Bee Together
Bee Social - Bee Prepared Meeting 13 January 2015
Table 1: Session for People Intending to Set Up a Beehive in 2015 Led by Joe Molitor
The participants at the table were: Barbara Fischer, Kerry Goergen-Todd, Priit Rohusaar, David Xavier
Summary written by Kerry Goergen-Todd and reviewed by John and Hubert.
Introductions and Sharing Beehives A group of 3 participants will be sharing bee hives, which are already under the care of one of the
group, a man from Roodt-Syre (or in that area). He has some experience already, has 2 hives and his
two friends will be joining him now and sharing the care. They are also expecting to acquire more
colonies in spring 2015.
Priit had hives in Estonia and would like to continue with beekeeping in Luxembourg. He moved here
recently and is living in the city limits. He “inherited” the colonies in Estonia when he bought a house
there so they were already well established hives and he share some of his experiences.
Generally, our discussion was more of an introductory round with each of us sharing our “how did you
get into beekeeping” stories.
Mentoring We discussed mentoring, who to ask for help and for Priit the biggest worry was where would he be
able to keep his bees – often a problem for people living in the city or in built-up areas. We
recommended talking to foresters or farmers, though this is quite easy when you live out in the
countryside but for people in the city it is a bit of an issue – who you consult when looking for
somewhere to keep your bees. Joe did mention that finding a place would never be a problem but we
had to admit that for someone that is not in the Luxembourgish bee clubs it can be much trickier,
obviously due to language and access to the contact details.
Varroa and Winter Preparation We discussed how we had treated our bees for Varroa and prepared them for winter and also shared
our worries whether our colonies will make it through the winter.
There is some information on varroa here which will be updated in late February 2015.
If you are interested in hearing more about varroa and bees, you may be interested in the annual bee
conference in FR and DE on varroa sensitive hygiene:
Bee Informed - Annual Conference - 28ème Colloque apicole international
Sunday, March 29, 2015 from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Please register.
Bee Together Bee Social - Bee Prepared Meeting – 13 January 2015
Table 2: I intend to come to the Theory Courses and Start a Beehive in 2015 Led by Andreas Reichart
The participants at the table were: Monica Andersson, Christian Bintener, Carol McCarthy, Laura and
Gianfranco Margaria Picchietti (Picchi)
Summary written by Carol McCarthy and reviewed by John and Hubert.
What causes varroa to be worse in some years than others? Varroa are worse in years when spring comes early, so in 2014 spring was very early and in 2014 the
varroa were much worse than in 2013 when spring was cold and very late. When spring is early the
varroa mite has a longer season to develop and spread.
What are the best ways to control the varroa mite? Answer: a three pronged summer attack followed by winter treatment
a) Cut drone brood out of frames before they hatch. Varoa particularly like drone brood and enter it
before it's capped. By cutting it out (i.e. removing the infected drones from the hive) this prevents the
varroa surviving on the hatched drone and thus reduces the infestation in the hive early in the season.
b) Treat new brood frames before they are capped with either 3.5% oxalic acid or 15% lactic acid (both
products are considered organic). Only when you make new colonies, treat them after 4 weeks when
the new queen is laying and also feed the colony. The colony will start with only with few varroas.
c) Treat after honey harvest at the end of July / beginning August.
Depending on the size of the colony, a tube filled with up to 300ml of formic acid (Nassenheider
classic). The tube is positioned diagonally in the hive, so that with the warmth from the bees it
evaporates. Leave it there for 11-12 days. Feed after this treatment (do not treat for 14 days) and then
repeat the whole process for a second time. You can use also dispenser which you put on the top of
the frames (Liebig Dispenser or Nassenheider Professional).
d) Winter treatment. On 21 December or a day or two later or before (when it's 1-2°C) take a syringe
filled with 50ml of oxalic acid and drip this solution onto the bees in the gaps between the frames.
It is best to work with an experienced beekeeper to have a practical session to see how to apply these
products.
What made my colony leave the hive in the autumn/early winter? There are a some
dead bees but not the whole colony, where have they gone and why? Probably the colony was heavily infested with varroa (and with virus) and they left to go and die
somewhere away from the hive.
