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Members Pages
Here you will find information for East Devon Beekeepers branch members, including downloads of the current and archive Newsletters below, information about the branch library, reminders about bee management and disease control, ‘For Sale’ and ‘Wanted’ and more.
The Buzz from the Branch News Letter – August 2026
Dear Member,
Honiton Show 2026
Cast your mind back to a hot day at the start of August. You may be one of those members who worked hard to get the show on the road, a steward on the day or a competition entrant. Whoever you are and whatever you did please know your efforts were much appreciated and it’s so true that the show could not have happened without you – every single one of you that is. A BIG THANK YOU.
John has put a write up of the day on the branch website and your Beekeeping magazine contains a report from Paul Hammond. Special mention must be made of Heather Burnett who swept the board with success. Huge effort and support for the branch, attention to detail and excellent hive products were all in the mix. Also, James Loescher excelled in the novice section and carried off the Blue Ribbon for best in show along with the Robin Kirkcaldie cup.
Basic Candidates Success – a message from Nick Silver
The results of this year’s basic assessments are now in. All of our 7 candidates passed with credit or above. So it has been an excellent year both in terms of participation and the marks achieved. Well done to all 7 of you!! Having done the Basic the whole range of further training available from the BBKA is open to you. The Craythorne Cup will be awarded at the AGM to the candidate who achieved the highest score. If you are interested in taking the Basic next year then please contact Nick Silver (silvernicholas@hotmail.com).
Messages from Devon
You should all have received recent notification from DBKA Gen Sec Judith Norman of Devon Beekeepers Day on 26th September and how to book. Details also in September issue of Beekeeping.
BEGINNERS
Our 2026 class has now completed all its theory and practical aspects of the beginners course. We will continue to be here for you as you continue your beekeeping journey. Time now to further your beekeeping knowledge, support the winter programme of meetings and put everything you have learnt into practice. Again thanks to our organisers, trainers, refreshment team and apiary team for all their input. We have an excellent course to offer and already eighteen potential beginners signed up with interest for 2027.
YLAH MONITORING
Thank you to all who took home lure and set up bait stations during the end of July and all of August. We would have liked to have seen a greater reposnse to the Asian hornet monitoring exercise We were asked to take part in this as part of the Devon county monitoring initiative. With our branch covering a large geographical area it means large areas of course will have remained unmonitored. Thankfully no sightings were reported.
However, a YLH nest that has been found near Street in Somerset.
AND NOW TO SEPTEMBER
Yellow Legged Asian Hornet week: 7 – 13 September – keep spreading the word about this invasive species. See reminder information from BBKA at the end of the Buzz
A Message from Bob Muckett and the Apiary Team
📢📢 Calling all members. Beginners, improvers and seasoned beekeepers📢📢📢
Saturday 19th September is our second and final cleaning day.
We shall be scraping, boiling and scorching hive components ready to store for next year’s use.
In addition we would like to carry out some cleaning and maintenance of our wonderful beeshed.
Please, if you can spare a couple of hours on cleaning afternoon turn up in your scruffs and help get us ready for the winter.
Saturday 19th September, 14.30hrs start.
Those gifted bakers amongst you are welcome to bring cakes etc.🧁🍪🥮 so we can make it a bit of an end of beekeeping year social.
Some bee keeping equipment also available for purchase and a sale for Beginners begins at 2.30pm prompt.
See you there
The Apiary Team.
Other Diary Dates
An invitation to The Wiltshire Bee & Honey Day 2026 on Saturday 10 October, 10am-4pm, at The Devizes Corn Exchange, Market Place, Devizes SN10 1HS. https://www.wiltshirebeekeepers.co.uk/events/wiltshire-bee-honey-day/
This year’s National Honey Show, will be held at Sandown Park Race Course, KT10 9AJ, from 22ND-24TH October.
