The care needed when handling a colony of honeybees.
The reactions of honeybees to smoke.
The personal equipment needed to open a colony of honeybees and the importance of its cleanliness.
The reasons for opening a colony.
The need for stores.
The importance of record keeping.
The candidate will be able to:
Open a colony of honeybees and keep the colony under control.
Demonstrate lighting and the use of the smoker.
Demonstrate the use of the hive tool.
Remove combs from the hive and identify worker, drone and queen cells or cups if present.
Identify the female casts and the drone.
Identify brood at all stages
Demonstrate the difference between drone, worker and honey cappings.
Identify stored honey, nectar and pollen.
Take a sample of worker bees in a match box or similar container.
State the number of worker bees required for an adult disease diagnosis sample.
Demonstrate how to shake bees from a comb and how to look for signs of brood disease.
Section 2 - EQUIPMENT
The candidate will be:
Able to name and explain the function of the principal parts of a modern beehive.
Aware of the concept of bee space and its significance in the modern beehive.
Able to assemble a frame and fit it with foundation.
Aware of the reasons for the use of wax foundation.
Aware of the spacing of the combs in the brood chamber and super for both foundation and drawn comb and methods used to achieve this spacing.
Section 3 - PRACTICE OF BEEKEEPING
The candidate will be:
Able to give an elementary description of how to set up an apiary.
Able to describe the precautions which should be taken to avoid the honeybees being a nuisance to neighbours and livestock.
Able to describe the possible effects of honeybee stings and to recommend suitable first aid treatment.
Able to give an elementary description of the annual cycle of work in the apiary.
Able to describe the preparation of sugar syrup and how and when to feed honeybees.
Aware of the need to add supers, and the timing of the operation.
Able to give an elementary account of one method of swarm control.
Able to give an account of an elementary method of producing a new queen.
Able to describe the signs of a queenless colony and how to test if a colony is queenless.
Able to describe the signs of laying workers and of a drone laying queen.
Able to describe a simple method of queen introduction.
Aware of the dangers of robbing and how it can be avoided.
Able to describe one method of uniting colonies.
Aware of the reasons for uniting bees and the precautions to be taken.
Able to describe methods of securing stocks prior to moving.
Able to state the risks in transporting live honeybee colonies.
Able to describe a method of clearing honeybees from supers.
Able to describe the process of extracting honey from combs and a method of straining and bottling honey suitable for a small scale beekeeper.
Aware of the need for good hygiene in the handling of honey for human consumption.
Aware of the legal requirements for the labelling and sale of honey.
Able to give an elementary account of the harvesting of beeswax.
Aware of the need for good apiary hygiene.
Aware of the need for regular brood comb replacement.
Able to describe how to take a honeybee swarm and how to hive it
Section 4 - NATURAL HISTORY OF THE HONEYBEE
The candidate will be:
Able to give an elementary account of the development of queens, workers and drones in the honeybee colony.
Able to state the periods spent by the female casts and the drones in the four stages of their life (egg, larva, pupa, adult).
Able to give an elementary description of the function of the queen, worker and drone in the life of the colony.
Able to give a simple description of wax production and comb building by the honeybee.
Aware of the importance of pollination to flowering plants, and consequently to farmers and growers.
Able to name the main local flora from which honey bees gather pollen and nectar.
Able to give a simple definition of nectar and a simple description of how it is collected, brought back to the hive and converted into honey.
Able to give a simple description of the collection and use of pollen, water and propolis in the honeybee colony.
Able to give an elementary description of swarming in a honeybee colony.
Able to give an elementary description of the way in which the honeybee colony passes the winter.
Section 5 - DISEASES, POISONS AND PESTS
The candidate will be:
Able to describe the appearance of healthy brood.
Able to describe the signs of the bacterial diseases American Foul Brood (AFB) and European Foul Brood (EFB) and the fungal disease chalk brood and describe their effects on the colony.
Able to detect the presence of Varroa (a mite) and describe its effects on the colony including an awareness of the effects of associated viruses.
Aware of acarine (a mite), nosema (a microsporidian fungus) and braula (a wingless fly) stating their effects on the colony.
Able to describe ways of controlling Varroa using integrated pest management techniques.
Aware of current legislation regarding notifiable diseases and pests of honeybees.
Aware of the national and local facilities which exist to verify honeybee diseases and advise on treatment.
Aware where to obtain assistance if any poisoning by toxic chemicals is suspected.
Able to describe how comb can be stored to prevent wax moth damage.
Able to describe how mice and other pests can be excluded from hives in the winter.