Bee Together Bee Social - Bee Prepared Meeting – 13 January 2015
How should I now clean and prepare the hive for the new season? The frames must be dewaxed with a steam cleaning process. The inside of the hive (if they are
wooden) should be flamed till it is brown but not burnt and black. This treatment will ensure the hive is
rid of any disease or mites. Otherwise you can use hot 3% sodium hydroxide solution.
Table 3: I intend to come to the Theory Courses and I Would Like to Work with
a Mentor Led by Hubert von Dewitz
The participants at the table were: Evgenia Balamoti, Steve Brabbs, Annemie Debackere, Crista Filip,
Amanda Surbey, Tiffany Vickers, Guillaume Pier
Summary written by Steve Brabbs and reviewed by Evgenia, Hubert and John.
Hubert who has 10 hives of Langstroth with local bees.
Beekeeping Federation FUAL Federation of Luxembourg Beekeeping Clubs has about 300 members and it is divided into 12 regional
groups based on the different Cantons / Communes. The local clubs (i.e. Cantons) can offer advice
and mentoring and can help you find a place to keep bees if you don’t have a place.
Where can you have a hive? A beehive should be at least 10 m from a neighbour’s boundary in residential areas, or there has to be
a hedge or solid fence at least 2 m high. You should be a good neighbour and talk to them if there are
problems. It is best if they face south or south-east to catch the early sun and get the hive warmed up
in the morning. They should be protected from winds and should not be in the bottom of a valley or
depression where cold air can collect.
Following this meeting, Hubert clarified the requirements about obtaining permission to have a beehive.
In all cases you should obtain a permit to have bees whether they are in a city/village or in the
countryside - see the end of this document.
What bee races are kept in Luxembourg? The honeybee in latin is Apis mellifera.
An indigenous bee to Europe is the black bee (mellifera), but they have the reputation as being quite
aggressive so is only kept by particular enthusiasts. Another indigenous bee to Europe is the Carnica
(carnica) bee from Austria and Italian (ligustica) bees. A hybrid, called Buckfast, created by a German
monk at Buckfast Abbey in England, is very popular. Buckfast bees breed fast, have high honey
production and don’t swarm often.
Local bees are bees where the queen has been fertilised by whatever males (drones). That is, the
queen has not been artificially inseminated by humans to produce a pure race or a Buckfast.
When do bees swarm? Bees swarm when they outgrow the hive so you have to add ‘supers’ (wooden boxes) to give them
more space. A grill (the queen excluded) separates the brood box where the larva are, from the honey
supers so the queen can’t get in to lay eggs in the honey supers. When a super is added, you can put
Bee Together Bee Social - Bee Prepared Meeting – 13 January 2015
in a few frames with bits of honey left in it to encourage the bees to go up into it. Sometimes a colony
can become aggressive or increase their tendency to swarm through breeding with other bees in the
area, so then you might have to change the queen to get back to the pure strain.
Where do you get hives, queens, equipment etc, and how much does it cost? 30 years ago you had to build your own hives from plans and there was little or no help. Now there are
many different suppliers and bee clubs to help. You need plenty of space to store all the equipment,
especially if you have your own honey extractor.
Hives cost about €150-€200 or you can get self-assembly kits which are cheaper. Then you need sting
proof overall/hood (€50), gloves (€20), a smoker (€30) and a few tools. The price of a colony of bees
will depend on the season and you can usually get them from other local bee keepers who have
swarms. You can reckon ~€300 for a hive and colony. If you want a honey extractor, that would be
€500 - €800.
A list of beekeepers who supply bees is here. A list of Buckfast suppliers is here. Carnica contact
What kind of hives are there? There are several different designs but most used here are Deutsch Normal (tall and narrow), Dadant
with 10 or 12 frames, Zander, and Langstroth. Deutsch Normal and Zander are easy because brood
and supers are the same size. It’s best to stick to one system so all parts are interchangeable.
What about organic honey? Organic means that the bees are:
In a beehive where the queen is not separated from the honey supers;
Fed organic sugar / syrup; and
Treated against the varroa mite using organic products such as formic acid and oxalic acid.
