The Norfolk Bee. Norfolk County, Massachusetts Letter from the Editor Where do I start. Already things are crazy.

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1 The Norfolk Bee Norfolk County, Massachusetts Volume 5, Issue 7 September 2006 Letter from the Editor Where do I start. Already things are crazy. Meetings, events and new proposals. And this is just for the club. Never mind the football coaching, field hockey, high school football, singing groups, and drama clubs. Lets add in extracting honey, making creams, doing a show at Weston Nurseries, Celebrate Holliston, and the Holliston Historical Society. Now lets add a trip to Ohio for our first visit to a college for my daughter. It seems that it just never ends, but most importantly, it is all fun stuff! This was a difficult year for me for beekeeping. My newest hive is the only one to produce honey. I thought I was going to have at least one super full of honey on my hive from last year, but they moved all the honey down and laid brood in the honey supers. I had a queen excluder on. GO FIGURE. I think this is a difficult year for us second-year students. A lot of different challenges that the first year. I think if we can make it through the second year then we are in for the long haul. Well enough of me. I ve got way to much to report on this month. See you all soon! Tony Lulek Look for the new sections in this month s newsletter President s Perspective Page 2 Creative Comb Page 3 A Taste of Honey Page 4 NCBA Administrative Page 5 NCBA Meeting Minutes Page 6 Southern New England Beekeepers Assembly November 2006 Co-sponsored by the: BackYard Beekeepers Association Connecticut Beekeepers Association Wicwas Press Theme: Queens, Drones and Stock Improvement Saturday November 18, :00am 5:00pm Unitarian Society of New Haven 700 Hartford Turnpike Hamden, Connecticut Speakers: Diana Sammataro Ph.D. Research Entomologist USDA-ARS Carl Hayden Honey Bee Research Center Tucson, Arizona David R. Tarpy Ph.D. Assistant Professor and Extension Apiculturist at North Carolina State University Michael Palmer Commercial Beekeeper and Queen Breeder from St. Albans, Vermont and President of the Vermont Beekeepers Association Lawrence J. Connor Ph.D. Writer, lecturer and President of Wicwas Press * This will be an all day event, which will include current research and practical information in lecture and panel discussion form. * Tables for regional beekeeping associations will be provided. * Vendors of beekeeping equipment and supplies will be present. * Morning coffee and light refreshments will be included. * A lunch of sandwich (veggie, turkey or ham) and snacks will be available for $5.00. * Advance registration fee for the event will be $35.00 per person, $45.00 after Nov. 10. * Lunch with authors will offer a chance to chat informally. * Dinner the night before (Friday, 11/17), 7 p.m. at Sorrento's restaurant in Hamden, CT. Any questions, please contact Larry Connor, , LJConnor@aol.com or visit the web site at Please let us know if you are interested in attending. If there are enough people, Tim Sullivan has suggested we might charter a bus or at least car pool. Please let Tim or me know.

2 BEE SCHOOL SO SOON? Before you know it, Bee School will be upon us. So we need to start preparing now.we would like to promote the school as best we can. If members can help by just spreading the word, it would be great. We are planning on hitting the local papers as we did last year. If any one has any other ideas, please let Tim Sullivan or me know about them. This is the best way for the club to continue to grow. It is our main source of income from the school itself and from continuous membership. Sweets for the Meets Okay I know its corny, but Susan Simmons, our wonderful refreshment person has asked for volunteers to provide something sweet for our meetings. If we could have 2 volunteers per month, that would be great. YOu can contact Susan at rastasue30@hotmail.com Stony Brook Wildlife Sanctuary Saturday, September 30, :00 AM - 4:00 PM 27th Annual Fall Fair highlights include: *30-day raffle (beginning October 1) *Craft fair *Pony rides *Live animals *Live entertainment *White elephant sale *Kids' crafts, games, and contests *Great food I will have our trifold display there with some basic photos of bees, etc. I am doing this for general public education and because I am a volunteer at Stony Brook. If anyone has Bee School information or any other club info which you want to have distributed at the fair, just get it to me before the 30th. Thanks. Jeanette Ruyle President's Perspective We are back in the swing of things and there is a lot to do! The board will be meeting soon and this will help us get more organized and help guide the club for the future. If you have ideas please attend one of our meetings. It is agreat way to stay in contact with your fellow beekeepers and to have a say in what the club does. I am looking forward to this year and hope to see you at the meetings. Regards, Ray Merrimack Valley Apiaries: They do have honey for sale. Three kinds. THere is Blueberry at $90.00 per pail, Extra Light Amber Wildflower for $84.00 per pail and Light Amber. Wildflower for $78.00 per pail. They do offer quantity discounts as well. Pails are 60 pounds each. Massachusetts Beekeepers' Association 2006 Fall Meeting and Honey Show Who: Dann Purvis, Purvis Brothers Apiaries, and William M. (Bill) Coli, Ph.D., Dept of Plant, Soil and Insect Sciences, University of Massachusetts-Amherst. When: Friday, November 3, 2006, from 7:30 PM to 9:00 PM, Saturday, November 4, 2006 at 9:30AM; Meeting Registration starts at 9:00 AM., Honey Show Entry Registration from 8:30 AM to 9:00 AM. Where:Best Western Royal Plaza Hotel, Fitchburg, MA. Please see attachment for full details. 2

