […]
[…]honey production (in all weathers!). BipCo has at all times been working closely with other bee improvement groups in Cornwall and is now looking at setting up mirror organisations in both Devon and Somerset. Manx Bee Improvement Group (MBIG). Johnny Kipps. The MBIG was formed as a sub-committee of the IoM Beekeepers Federation in early 2015 after a BIBBA “BIFA” […]
BIPCo would like to invite beekeepers to the 6th Annual Bee Improvement Day A one-day event organised by the Bee Improvement Programme for Cornwall (BIPCo) To be held at Lanhydrock Memorial Hall, Bodmin, Cornwall, PL30 5AE on Saturday 18th February 2017 commencing at 9.00am for registration (9.30am start) until 3.30pm A day for all those interested in […]
Saffron Walden BKA with the Bee Improvement and Bee Breeders Association (BIBBA) are organising a ‘Bee Improvement for All’ day with Roger Patterson: A one day event packed with sound information to help all beekeepers improve their bees. The presentation will concentrate on encouraging beekeepers to raise their own queens to produce docile colonies that are productive, healthy and best […]
A one day event packed with sound information to help all beekeepers improve their bees. The presentation will concentrate on encouraging beekeepers to raise their own queens to produce docile colonies that are productive, healthy and best suited to their environment. The bees often give us opportunities during the summer and there will be plenty of ideas on how to use […]
[…]using the following link (no payments accepted on the day) http://northsomersetbeekeepers.org/bee-improvement-for-all-27-january-2018/ course info: […]
[…]at Eden Project and four associated events on the same weekend, we have had to cancel the Bee Improvement for All Day at South Brent. This is a great pity because there have been over 40 of these popular events since 2014, many of which have reached venue capacity. We apologise for the inconvenience and hope we can reschedule it […]
[…]suitable for queen-rearing and drone-production • Learn to graft/transfer larvae for stock improvement programmes • Consolidate desirable traits by collaborative queen-rearing • Provide nucs for local beekeepers to develop into […]
[…]of knowledge to widen beekeepers expertise in queen breeding with the long term goal of bee improvement. Breed a locally adapted dark honey bee While we realise we are unlikely to be able to introduce a near native Apis mellifera mellifera (Amm) in the short to medium term, we wish to breed local adapted dark bees of the best genetic […]
[…]same problem will need to be faced, how to keep the strain going. Another way of approaching bee improvement is to start with local stock, perhaps your own, collected from swarms, your BKA or from a local beekeeper with a good reputation. This has the advantage of using stock that is already developing some local adaptation. If imports or offspring […]
[…]ones? 150 years of imports of queens, of various sub-species, have shown that, whilst a short-term improvement in quality may be experienced, over the long-term, no improvement is achieved. On the contrary, in most areas our honey bee population is generally viewed as hybridised or, perhaps more accurately, mongrelised. The argument that importation is good for the genetic diversity of […]
[…]to the National Bee Improvement Programme (NatBIP) which has been launched in England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. This is an initiative organised by the Bee Improvement and Bee Breeders’ Association (BIBBA), with the twin aims of reducing the number of imports of honey bees into Britain, Ireland and associated islands,* and of improving […]
Bee Improvement Days 2021 The Bee Improvement and Bee Breeders' Association (BIBBA) will be running a small number of practical and theoretical courses during the summer months. These will be aimed at beekeepers who wish to improve their bees, with emphasis on suitability to the environment, docility, calmness on the comb, ease of management, good use of stores, etc. The […]
A How often will I receive Bee Improvement Magazine? We now plan to issue “BIBBA Monthly” by email and once a year will issue a collated print version of the best […]
A key question any individual or group should consider is what method should I/we follow to Improve our bees and to produce queens. There are a few key choices depending on your aims, capacity (time and equipment) and capabilities. I’m assuming the reader is looking for a bee that is native and/or locally adapted. Kevin […]
Bee Improvement Days 2021 The Bee Improvement and Bee Breeders' Association (BIBBA) will be running a small number of practical and theoretical courses during the summer months. These will be aimed at beekeepers who wish to improve their bees, with emphasis on suitability to the environment, docility, calmness on the comb, ease of management, good use of stores, etc. The […]
North Devon Group operating from an apiary on the outskirts of Barnstaple as part of the North Devon Beekeepers Association. Initially, we will be developing our skills to become self-sufficient in producing Queens and colonies for our teaching programme and as a source of local bees for beginners. In the long term we would be excited to part of the […]
A conservation project working with Free Living and managed surviving non treatment colonies to protect a wild population and produce a better local Honey Bee in […]
North Gower as a peninsula and especially its northern tip, is reasonably isolated due to a range of natural features. It contains a low number of beekeepers (mostly hobbyists) which may have helped reduce mass import of non-native bees in this area. Furthermore, the isolation of the northern tip of Gower may offer a stronghold for colonies of near native […]
[…]to the National Bee Improvement Programme (NatBIP) which has been launched in England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. This is an initiative organised by the Bee Improvement and Bee Breeders’ Association (BIBBA), with the twin aims of reducing the number of imports of honey bees into Britain, Ireland and associated islands,* and of improving […]
We are almost half way through our third round of NatBIP webinars. Thanks to Jo for opening the topic with two sessions which included a lot of good questions from the attendees at each event. Thanks also to Norman Carreck for his scientific perspective on the bees and, most recently, to Peter for his practical and pragmatic experiences and views. […]