As the bees forage up to 3km from the hive, the beekeeper has little control over the gardening
practices of people and the agricultural practices of farmers. That is, the nectar and pollen collected by
the bees when they forage may contain herbicides and pesticides.
When should you start a new hive? In May or June.
To prevent a split hive moving back to its old hive, move it a long way from the original (e.g. 3km or
more) for a few days, then move it back.
How long does it take for the different bees to hatch? A queen is hatches after 16 days and can live for 4 to 5 years. Workers take 21 days and males,
drones, take 24 days, and each lives for several weeks. If you take a few frames of bees with eggs out
of a hive and put them in a new hive with no queen, they will produce a new queen.
How far will bees fly to forage? 2 to 4 km depending on the weather.
Bee Together Bee Social - Bee Prepared Meeting – 13 January 2015
What are the steps to start keeping bees? Order everything you need towards the end of the year so you have everything for the next season.
When you get the hive, paint it, put wax in the frames and then set everything up ready for when you
get the bees in May/June. Don’t expect to get honey in the first year. Feed through the first winter and
treat against varroa, and add a second brood box. You can get honey from the second year if all goes
well. In case you are lucky, you might be able to buy a colony with all frames for the brood box. In this
case you can expect honey in the first year. Check www.apis.lu “Verkauf von Bienen“
What to avoid? Bees will be more aggressive in thundery weather. Don’t use perfume/aftershave or wear dark clothes.
If you heat honey the Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) value increases and it becomes poisonous to bees,
so if you warmed honey to help get it out of the comb, don’t use this to feed your hives.
Table 4: I have no experience with beekeeping and bees Led by Marc Thiel
The participants at the table were: Marissa Daruwalla, Mireille Di Tullo, Martins Jansons, Sasha Kehoe,
Elsa Kjartansdottir, Vero Kohnen, Tony Miles, Raymond Paul, Francois and Laure Picouleau, Moira
and Philippe Potgieter, Teresa Shourie
Summary: No one volunteered to write a summary :- (
Table 5: I have no experience with beekeeping and bees, and I am Interested
in Natural Beekeeping Led by John Park and Massimo Sabbatucci
The participants at the table were: Nicola; Dot and John Bekker; Zeynep Birsen; Pavol Homola; Steve
and Siobhan Lane; John Park; Massimo Sabbatucci; Martin Stiller; Dominique Sweetnam
Summary written by Dominique Sweetnam and reviewed by Steve and John
All members of the group were asked to present themselves and explain their reasons for coming.
They ranged from people who had always wanted to keep bees, to other just coming for general
information or because they are particularly concerned with the environment and the roles of bees
within this.
Introduction from John about Bee Together Group of beekeepers in Luxembourg from different local beekeeping clubs, interested in educating
people about beekeeping, and the importance of pollinators and habitat protection, and providing
information to people in English.
2015 is the first year they organised theory courses in English for those interested in becoming
beekeepers.
2013 was the first year where practical hands-on sessions were organised by SIAS.
Bee Together Bee Social - Bee Prepared Meeting – 13 January 2015
Bee Together wants to provide a structure of more experienced beekeepers providing demonstrations
and mentoring for new beekeepers.
It will also help new beekeepers find land for their hives, in some cases with the support of the nature
and environment association, natur&ëmwelt.
Bee Together can also provide information on the suppliers of equipment and bees: hives, colonies,
and organic products for treating the Varroa parasite.
Beekeeping can be divided into 2 styles:
Bee-friendly: more respectful of the bees' lifecycle, less handling of the bees and hives, more “natural”.
Beekeeper-friendly: more conventional approach, may require more handling of the bees, more often,
and likely easier to extract products such as honey.
The group was asked to propose some questions which were regrouped into themes and discussed.
Main types of Hives in Luxembourg General
Requires regular checking (once every week or once every 2 weeks);
Have about 40,000 to 60,000 bees per hive during the summer; and
Requires treatment against the Varroa parasite.
Dadant-Blath or Deutsch Normal:
“Beekeeper-friendly”;
Conventional style hives, generally with prepared wax frames;
Additional boxes are added on top;
The comb frames can be more easily removed and examined; and
To extract the honey the frames are put in a centrifuge.
