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You have an extraordinary capacity for inventing ‘Facts’. You have not established my winter bees had been compromised by not treating in autumn. The fall in Sep did not reach the level of 8/day requiring effective control according to Fig 50 in Defra’s handbook. as said, vr are at a very low...

Monitoring vr fall is the method recognised in Defra’s Managing Varroa handbook - and is the method listed on page 58 of the second edition, 2021, of ‘Having Healthy Honeybees by John McMullen. Those authorities are good enough for me. I treated with oxalic at Xmas time, as I have for many...

And such outright denial that there could be some link between two extra-ordinary situations is the way to block any progress in understanding how bees may work.

I am not wondering if colonies died by congesting ivy honey - I am only wondering if foraging for ivy wore out the winter bees, so they died after Xmas rather than maintaining a winter cluster thu to spring.

My apiaries with 18 cols going into winter, the Bee inspector 15 miles away losing half, the second largest beekeeper in Hitchin losing many, the chair of the local branch of BBKA losing many. How many before you agree not isolated incidents?

Ian asks about varroa treatment. I do rely on the varroa board to indicate strength of infection - and all my colonies had minute falls - difficult to find and vr at all. So I delayed until after Xmas to treat all cols with Oxalic vapour - and got negligible falls. Unless my eyesight is...

In the south east, but perhaps not in Wales, we have had two exceptional events occurring at the same time - huge surge in ivy crop and huge increase in colony deaths in hives very well supplied with sealed stores. so it is reasonable to look for a link between the two. The argument that a...

Here is typical die out. Half the summer brood area is still covered by stores. No pollen arch. Frame is home-made, 11x18 inches (goes in ordinary extractor).

There have been heavy losses in north Hertfordshire - I lost just over 50%, thr local NBU Seasonal Bee Inspector lost 50%, the chair of the local BBKA association has lost 25%. The Bee Inspector, who is also a queen breeder, has no clear explanation. Every col shows pretty much the same, plenty...

The group who founded BBKA were successful business men I believe, not notable ultra-rich. Today, there are many retirees on good pensions who may be bored with no company to run any longer. but someone could try Sunak as long shot!

All architects, engineers, surveyors builders in the construction industry for a start. Then just about all professions that depend for public confidence on the practitioners being trained and proficient. Google ‘institutes‘ and see the long lists of all forms of institutes, including Inn...

Again, you go for total dismissal of anything that is not your own opinion, wondering at ‘who the target market is’, implying there isn’t one. It‘s tedious replying to you. If any group is alienated, ie turned away by what I say, that is their freedom and choice. There are several political...

Glad to have your confirmation that your view on my alienation is completely unevidenced. just your way of putting down everything that is said not by yourself. I find conversation with you is a waste of time. Lets just agree to disagree and push on.

before Ian ‘s post above he posted that I had alienated queen breeders, commercial beekeepers and serious amateurs. He gave no evidence .. posts in this debate have been all about how BBKA does not manage to fill the bill for an organisation to take British beekeeping forward. Change always...

Yes you are right. Ordinary Membership of the Civil Engineers for example is determined by examination/interview of work experience. Directors of firms qualify for higher membership grade. Prospective members gaining enough experience can join first as associate members. Civil engineers who do...

This is so true. And an encouraging example. IMHO Research should aim to improve understanding on the reservoir of behaviours that enable a colony to cope with whatever variations the weather throws at it. I would suggest breaking down the annual cycle of the colony into steps. On swarming -...

Running a proper beekeeping institute would cost money for central staff, assisted by volunteers for some activities such as sending out newsletters. - but it could be shown to be worthwhile. There are 45,000 beekeepers in UK, 5,000 may be serious, willing to pay say £100 to 250 pa. King...

Yes. Many associations but little co-ordination. The heavy research should not however be government led - that means decided by a minister on advice from civil servants. The research programme should be led by a professor and carried out by well-chosen experienced proficients. As could/would...

You cant just dismiss the large number of Institutes/Institutions as a closed shop. The British Institute og Innkeepers has run for 40 years, they say, membership of the willing. The Institution of Civil Engineers has 95,000 members world-wide. It awards professional qualifications, leads...

‘Raw’ is rather an old word I would say that is applied to many articles - the Concise Oxford Dictionary gives it about 3 inches - ‘uncooked / not or not completely manufactured. ‘Raw material’ is ‘that out of which any process of manufacture makes the article it produces’ - so raw honey is...