The objective of the Club is to help other hobbyist beekeepers, to give demonstrations at the Club's apiary site and to promote beekeeping education.

FIELD DAYS: The Club site is at 681 Cashmere Road.  Unless otherwise stated, field days commence at 1.30 pm.  Please park outside of the gates.  Field days are held the first Saturday of each month from August through to May, except for January in which the second Saturday at the same time will apply.  In the event of there being wet weather on the day, then the following Saturday at the same time will apply.  If in doubt ring a Committee Member for information.
 
 

CLUB SITE DIRECTIONS: Set your trip meter to zero at The Princess Margaret Hospital and heat west (PMH on your left). 2.2km - take road left (this is still Cashmere Road). 3.5 km - follow sharp right hand bend at Hoon Hay Valley Road (still on Cashmere Road). Road straight for 700 m. 4.2 km - turn left at end of straight.
 
 

OFF SITE FIELD DAYS: As well as field days, the Club generally has at least one off site field trip per year.  In June, instead of a field day a video evening is held.  The AGM in early August is followed by a guest speaker, and a honey competition with an invited honey judge, followed by supper.  The December field day is followed by a BBQ.  The field day in May is preceded by a working bee and BBQ.  At various times of the year the Club attempts to make paraffin dipping facilities available.
 
 

OFFICERS  OF  THE  CLUB:

President: Jeff Robinson, ph 322 5392

Vice President: Ian Bastion, ph 332 8145

Secretary: Linda Gardner, 205 Trents Road, R D 6 Christchurch, ph 344 1977

Treasurer: Debra Jowsey, 156 Ashworths Road, R D 1 Amberley, North Canterbury, ph (03) 314 3470
 
 

CLUB NEWSLETTER: Four newsletters are posted to members each year. Members are encouraged to contribute to the newsletter.

Editor: Maggie James, 21 Humboldt Street, Christchurch 8002, ph (03) 337 2421, mjqueenb@hotmail.com
 
 
 
 

SUBSCRIPTIONS: The annual subscription is due at the beginning of the new financial year.  The financial year is 1 July to 30 June.  Members remain financial until midnight of the Annual General Meeting.  The subscription for the 2002/03 financial year is $15 per person or family.
 
 

HIRE  OF  EXTRACTOR  GEAR: Gear is hired out to financial members only.  No member is to pass on gear to another member or person without prior permission.  Under no circumstances is honey to be extracted from hives with AFB or Varroa.  The rental is $10 for three days, with a $20 deposit.  If equipment is deemed to be returned clean, the deposit is refundable at the discretion of the person in charge of the extractor. You will also need to have passed an AFB comptency test, or have a certificate to show that your hives have been inspected recently, and have your Agriquality registration number available. A frame wiring kit is also available for hire.
 
 

CLUB LIBRARY: The loan time for Club books is field day to field day.  Books not returned within three months will have an account sent for replacement value.
 
 

LEGAL REQUIREMENTS: For most areas, The Christchurch City Council limits the number of beehives that may be operated on a residential section to one hive and one nucleus (very small hive). Before acquiring a hive, give some thought as to where on a property you would place it. It is sometimes a balancing act to place the hive in the best situation and at the same time having consideration for the neighbours. Having an experienced beekeeper look at the property should be considered.

All hives and their locations must be registered with The Management Agency (New Zealand Beekeepers' Association of New Zealand) through Agriquality New Zealand. The reason for this is that in the event of an outbreak of disease or pest, Agriquality knows where all hives are. There is no cost to have hives registered. An agreement is entered into between the beekeeper and the New Zealand Beekeepers' Association regarding the standard of hive maintenance, known as a DECA. The Club will provide a beginner with guidance on this. To register an apiary site please contact the Agriquality Officer for Canterbury, Tony Roper, ph 358 1830, Private Bag 4718, Christchurch

A beekeeper is considered to be a hobbyist if they do not exceed 10 hives or 3 sites (apiaries). Should you exceed either of these maximums the National Beekeepers' Association charges a levy towards the disease prevention programme and other aspects of the beekeeping industry.

The beekeeper must annually certify that his/her hives are disease free. To do this the beekeeper is expected to pass a test on disease recognition, which will give them the title "approved beekeeper". In the event of the beekeeper not achieving this status or in the case of a beginner, they will need to get an "approved beekeeper" to certify their hives as disease free. Club members in their first season of beekeeping will be given assistance with this.
 
 

DECA COURSES: Two of our members run DECA courses outside of the Club and they are Lindsay Moir ph 388 3313 and Jeff Chandler ph 385 5375
 
 

SWARM COLLECTION: Any member that wishes to make themselves available to collect swarms on behalf of the City Council and/or terrified citizens (without charging for their services) should contact Peter Silcock ph 342 9415 or Lindsay Moir ph 388 3313
 
 

COST OF A HIVE: The cost of buying new woodwork for a basic 4 box hive would be about $160, this does not include nails and paint. However buying a second hand hive together with all the bees and food stores, you would generally expect to pay between $80 to $140 depending on the condition of the woodware, bee population and food stores. The Club would endeavour to have an experienced member check the hive with you, to see that it is disease free. You could expect to pay more if there is a honey crop on the hive. A box full of honey would contain about 20 kg of honey, which is considerable value in itself and would offset the initial cost. Other items required are overalls, hat, veil, gloves, smoker and hive tool; again these items are cheaper if bought second hand.

A properly run hive in the town are should yield between 50-60 kg (some will produce 100 kg) of honey per season. Hives in the rural areas are generally more dependant on the seasonal variations.

It would pay to do a little research by accessing the books available at the public library or the Club library, but remember that most books are written with respect to the Northern Hemisphere.
 
 

More information on beekeeping available www.nba.org.nz