Warré - an example of a top-bar hive (used by John and Massimo):
more “Bee-friendly” hives;
Bees have to build the entire comb from Toblerone-shaped wooden bars;
Additional boxes are added underneath;
To extract the honey, the combs are crushed, then filtered several times; and
John’s hives are made of Larch wood.
If you would like more detailed information on the beehive systems, please contact us.
About bees In Luxembourg there are 3 main varieties of bees: Buckfast, Carnica and the local bee. Most people
buy their bees and queen. The Buckfast variety is supposed to be calmer and therefore more
Beekeeper-friendly. Black bees have the reputation of being more aggressive.
Queens live normally 5 years. When she is fertilised, she stores the sperm in a sperm sack and stores
enough sperm for 5 years.
Bees need about 40 cubic litres of warm dry space. They build queen cells, where the larvae are fed
Royal Jelly. The ideal hive temperature is 35°C.
Citronella or mint may attract a swarm of bees to enter an empty box.
Bee Together Bee Social - Bee Prepared Meeting – 13 January 2015
If the old Queen decides to leave a hive, she will leave with approximately half the bees in the hive,
making a swarm. In Luxembourg it is very difficult to obtain a natural swarm as beekeepers often
artificially divide a hive to prevent it from swarming. There should be a Bee Swarm helpline to provide
help for people disturbed by a swarm.
To divide / split a conventional hive, you would get a queen cell on a frame, take some frames with
honey, and some frames with brood / larvae and put them in another hive. A Warré hive is left to
swarm naturally. That is, the swarm leaves the hive and the beekeeper, if they are lucky, catches it in a
place nearby.
If you find a swarm of bees in your garden, you can contact one of these beekeepers to come and
collect it.
Average start-up cost of a hive – approximately €500 Beehive €200 (including parts).
Colony with a queen €100-150.
Clothing (hat, gloves, veil, jacket) €100 depending on quality.
Federation/Club membership €40.
There are additional expenses you need to consider too, such as equipment to extract your honey and
melt your wax. Some discussions are underway to consider sharing this equipment among
beekeepers.
Time investment for Beekeeping Depending on the type of hive, weekly or every 2 weeks checks are required to monitor the bees’
activity (collecting pollen or nectar, are bees from different hives attacking each other?...)
Regulations regarding Beekeeping Hives need to be min. 10m from any boundary
There should be a hedge close to the hive to “force” the bees to fly up on leaving the hive.
A hive should be oriented south south-east for spring sun.
You need to register your hives. Information on your hives needs to be provided:
Number of hives
GPS coordinates of the hives
No. of hives lost in a year and the reason
Upcoming beekeeping theory courses The theory courses are prefixed with "Bee Informed" and suffixed with "Collaborative Learning", and
are listed here:
http://www.eventbrite.com/o/bee-together-luxembourg-6875740615
Bee Together Bee Social - Bee Prepared Meeting – 13 January 2015
Upcoming Bee Together events Most of our previous and future events can be found here:
http://www.eventbrite.com/o/bee-together-luxembourg-6875740615
In addition, there will be beekeeping demonstration sessions, likely every Saturday afternoon from 2pm
to 4pm from April to end June.
Membership Membership of a local beekeeping club entitles you to regular newsletters the Beien Zeitung (only in
German).
As a member you can get bee-friendly flower seeds from the Beekeeping Federation (FUAL) for free to
sow them.
More information on the benefits of membership can be found here:
http://www.slideshare.net/BeeTogetherLux/beekeepers-local-club-membership-application-form
Newsletter There will be an article on Bee Together in the February issue of Beien Zeitung. Bee Together issued
a newsletter in February in 2 formats:
SlideShare http://www.slideshare.net/BeeTogetherLux/bee-together-newsletter-2015-02
issuu http://issuu.com/beetogetherlux/docs/bee_together_newsletter_2015_02
Which format do you prefer and why? Send us your feedback!
How we can help the bees A flyer will be produced in late February / early March 2015 on what individuals can do to help bees
and pollinators. Please contact us if you would like a link to the flyer.
