Annual General Meeting of the Yarra Valley Bee Group will be held in person on 31st August 2025 beginning at 1.30pm. 1.30 AGM  2pm - Monthly meeting - Please bring a plate of food to share :) Speaker - Graham from Buzzbee was our speaker in April and has kindly offered to return! Graham was a 10-year-old scout in Africa when he first became fascinated by bees. He then devoured every book he could find on bees and even joined beekeeping clubs. Through his journey, Graham observed a concerning amount of inaccurate and confusing information circulating online. Driven by this gap in the beekeeping industry, Graham embarked on a mission to create a brand that would serve as a trusted resource for beekeepers... Buzzbee. Join us to hear Graham discuss the latest Varroa treatment options, and equipment for show and purchase.   In preparation for the AGM meeting, please view the following: AGM Minutes 2024 Agenda President Report Financial Report Committee Nomination Form Proxy form All are welcome to attend the AGM. However, only financial members are entitled to vote.  If you are unsure of your financial status, please email us to check at yarravalleybeegroup@mail.tidyhq.com Questions on notice in writing from members will be accepted by the Secretary up until 2 days prior to the meeting. Please email yarravalleybeegroup@mail.tidyhq.com Do you love your Bee Group? Do you want it to continue? Then we need your help! To allow this great club of ours to continue, we need nominations for the Office Bearers for the YVBG Committee.  You don't need to be an experienced beekeeper to nominate for these roles. Whether you're a Newbee or an Oldie, we'll look after you!  Like any club, there is a lot going on behind the scenes. However, the more help we have, the more we can grow. Please join our friendly and focused committee so that together we can help our YVBG group thrive.  Click here for position descriptions or go ahead and fill out a Committee Nomination Form. Please return to us no later than Friday 29th August. Positions are also available for the General committee. Examples of how you could help as a general committee member: Book Borrowing and Equipment Library Newsletter Social media Help to coordinate our presence at public events  Monthly meeting coordination  Membership Coordination Swarm Coordinator Want to talk to someone before committing? Feel free to email us on yarravalleybeegroup@mail.tidyhq.com Join us and keep up to date with local conditions that effect your hive, connect with other beekeepers, share resources, improve your apiary skills and learn more about honeybee ecology. Non members are welcome too. Meetings are held at ECOSS, 711 Old Warburton Road, Wesburn, in the ‘Coop’ (past the old house, over the green, down the bottom). Gold coin donation appreciated. 

1.30 for a 2pm start Speaker - Dr Kit Prendergast - Looking out for our native bees. Dr Kit Prendergast is a native bee ecologist and conservation biologist. Her research has revealed that unsustainable beekeeping practices can harm indigenous native bees. Kit will be joining us on line and sharing how we can ensure our native bees are conserved and manage beekeeping in a sustainable manner. Join us and keep up to date with local conditions that effect your hive, connect with other beekeepers, share resources, improve your apiary skills and learn more about honeybee ecology. Non members are welcome too. Meetings are held at ECOSS, 711 Old Warburton Road, Wesburn, in the ‘Coop’ (past the old house, over the green, down the bottom). Gold coin donation appreciated. 

1.30 for a 2pm start 2pm - Whats happening in my hive?  Followed by an in-house information session - Winter jobs What winter jobs can we do to keep ourselves busy whilst our bees are "quiet"? Greg will share some of his must-do jobs to ensure he is ready for Spring. Cleaning boxes and frames, storing euipment and frames, rendering wax, making new frames. What's on your list? Bring along your ideas to share with the group. Join us and keep up to date with local conditions that effect your hive, connect with other beekeepers, share resources, improve your apiary skills and learn more about honeybee ecology. Non members are welcome too. Meetings are held at ECOSS, 711 Old Warburton Road, Wesburn, in the ‘Coop’ (past the old house, over the green, down the bottom). Gold coin donation.   