3 Creative Comb Amazing Facts...Honey throughout History and Around the World 1. Honey has been delighting humans for more then 40 centuries. In ancient Egypt, taxes were paid with it, while in early Greece and Rome honey symbolized fertility, love, and beauty. 2. In the Bible, this sublime nectar is dubbed "the heavenly food." 3. To the ancients, honey was a source of health, a sign of purity and a symbol of strength and virility. 4. Early man considered bees mysterious and magical creatures because their amazing organized labor produced honey - a "nectar for the gods". 5. In Greek mythology, it is said that cupid dipped his arrows in honey to fill the lovers heart with sweetness. 6. In biblical days, John the Baptist lived on a diet of wild locust and honey. 7. In 50 BC, the Romans painted pictures with melted dyed beeswax. 8. The earliest illustration we have of honey being gathered is around 15,000 years old and appears in a painting on the walls of a rock shelter in eastern Spain. 9. In the early centuries B.C., the Ancient Greeks made little honey cakes from flour, honey and oil, sometimes baked with fresh flowers inside them, as supplications to their gods. They considered honey to be an important food as well as a healing medicine. 10. The ancient Greeks minted coins with bees on them. 11. Democritus ( BC), Greek philosopher and physician, chose a diet rich in honey and lived until he was 109 years old. 12. In the first century A.D., Apicus, a wealthy Roman gourmet, wrote a series of books in which more than half the recipes included honey. 13. Physicians in ancient Rome used honey to help their patients fall asleep. 14. Honey was the most used medicine in ancient Egypt. Of the more than 900 medical remedies we know about for that time, more than 500 were honey based. 15. The Egyptians kept their bees in tall, cylindrical hives; similar hives are still used in remote parts of Egypt today. 16. The beer that the first Anglo-Saxons drank was a brew of water and honeycomb in a clay pot, with the addition of herbs for flavoring. 17. For thousands of years, honey and fruits were the only sweeteners in Europe. 18. Napoleon used the bee as a symbol of his empire after his coronation in It stood for industry, efficiency and productivity. Also emblematic of immortality and resurrection, the bee was chosen to link the new dynasty to the very origins of France. Golden bees (cicadas really) were discovered in 1653 in Tournai in the tomb of Childeric I (father of Clovis) who founded the Merovingian dynasty in 457. They were considered to be the oldest emblem of the sovereigns of France. 19. The colonists first brought honeybees to North America, but in Central America, the indigenous peoples had long kept bees. 20. In Nice, France, Christmas is celebrated with nougat blanc, a candy made of honey, almond and egg white. Spring, in Poland, is greeted with glasses of honey wine and the Jewish New Year is welcomed with honey cake or apples dipped in honey, to insure a sweet life in the year ahead. 21. In 1984, honeybees constructed a honeycomb in zero gravity as part of an experiment on a space shuttle. 3

