Last Beekeeping Lesson - Malvern And Upton Beepkeepers

 So last Thursday (the 5th) was the final beekeeping lesson for beginners at our club this year. 

It's been a really fun year when it comes to learning about beekeeping and I feel like I've landed on my feet with this club, so I was a little sad to see the season finish. 

I've made some good friends already and have gained a good network of people I can ask for advice. I've enjoyed it so much I've asked if I can do the course again, but as a mentors assistant next year. I'm hoping this will give me some much needed experience and I seem to learn best when I'm doing the thing I'm learning about. The more hives I open and look inside the better, and it'll give me opportunities to ask lots of questions and use this knowledge as we manage our own bees. 

I made the club a little gift, a piece of oak (which is darker than I realised) with Training apiary carved into it. I hope it was a nice way to say thank you. 

The last session was spent topping up feeders, and fitting mouse guards to the entrances. I need to do this to my own 2 hives and I need to make sure I keep topping up my own feeders. 

So for me I've found the beginners training course at Malvern and Upton Beekeepers Association to be brilliant, the theory lessons at the start of the year are a little dry, but there is a lot of information to cover, the course comes into it's own with the hands-on practical lessons. I felt spoilt with the mentors we had, Jeff was the one assigned to us, with 40 years experience and a good humour to everything. the fact that so many others are there each evening to ask and get opinions from makes it even better, with visits from bee inspectors thrown in as well. 

So onward to next year, I've got some big plans and projects coming up with it, and the girls are keen to help me! Already have our first out apiary planned and the hive nearly ready for it!