Mead Making Workshop 2025 Cost $145 Cost includes: - Initial workshop, and 2 follow up sessions TBA. [Timing of later sessions for decanting and bottling depends on fermentation progress, but will be on Sundays @ 2pm] - 2 x 5 litre glass demijohns, with swing clip, silicone bung and airlock - 1.6 kg local honey, and all required yeast, fruit, spices, yeast nutrients, Ph adjustment, etc. - 12 x 375 ml clear glass bottles with stelvin closures. [Ideal for entering one into the Lilydale Show in November!] - Printed notes and recipe for "Joe's Ancient Orange Mead", so you can make your following batches at your leisure.   *This is a members only event Tickets are essential and only 10 spots are available. So hurry and purchase a ticket via our website - ticket sales end midday Monday 16th June. Enquiries - Greg Huggins president.yarravalleybeegroup@mail.tidyhq.com  

1.30 for a 2pm start 2pm - Whats happening in my hive?  Followed by our monthly Speaker - TBA Ben is an apiarist, environmentalist, father, food-lover and the owner of Ben’s Bees. Being exposed to nature and farming from an early age, and with three decades of experience behind him, Ben started Ben’s Bees in 2008. Since then, his company has expanded to include beekeeping, honey production, the safe rehoming of bee colonies, wasp nest removal, international mentoring, media and education. With a focus on ethical and natural beekeeping practices, Ben is committed to educating the community about bees and their vital connection to the environment and our everyday lives. Ben will be talking about Varroa and the safe use of Oxalic acid treatment; Varroa controller heat box and how its used; new wax moths treatments; winter jobs and some equipment show and tell! Join us and keep up to date with local conditions that effect your hive, connect with other beekeepers, share resources, improve your apiary skills and learn more about honeybee ecology. Non members are welcome too. Meetings are held at ECOSS, 711 Old Warburton Road, Wesburn, in the ‘Coop’ (past the old house, over the green, down the bottom). Gold coin donation appreciated. 

1.30 for a 2pm start (Join us early for a cuppa and chat) 2pm - Whats happening in my hive?  Followed by our monthly Speaker - Graham from Buzzbee Graham was a 10-year-old scout in Africa when he first became fascinated by bees. He then devoured every book he could find on bees and even joined beekeeping clubs. Through his journey, Graham observed a concerning amount of inaccurate and confusing information circulating online. Driven by this gap in the beekeeping industry, Graham embarked on a mission to create a brand that would serve as a trusted resource for beekeepers... Buzzbee. Join us on Sunday 27th as Graham shares with us his ideas on preparing your hives for winter, feeding and more. Graham will aslo be bringing a range of equipment for show and purchase. Join us and keep up to date with local conditions that effect your hive, connect with other beekeepers, share resources, improve your apiary skills and learn more about honeybee ecology. Non members are welcome too. Meetings are held at ECOSS, 711 Old Warburton Road, Wesburn, in the ‘Coop’ (past the old house, over the green, down the bottom). Gold coin donation appreciated. 

YVBG will be having a stall at the 2 day Crank Up Festival 5th and 6th April 10am-4pm. Volunteers are needed to man our bee group and honey sales stall. Please consider coming along and lending a hand for a few hours. Looks like a great day. Please email us at hello@yarravalleybeegroup.tidymail.co and let us know what times best suit you - Sat 5th or Sunday 6th - 7-9 / 9-12.30 / 12.30-4.  We'll then be in touch.  This is a great family outing in the beautiful Warburton Valley! Learn about heritage trades and vintage machines, browse through the Museum collections, and enjoy food and drinks while listening to some live music. ​Crank Up Heritage and Community Festival - organised since 1978 - takes place at the Upper Yarra Museum in Yarra Junction. This event showcases vintage machinery (moving and stationary) and vintage cars; live blacksmithing and heritage trades demonstrations; an exciting wood chop competition and working draught horses; live music and fun kids' activities as well as market and food stalls. ​Vintage car show takes place on Saturday and wood chop competition on Sunday. ​Well-behaved dogs on leads are welcome! ​​​This is their biggest fundraising event of the year so do come along and support the museum!  Facebook  Website Flyer