4 A Taste of Honey For People A Good Classic I was looking on the internet for some more recipes. There are 100s of them out there. All of a sudden it dawned on me A classic sandwich I used to eat all the time. Personally I love a good PB&J. I eat one almost every day. But this is a bit of a diversion from that classic. I remember this little shop in San Francisco, run by this old Japanese couple. You could get a sandwich for about $1.00. Yes this was in the 80s, but I think it has survived the test of time, with an updated version. Ingredients 2 Slices of whole wheat bread (or your favorite, even white will do) 1 perfectly ripe banana Natural Peanut Butter (smooth or crunchy, your choice. Okay Jiffy if you must) and of course: HONEY Now you can toast the bread or not, but I like it toasted. Spread a thick layer of peanut butter on the warm toasted bread. Then slice the banana in to 1/2 inch sections and put one layer on the peanut butter. The drizzle a couple of tablespoons of honey over the banana and peanut butter. Cover with the other piece of toasted bread. Slice in half and put on a plate. Now pour yourself glass of cold milk and sit down and enjoy a yummy sandwich. For the Bees From Beekeeping for Dummies: Syrup and Tracheal Mite Patties Winter Syrup, much thicker then spring syrup with mediation for tracheal mites Boil 2.5 quarts of water. When it comes to a rolling boil turn off the heat and add 10 pounds of white granulated sugar. Be sure the heat is turned off. Stir until the sugar dissolves completely. The syrup must cool to room temperature before you can add medication. One gallon of medicated syrup to start the wintering process. Provide more syrup as needed until the day temperatures are consistently below 40 degrees. Tracheal mite patties ½ pound of solid shortening (e.g., Crisco). 1 ½ pounds of granulated sugar. 1 tbl spoon your safe honey, not store or unknown source. 1 tsp farm mineral salt. Mix all until smooth. Will form about 4 hamburger size patties. Freeze before using. Place one between the deep supers and make sure a whole one is there the beginning of November for over wintering. In March add one for Spring treatment. Unlit with the peppermint patties you can leave these one through the Summer and Fall. These can continue to be used with honey supers on. From the backyard Beekeeper: Tracheal mite patties (Peppermint) ½ pound of solid shortening. 1 ½ pounds of granulated sugar. 1 tbl spoon of your safe honey, not store or unknown source. 1 tsp of food-grade peppermint. Put shortening in a small pot and warm slowly until it becomes almost clear. Add sugar and mix well. Add honey and peppermint. Mix well. Will form about 4 hamburger size patties. Freeze before using. Place one between the deep supers and make sure a whole one is there the beginning of November for over wintering. In March add one for Spring treatment. Unlike the mineral salt patties you must remove any trace before placing honey supers on and add the Fall one after removing the honey suppers. Addition recipes: Menthol & oil saturated towels for tracheal mite management: best to read the book or wait for the October meeting where members that have used this will explain their process.. 4

5 Norfolk County Beekeepers Association Administrative Page The Norfolk County Beekeeper s Association (NCBA), is dedicated to apiculture education and promotion of the art and science of beekeeping among beekeepers, agriculture and the general public. This is a Not-for-Profit organization, meeting the first Monday of every month, at 7:30 PM (second Monday if the first Monday is a holiday). The meetings are held at the Norfolk Agricultural High School (Media Center Cafeteria) in Walpole, MA. Meetings in June-August will be held at members bee yards as announced NCBA Officers President Ray Hennessey 50 Sheldon Road Wrentham, MA (508) rhennessey1@earthlink.net Vice President Norm Shaw 19 Skyline Road Hyde Park, MA (617) theshawzzz@hotmail.com Treasurer Miguel Lessing 45 Russell Road Wellesley, MA (781) miguellessing@comcast.net Recording Secretary Ed Karle 169 Seekonk Street Norfolk, MA (508) ) ewkarle@yahoo.com 2006 Monthly Meeting Schedule October 2, 2006 November 6, 2006 December 4, 2006 A special thanks to Al Needham from the Plymouth County Beekeepers Association. He is a great source of bee information. Swap N Sell N Wanted Classifieds Here s a column where you can sell, swap, or give away just about anything. If you are a paid member, advertising is free for as many issues as you wish. If you are not a member, the cost is $8.00/ad/issue (so, it pays to become a member for just $15!) FOR SALE: I have 20 shallow honey supers with drawn foundation, about 4 deeps without frames, and 2 queen excluders. Please call Annie Birman at (401) , or akdab1@cox.net WANTED: Local honey in 5 gallon pails. Will pay fare price. Need two or three buckets. Please contact: Paul Graham, WANTED: Any equipment that you might have for sale. I am always getting s from people looking for stuff. Please me at tlulek@gallery223.com and let me know. Thanks, Tony Corresponding Secretary Tony Lulek 35 Dalton Road Holliston, MA (508) tlulek@gallery223.com Bee School Director Howard Crawford 360 West Central Franklin, MA (508) Bee School Director Tim Sullivan 101 Sherman Road Dedham, MA (781) Fair Committee Chairperson Jeanette Ruyle 23 Green Street Medfield, MA (508) jruyle@comcast.net Librarian Whitley Frost 62 Child St. Hyde Park, MA ( whitfrost@rcn.com 5