Local Produce As a consumer each of us make choices in what we purchase, for example, to eat that can be more
favourable to pollinators
A list of organic fruit, vegetable and honey producers can be found here.
Co-labor baskets of organic produce http://www.co-labor.com/index.php/activites/grengekuerf
Farm in Munsbach – see: http://www.lespaniersdesandrine.lu/ or
https://www.facebook.com/LesPaniersDeSandrine
Online Presence Dot suggested setting up a Facebook page for Bee Together; she could provide help to set it up.
Bee Together Bee Social - Bee Prepared Meeting – 13 January 2015
References http://www.uni.illinois.edu/~stone2/bee_life_stages.html
http://www.beespace.illinois.edu/files/stone-bee-biology.pdf
https://agdev.anr.udel.edu/maarec/honey-bee-biology/
http://www.uky.edu/Ag/Entomology/ythfacts/4h/beekeep/beebio&s.htm
http://ag.arizona.edu/pubs/insects/ahb/inf3.html
http://ag.montana.edu/plantgrowth/documents/honeybeebiology.pdf including bee race origins and bee race
characteristics
https://ecommons.library.cornell.edu/bitstream/1813/2653/2/Bait%20Hives%20for%20Honey%20Bees.pdf on bait
hives
Please tell us of your favourite links and videos so that we can share them.
Bees in the City / Bees in the Villages If you wish to consider having bees in Luxembourg City or in a village, you will need to consult the
Luxembourgish law on the subject. In particular, refer to page 1935 and 1936 of the pdf file. For ease
of reference, an extract is given below.
http://www.legilux.public.lu/leg/a/archives/1999/0100/1999A19321.html?highlight=agricole%22classe%
224
http://www.legilux.public.lu/leg/a/archives/1999/0100/a100.pdf#page=30
II. Prescriptions spécifiques (pg. 1933)
[… to page 1935]
E. Conditions spécifiques concernant les ruchers d'abeilles dans les parties agglomérées des
communes
1. Toutes les mesures appropriées (p. ex. emplacement des ouvertures des ruchers, écrans de
verdure, etc.) doivent être prises pour éviter des nuisances anormales pour le voisinage immédiat.
Art 4. Concernant la sécurité, la salubrité ou la commodité par rapport au public, au voisinage
ou au personnel des établissements.
[… to page 1936]
C. Conditions concernant les ruchers d'abeilles dans les parties agglomérées des communes
1. Les ruchers doivent être installés de manière que le proche voisinage n'est pas incommodé et au
moins à une distance de 10 mètres de la limite du terrain voisinant.
2. Les ruches sont à placer de telle manière que la direction d'envol des abeilles soit dirigée dans le
sens opposé des maisons d'habitation.
3. La voie d'approche des abeilles est à dévier à la hauteur des ruches par exemple par un rideau de
haies ou par une palissade ayant une hauteur minimale de deux mètres (2 m) aux fins d'empêcher les
abeilles à continuer leur trajectoire jusqu'aux alentours immédiats des habitations.
Bee Together Bee Social - Bee Prepared Meeting – 13 January 2015
4. Les ruchers de transhumances ainsi que les ruchers fixes situés en dehors des agglomérations
doivent être dûment signalés par un panneau comportant le nom, le numéro de téléphone et l'adresse
exacte de leur propriétaire.
5. L'apiculteur exploitant un rucher doit être détenteur d'une assurance à responsabilité civile.
[…]
Bees Outside of the City / Villages If you wish to consider having bees in the countryside, you will need to consult the relevant person in
your Arrondissement.
You can find the Arrondissement that corresponds to the land on which you intend to have your hives
by consulting this link that shows a map of all the "Regional nature and forest districts"
(Arrondissement) in the country:
http://www.environnement.public.lu/functions/apropos_du_site/anf/Divis_terr_anf.pdf
Alternatively, go to http://emwelt.geoportail.lu/?lang=en
Click on "Administrative units of forest administration"
then click on "Regional nature and forest districts".
In this document, you will find the contact person from your Arrondissement and your commune:
http://www.environnement.public.lu/functions/apropos_du_site/anf/anf_organigramme.pdf
