Annual General Meeting of the Yarra Valley Bee Group will be held in person (only) on 27th August 2023 beginning at 2pm.   Followed by our guest speaker: Andrew Wootton - Understanding Hive Splitting: from simple to sophisticated Andrew started beekeeping in the 1960’s in the UK. Over the last few years in Melbourne, Andrew’s beekeeping activities have mainly concerned running numerous teaching courses including beginners, Flow hive and queen raising workshops. He has given talks at the Apimondia World Bee Congresses in Istanbul and Montreal as well as at the 3rd and 4th International Bee and Hive Monitoring Workshops. As an active SQRT (State Quarantine Response Team) member and the only certified Master Beekeeper (Eastern Apicultural Society of North America) in the Southern Hemisphere, he is perhaps especially well prepared should the Varroa incursion overwhelm our Australian response. In his presentation, Andrew will attempt to demystify hive splitting and recommend some straightforward approaches.   In preparation for the meeting, please view the following: AGM Minutes 2022 Agenda 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   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. These include President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer. 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. Did I mention that there are only four meetings a year! Click here for position descriptions or go ahead and fill out a Committee Nomination Form. Please return to us no later than the 25th 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 Collection and Bee removal Want to talk to someone before committing? Feel free to email us on yarravalleybeegroup@mail.tidyhq.com Meetings are held at ECOSS, 711 Old Warburton Road, Wesburn, in the newly renovated ‘Coop’ (past the old house, over the green, down the bottom).

2pm - Whats happening in my hive? Followed by our monthly Speaker - Rae Howell Bee-Sharp Honeybee - An immersive journey through the secret life of bees.. Rae Howell is an award winning composer and multi-instrumentalist.  She is founding director of Sunrae: a tour ensemble, label and sheet music publisher, and works across a broad range of genres in collaboration with performing and visual artists, in film, theatre, dance, concert hall and multimedia productions.  Rae’s most recent large-scale environmental research project “Bee-Sharp Honeybee”, culminated in a performance at the Natimuk Frinji Biennale, for string orchestra, a live honeybee hive and realtime animated visuals projected onto giant wheat silo's in rural Australia.  Come along 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. 

2pm - Whats happening in my hive? Followed by our monthly Speaker - Janis from Beewise - Wintering Bees We are thrilled to have Janis, from Beewise, talk about what we should do between now and spring and how we can assist the bees to stay cosy and dry? Join us to hear Janis answer questions such as: How many boxes?   What about queen excluders? Did I leave enough feed in the right places for the bees to successfully winter. When should I feed?  There are plusses and minuses to feeding at the wrong times. Conditions for your bees, Supplements, Safe storage of gear into spring? So what happened after the last three seasons and what are we likely to experience in the coming one?  Can we survive any type of season?  Will I be ready for what is coming in August and September?   and of course, biosecurity matters. Come along 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. 

2pm - Whats happening in my hive? Followed by our monthly Speaker - Don Muir Don Muir - B-QUAL and more We are thrilled to have Don Muir from B-QUAL give us an update on the following at our May meeting: 1.        Update on B-QUAL and B-TRACE operations. 2.       Sustainability and traceability tree to shelf. 3.       Honey testing methods. 4.       Honey library testing results of various Australian honeys. 5.       Varroa update and testing results of hives after miticide treatments. 6.       Changing Government attitudes and regulations in beekeeping. B-QUAL, as the industry owned QA and Food Safety program, has been asked by various stakeholders to implement a low-cost program that offers small producers assistance with their record keeping obligations, and to give consumers confidence in their products and product traceability. B-TRACE is designed for smaller enterprises to maintain readily available hive record information that satisfies the requirements of the National Biosecurity Code of Practice, including Extracting and Product records that are also required by legislation. A specially designed hive management web app has been developed to assist members with this record keeping.  The B-TRACE program is intended for small semi commercial and recreational beekeepers.   Come along 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. 

2pm - Whats happening in my hive? Followed by our monthly Speaker - Dr Anna Carrucan - The Botanist and the bees. We are thrilled to have Dr Anna Carrucan join us online at this months meeting. She is a second-generation beekeeper with a PhD in botany, as well as a qualified teacher, educator and science communicator. She is dedicated to elevating beekeeping, celebrating pure, natural honey, and eduction about the intricate interconnectedness of gardens, farms, ecology, pollination and the environment, and the importance of all bees! Bees were part of her life from a young age - her dad started beekeeping as a hobby about 40years ago, encouraged by the gift of a classic beekeeping book from her mum.  I became more and more fascinated by these little insects, with their “hive mind” and complex societal behaviours.  The more I discovered, the more I knew I had to have my own hive. In 2018 she wanted to create something bigger than keeping hives for honey and to build upon her knowledge of plants, flora, ecology, science, communication and education, then BUUKAAR WAARUUNG Boutique Apiary and Artisan Honey was born.  A niche enterprise that seeks to elevate the understanding and appreciation of bees and beekeeping; celebrates and values pure, raw, natural honey that’s made locally; works with Gardners and farmers to increase knowledge about pollination services and planting bee habitat on their property; and, providing specialist and relevant presentation to networks, group, conferences and events. So, come along 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. 

NB - Our March Meeting has been changed to a Friday night. This will be an in-person meeting Friday 31st. (instead of Sunday 26th). Doors open at 7pm for a 7.30 start. Ally Driessen is a Bee Biosecurity Officer at Agriculture Victoria. She was an amateur beekeeper and permaculture enthusiast during the Varroa scare in Victoria mid-2018. This drove her to swap a corporate career for a ‘bee-change’ and become part of the driving force in reducing the risks of exotic and established honey bee pests. At our March meeting she will be speaking about: Varroa Mite - Update  BeeMAX – Agriculture Victoria’s bees online digital platform; Priorities for Apiary Inspectors at the moment; The Apiary Code of Practice; and The Australian Honey Bee Industry - Biosecurity Code of Practice and the Victorian Legislation Division 5—Bees.  Join us to 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.    

