Introduction
Welcome to the North Staffordshire Beekeepers Association (NSBKA) website. The aim of the site is to promote the many benefits of the beekeeping craft by providing resources for active beekeepers, people who may be interested in starting or those who would just like more facts about the fascinating life of european honey bee (Apis Mellifera).
The site contains information on the activities of the NSBKA, including a potted history of beekeeping in Britain and the NSBKA, details of the upcoming NSBKA meetings and of shows you can find us at in 2007. We also tell you about the activities we undertake at our apiary. In addition we have included details on how to get started with beekeeping and other related articles for example preparing hive items for shows and making your own mead (honey wine). New for 2007 is the notice board which is intended to act as an initial contact point for all NSBKA members to let each other know what equipment or stores they have or may require in the forthcoming months. Furthermore you can find out about the many benefits of NSBKA membership and how to find us. Finally we have included issues of the NSBKA newsletter 'Combings' and links to other beekeeping related websites including a number relating to beekeeping courses, held in Staffordshire and other Counties in 2007, whose content is aimed mainly at beginners.
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Much of the site content, provided by members of the NSBKA and other reputable sources, is the result of many years of practical and theoretical beekeeping experience, including undertaking the many processes involved in making and presenting bee related products. It can sometimes feel like there is an overwhelming and occasionally confusing amount of information available for the beekeeping beginner. Sources ranging from a multitude of books, DVD's, Videos and beekeepers alike can (it seems) promote a particular practice or method as being 'the best' way to do something. But please don't let this put you off!
What is most important is how you use this information to develop the techniques and methods best suited to your own lifestyle, location and beekeeping aspirations. Joining your local Beekeeping Association is one of the best ways of doing this. One of the many benefits for members of the NSBKA is that you don't have to have start by having your own bees to begin learning and enjoying the practical aspects of the craft. The facilities available at our apiary will allow you to emerse gently into the practical aspects of beekeeping with expert guidance and tutalidge enabling you to develop your skills and confidence before embarking upon the important step of keeping your own bees and hopefully producing your own honey! You will also make some useful contacts and good friends along the way.
We hope this has whetted your 'beekeeping' appetite so please explore the site and feel free to contact us if you want to to find out more about beekeeping and the NSBKA in North Staffordshire. We are also able to provide willing and experienced beekeepers (and bees!) to give beekeeping presentations and demonstrations for your group, school, club or agricultural show. To find out more about about how we could help you e-mail our secretary Janet Hayward or telephone 01538 361048 for more details.
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A Potted History
The British Beekeepers Association (BBKA) was founded as a national body for beekeepers in 1874. The first committee comprised of a number of eminent people which included scientists and leading beekeepers of the time. One of the founding members was W. B. Carr, the inventor of the WBC hive which is still widely used by beekeepers today. When it began one of the BBKA's aims was for the individual members to organise lectures by leading beekeepers and scientists, the content of which would be distributed across the local beekeeping community.
Over the next 65 years many local affiliated Beekeeping Associations formed across the country and via their elected BBKA delegates continued to distribute up to date information and practices to their local associations. In 1945 the BBKA reorganised which resulted in the formation of the BBKA as it operates today and the group now known as the Central Association of Beekeepers. The BBKA currently operates as the central body for all its affiliated Beekeeping Associations. Its primary function being to “promote bees and beekeeping and to provide a range of member services to beekeepers in the UK” (BBKA-Membership).
According to research carried out by John W. Whiston (1976) the first official mention of organised beekeeping activities in Staffordshire was recorded in the December issue of the British Bee Journal of 1875. Later the following year (1876) the Wolverhampton and Staffordshire Beekeepers Association was formed. By 1883, after some restructuring, this Association began operating as the Staffordshire County Beekeepers Association. Records then show that beekeeping across the County in general was very prolific and over the years was reported as having varying degrees of success. In 1913 South Staffordshire beekeepers formed their own Association (SSBKA) and began meeting seperately from the County group. In 1946 a number of the Staffordshire County beekeepers located in the north of the area split from the County group to form the North Staffordshire Beeekeepers Association (NSBKA). On the 31st December 1961 the County group was dissolved leaving just the two Associations with responsiblities for its members in Staffordshire. Which is how it remains today.
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In 1982 several members of the NSBKA got together to form the Leek & Moorlands Beekeepers (LAMB) which later became a branch of the NSBKA with its own constitution. In the summer, before meetings, members would gather in their own apiary which for many years was located at the Friends Meeting House grounds in Leek. Their meetings were held fortnightly (up until 2001) at a number of locations in the town, including Leek Central Club, The Wilkes Head and The Nash public houses. The members of LAMB were enthusiastic and experienced beekeepers and their membership strength and groups popularity grew as a result.
Some of the more experienced members of LAMB then formed the Leek Bee Breeding Group (LBBG) which, through the selling of shares, enabled them to buy their equipment. However during the late 1990's local interest in beekeeping diminished and both groups decided to merge. LAMB has never officially been wound up but exists today only through its remaining members activities at the Longsdon apiary.
In 2000 the NSBKA were sucessfull in their bid to the Millenium Commission to obtain equipment which enables members to actively promote and demonstrate beekeeping and its benefits to community groups within Staffordshire and neighbouring Counties. Since then we have been asked and have given many talks and demonstrations to various groups and have attended many outdoor events including agricultural shows and similar festivals equippped with our tent, display boards and observation hive. Live bees in the observation hive are always a great attraction to young and old and allow us to explain in some detail how honey bee colonies operate.
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© North Staffordshire Beekeepers Association.
References
History of the Staffordshire Beekeepers Associations 1876-1976 by John W. Whiston, FSA. Published in 1976 by Staffordshire Beekeepers Associations-Walsall, p1, p15, p30, p35.
Thanks also go to Nick Mawby and Ron Clews for their help on LAMB and LBBG.