Val 🐝
Contacts:
Chair: Alasdair Bruce chair24@edbk.co.uk
Secretary: Val Bone val.valbone@gmail.com
Swarms: Stan Wroe stanwroe@aol.com
YLAH Co Ordinator Milly Frankpitt amelia.frankpitt@gmail.com
JUST A REMINDER OF LATEST LITERATURE FROM BBKA
What to do if you find a yellow-legged hornet
legged hornet (YLH). If you suspect you have found a YLH, you can report it by:
Using the Asian Hornet Watch app for iPhone or app for android
Filling in the online recording form
Emailing alertnonnative@ceh.ac.uk
Between July and September please do not attempt to kill individual hornets.
A live hornet is essential to help our teams locate and destroy the nest. Finding and
removing the nest is the most effective way to protect honey bees and other pollinators.
Dead hornets cannot be tracked.
Where it is safe and practical to do so, in the period following a positive sighting you may
be asked to assist with monitoring by replacing monitoring traps with a simple bait
station. Although this may feel counter-intuitive, YLHs often return repeatedly to a
reliable food source, so trying to establish this behaviour pattern by feeding rather than
trapping allows direction and timing information to be acquired, assisting trained
personnel to track their flight path and identify the location of the nest.
Safety advice
• If hornets appear aggressive or you feel unsafe, move away immediately.
• Do not attempt to follow hornets through difficult terrain, onto private property or
into unsafe areas.
• Do not disturb vegetation, structures or potential nest sites.
• Never attempt to remove or destroy a nest yourself; report any suspect nests via
the Asian Hornet Watch app.
By reporting sightings promptly and allowing trained responders to track hornets back to
their nest, you can play an important role in helping to protect the UK’s pollinators &
wider ecology.
FAQ:
Why shouldn’t I kill the hornet?
A live YLH can help responders locate the nest. Destroying the nest removes many more
hornets than killing individual insects and is the most effective way to reduce the risk to
honey bees and other pollinators. Nest destruction also prevents release of new hornet
queens, who can start new nests, killing workers does not.
Why shouldn’t I use a pest controller to destroy a suspect yellow-legged hornet nest?
Please report suspect nests through the Asian Hornet Watch app so the National Bee
Unit knows where hornets are being seen and can arrange any necessary follow-up. The
National Bee Unit does not charge for confirmed nest destruction. Privately destroying a
nest without reporting it risks losing important location information and risks a less-
coordinated national response.
Is the ‘yellow-legged hornet’ the same insect as the ‘Asian hornet’?
Yes, both names refer to the species Vespa velutina nigrithorax. The current name of
yellow-legged hornet was adopted to help people identify the hornet and to differentiate
this insect from other species of hornet from Asia.
How can I help?
More information about how Yellow legged Asian hornet teams can help can be found
here: The role of Yellow-legged Asian Hornet Teams » APHA – National Bee Unit –
BeeBase
Buzz archive. Download current or previous issues.
Winter Varroa treatment – Oxybee solution
Treatment around Christmas / beginning of January aims to catch the Varroa when there is no brood for Varroa to hide in.
Treatment:
- The solution should not be too cold, nearer blood heat would be good. The day can be cold with the bees well clustered.
- Ideally draw up 50ml solution in a syringe.
- Have a lit smoker handy (but should not be needed if crown board removed very carefully).
- Between the brood frames are ‘seams’ of bees. Use 5ml for each seam of bees. Only treat the bees, do not put the solution down empty seams/gaps. So if there are only 4 seams of bees only use 20 ml.
- Practice with water beforehand so that you know how to deliver 5 ml along each seam. We find that 5 ml is a continuous series of little drops.
- If you have a super on top of the brood box and you know the cluster is below it, you can remove the super gently to treat the bees.
Best wishes for a Happy Christmas and a Productive New Beekeeping Year!
Notes from the Oxybee Instructions:
- Oxybee is an acidic substance. Use gloves and eye protection.
- Oxybee shall only be applied in brood free colonies.
- Do not use higher doses than recommended.
- Outside temperature should be at least 3°C during treatment.
- Use only once per colony.
Buzz Archive
2026
| January 2026 | February 2026 |
| March 2026 | April 2026 |
| May 2026 | June 2026 |
| July 2026 | August 2026 |
| September 2026 | October 2026 |
| November 2026 | December 2026 |
2025
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