1.30 for a 2pm start 2pm - Whats happening in my hive Followed by our monthly Speaker - Simon Mildren Simon Mildren is the founder and CEO of HiveKeepers, an Australian company dedicated to making beekeeping simpler and more accessible. With a background in emergency management and a passion for innovation, Simon has spent years developing practical solutions that support beekeepers at all levels. His latest innovation, the Micro Honey Harvester, is designed to simplify honey extraction while preserving honey purity and reducing waste. About the HiveKeepers Micro Honey Harvester The HiveKeepers Micro Honey Harvester is a revolutionary, closed-system honey extraction device that removes the mess, hassle, and waste of traditional honey harvesting. Designed for hobbyist and small-scale beekeepers, it eliminates the need for cappings removal, filtering, and extensive cleanup—allowing beekeepers to harvest honey quickly, easily, and as needed. The harvester works seamlessly with standard Langstroth frames, making it a simple drop-in solution for beekeepers looking to extract high-quality honey with minimal effort. For more details, visit HiveKeepers.   Join us and keep up to date with local conditions that effect your hive, connect with other beekeepers, share resources, improve your apiary skills and learn more about honeybee ecology. Non members are welcome too. Meetings are held at ECOSS, 711 Old Warburton Road, Wesburn, in the ‘Coop’ (past the old house, over the green, down the bottom). Gold coin donation appreciated. 

Unfortunately tomorrows Bee Group meeting is cancelled due to the Central Total Fire Ban and Extreme fire rating.... Stay safe at home and see you next month instead.     1.30 for a 2pm start 2pm - Whats happening in my hive?  Followed by our monthly speaker - Simon Mildren from hivekeepers.com Simon has been keeping bees for 15 years.  He found extracting honey from the frames was slow and messy, and required a lot of bulky equipment, whether you have only one hive or fifty.  He thought there must be a better way.  Turns out there is.  He spent several years designing and refining it, and his new system will launch on March 5th.  It uses a small spinner about the size of the food scraps bin the council provides for your kitchen, no sieves, no tubs – you can pour the honey directly from the collecting canister into your jars.  It doesn’t disturb the wax caps over the honey so there is no mess (unless you drop the canister). Come along on Sunday 23rd Febraury to see this new system in action, and get yourself on the waiting list for when the Mirco Honey Harvester is released.   Join us and keep up to date with local conditions that effect your hive, connect with other beekeepers, share resources, improve your apiary skills and learn more about honeybee ecology. Non members are welcome too. Meetings are held at ECOSS, 711 Old Warburton Road, Wesburn, in the ‘Coop’ (past the old house, over the green, down the bottom). Gold coin donation appreciated. 

Unfortunately, the proposed Honey extraction day which was taking place on Sunday 26th Jan has been cancelled, due to lack of honey!  See you all instead at our usual club meeting on February 23rd.

ECOSS event Come and celebrate the end of another year and join us for an afternoon of locally produced food, live cooking demonstration with 5 star chef, Michael Lewis, using produce from local Artisan Agriculture farmers. Including our vey own members product - Cameron Walkers honey and Greg Huggins honey comb. Both winners at the 2024 Lilydale show. Talk to your farmers and find out where your food comes from. There will be a large market with-art, craft, produce stalls, food and more.. Live music, kids activities, Jigsaw Jumps & Costa's Book launch! Program includes: Welcome to Country, Awol Monks, Szara Fox & The Midnight Secrets, Formidable Vegetable & Smoke Stack Rino.  Further infomration can be found here - https://www.facebook.com/events/477001724797176

1.30 for a 2pm start Please join us for YVBG end of year celebration! In the spirit of giving and receiving; please bring: - a plate of food to share. (Bubbles and wine, and other drinks supplied). - any bee tools or equipment (no used wood items), cleaned, that you have never used or wont use again. You will get a raffle ticket at the door for each item you put on the table. Throughout the afternoon as tickets are drawn you get to select another member’s item to take home. - a tip or bee keeping hack that you have discovered, a piece of equipment, picture or video. It could be of your dream bee shed or workshop. Pic’s and videos on a memory stick please. Door prizes drawn over the afternoon and The Best Bee themed outfit wins a prize!   Join us and keep up to date with local conditions that effect your hive, connect with other beekeepers, share resources, improve your apiary skills and learn more about honeybee ecology. Non members are welcome too. Meetings are held at ECOSS, 711 Old Warburton Road, Wesburn, in the ‘Coop’ (past the old house, over the green, down the bottom). Gold coin donation appreciated.