2pm - Whats happening in my hive? Followed by our monthly Speaker - Dr Anna Carrucan - the botanist and the bees. We are thrilled to have Dr Anna Carrucan join us online at this months meeting. She is a second-generation beekeeper with a PhD in botany, as well as a qualified teacher, educator and science communicator. She is dedicated to elevating beekeeping, celebrating pure, natural honey, and eduction about the intricate interconnectedness of gardens, farms, ecology, pollination and the environment, and the importance of all bees! Bees were part of her life from a young age - her dad started beekeeping as a hobby about 40years ago, encouraged by the gift of a classic beekeeping book from her mum.  I became more and more fascinated by these little insects, with their “hive mind” and complex societal behaviours.  The more I discovered, the more I knew I had to have my own hive. In 2018 she wanted to  create something bigger than keeping hives for honey and to build upon her knowledge of plants, flora, ecology, science, communication and education, then BUUKAAR WAARUUNG Boutique Apiary and Artisan Honey was born.  A niche enterprise that seeks to elevate the understanding and appreciation of bees and beekeeping; celebrates and values pure, raw, natural honey that’s made locally; works with Gardners and farmers to increase knowledge about pollination services and planting bee habitat on their property; and, providing specialist and relevant presentation to networks, group, conferences and events. So, come along 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. We also have a very special raffle this month. One of our members, Tony A, has very kindly dontated one of his homemade, carefully crafted, beehive stands to our club. Tickets will be sold at this months meeting and, thanks to Tony, someone will be lucky enough to take this lovely piece of equipment home with them. (hive box not included)   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. 

There will be no January bee club meeting as planned. See you on the last Sunday in February instead where we will hear from guest speaker Ally Driessen - Bee Biosecurity Officer - Agriculture Victoria.    

Come and join in the celebrations for our last meeting of the year. 2pm - Whats happening in my hive? Followed by our monthly Speaker - Simon Turner - Malaika Honey in Uganda Australian beekeeper Simon Turner established Malaika Honey in Uganda in 2006 with the aim of developing a sustainable beekeeping industry. Malaika Honey is a social enterprise and has a wide range of international partners and supporters including the UN Industrial Development Organisation, Jane Goodall Institute and the International Committee of the Red Cross. Malaika Honey provides farmers throughout Uganda with the beekeeping training, equipment and tools to become self-sufficient producers of high-quality honey and hive products. Malaika has also developed a retail and online market for beekeeping equipment that enables the farmers to become small-middle income earners. He has written a guidebook that focuses on transitional beekeeping methods using Kenyan Top Bar beehives. Simon Turner will be our guest speaker at our monthly meeting on 27th November, 2022. He is going to talk about Malaika Honey's work over the past 16 years and its future. Stay on after the speaker and help us celebrate another year of YVBG. Aternoon tea provided. Meetings are held at ECOSS, 711 Old Warburton Road, Wesburn, in the newly renovated ‘Coop’ (past the old house, over the green, down the bottom). Gold coin donation appreciated. 

Honey Competition YVBG will be running the honey competition in conjunction with the show. Click here to find out how to enter your honey, frame of honey or mead!   Volunteers needed We also need volunteers to man our YVBG stall. Each year we have a stall to sell our honey, educate the community about beekeeping and the joys of beekeeping clubs. You don't have to be an expert on beekeeping, Newbees will be rostered on with more experienced people. 2 hour timeslots. All volunteers will now need a Working with Childrens Check. However, this is free and easy to complete online.  Please email your interest to volunteer to yarravalleybeegroup@mail.tidyhq.com.    Visit their Website to find out whats on this year    

October Bee Group Meeting - Its swarm season! Join us in person to hear from our new President, Greg Huggins and our swarm coordinator, Phil Council, talk about all the in's and out's of catching swarms. They'll talk about their fun swarm collection experiences and give you some hot tips on how to catch your own. Come along 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. Meetings are held at ECOSS, 711 Old Warburton Road, Wesburn, in the newly renovated ‘Coop’ (past the old house, over the green, down the bottom).

Annual General Meeting of the Yarra Valley Bee Group will be held in person (only) on 18th September 2022 beginning at 2pm. Please note that to avoid the Grand Final Weekend, we have moved our meeting to a week earlier than usual. This will not be on the last Sunday of the month - but the week before. Monthly Speaker - Roof Top Honey - First Spring inspection and requeening a hive. Vanessa Kwiatkowski and Mat Lumalasi are the founders of a unique project that aims to bring bees back to our cities. Concerned by a growing sense of disconnect between food production and consumption and inspired by hundred year old practices in Europe, Vanessa and Mat have created something uniquely Melbourne in their project ‘Melbourne City Rooftop Honey’. Yet while their project is inherently local their message has a much broader reach. What they do not only seeks to address issues of sustainability, it also aims to raise awareness of the importance of bees and the various threats they face. We are lucky to have Matt join us this meeting to discuss your first inspection of Spring and requeening a hive. In preparation for the AGM meeting, please view the following: AGM Minutes 2021 Agenda 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   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. These include President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer. 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. Did I mention that there are only four meetings a year! Click here for position descriptions or go ahead and fill out a Committee Nomination Form. Please return to us no later than the 16th September. 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 Collection and Bee removal Want to talk to someone before committing? Feel free to email us on yarravalleybeegroup@mail.tidyhq.com Meetings are held at ECOSS, 711 Old Warburton Road, Wesburn, in the newly renovated ‘Coop’ (past the old house, over the green, down the bottom).