6 Minutes from the September 11, 2006 Meeting September Attendance: 44 Next Meeting: Monday, October 2nd Note: We will raffle the club hive (the whole thing, bees included) from the 2006 Bee School at the October meeting Meeting items: 1) Anyone that wants some help or company while doing Fall and pre-winter hive work is advised to contact one of the mentors and/or club officers. Their number and s are on the NCBA web site. 2) There was no door prize and no raffle this meeting. The available inventory was too light. Please consider bringing a raffle-able item to the next meeting or for inventory. Beekeeping items are particularly desirable: equipment, books, magazines, stuff. 3) We will attempt to have a NCBA Board Meeting before the October meeting. The current board members are: Bruce Barrett, Member Howard Crawford - Member Whitley Frost - Librarian Ray Hennessey - Current President Tom Herr, Member Ed Karle - Recording Secretary Miguel Lessing - Treasurer Tony Lulek, Corresponding Secretary Tim Sullivan, Past President 4) Treasurer's Report by Miguel Lessing The September meeting starts our fiscal year and that means that member ship due are due. The amount is the same as last year: $15 per family. Dues paid members get the news letter, membership listing and door-prize raffle tickets at the monthly meetings. 5) NCBA insurance policy For the information of the membership it was explained that the NCBA has General Liability insurance that is required for our use of the Norfolk Aggie School facilities. This policy protects the school for any harm to members on the premises, in which case the policy is our coverage recourse. Be careful so our pricing stays low. 6) The NCBA Fair Display - "Honeybees help Everyone Everywhere" Jeanette Ruyle of the Fair Committee presented the display (see photo attached). This impressive display showing beekeeping in action around the world won 2nd place and $150 at the Brockton Fair. We also display at the Marshfield Fair. We display at fairs where the cost is low and where it is possible to win money for the club's general fund since there are costs to attending fairs. The fair displays also give us a chance to advertise our organization and the bee school. The committee shared some of the challenges of getting an exhibit into a fair, it requires close communication with the fair committee and careful following of the display rules, including drop and set up times and removal. Anyone interested in joining the committee is most welcome. 7) Other presentations to communities Tony Lulek -Weston Nursery - Customer Day Tony had a teaching hive, and observation hive and several excellent photos. His exhibit was well attended throughout the day and he sold honey. Ed Karle -Norfolk Library The theme for public libraries across Massachusetts this Summer was: "What's buzzing in the Library?" Ed presented a computer power-point presentation about his own hive experiences and the products that can be harvested from a hive (wax, honey, propolis, pollen, etc.) and their uses. 40 people attended. 8) Bee School 2007 The dates for the school are tentatively: 2/6, 2/13, 2/27, 3/6, 3/20, 3/27, 4/3 and 4/10, with field demonstration TBA-April weather and bees depending. Class will start at 7:00 pm and run until approximately 9:00 pm in the Cafeteria at the Norfolk County Agricultural High School in Walpole, MA. A facilities request needs to be submitted for the dates to the Norfolk Aggie School. For additional information please contact Tim Sullivan, Bee School Director. (781) All NCBA member and school alumni are asked to summit ideas and suggestions for the 2007 classes to Tim. In October we will start contacting local papers and other town board postings to advertise for the school. 6

7 9) Norfolk Aggie School Hives The school has two hives that need support. Irene Gorczyca tends the hive on her own time during the summers. We agreed that NCBA will ask the school to submit a needs list and we will provide what we can. This is a good opportunity for community relations and marketing. We will also suggest they investigate grant funding opportunities for Environmental Purpose, etc., to support their program. We will ask how many students are involved in the hive work. 10) Club Extractor Do we need another one? No, just better communications between members. Right now the extractor is with Ed Karle. Robert Toran will have it this weekend. Each person that has it must track who has it next so we can keep it moving among members. Please keep Tony Lulek updated as well. 11) Proposal: Club name tags There are services available on the web that will create personalized name tags with logos for about $6-$8. We can try to get our patch logo on the tag. Tony Lulek project. 12) Town Days - Chance to get a booth This activity should be apart of the Fair committee for guidance. Please check your own town's plans and work with the Fair Committee for guidance. 13) Scale model of a honey bee Does anyone know of a place to order a scale model of a bee for teaching proposes? One about 6 to 9 inches overall is desirable. 14) Upcoming fairs Stony Brook fair - 9/30 Topsfield Fair 9/30-10/9 15) Opportunities to place hives: Farms are looking for bees. Talk to local farms now for the 2007 season. Jeanette Ruyle and Miguel Lessing of the Fair Committee presented the display 7

8 Some wonderful photos courtesy of Ed Karle. A close-up of his bees, some being born, brood in the honey supers and a dusting of powdered sugar for mites From: Tony Lulek 35 Dalton Road Holliston, MA TO: Pear Blossom May 2006 (Tony Lulek) 8