August 2017
BEE NEWS
Straight from the Hive!
Meet the Beekeeper! On the 1st September 1973 Alva Louis Deane registered his apiary of ten colonies and began beekeeping supported by his wife Elsie with his son Gordon as his assistant. Docile Italian bees (Apis mellifera ligustica) flitted from flower to flower gathering pollen and nectar for their hives. Honey then was TT$25.00 a bottle. Then came the arrival of aggressive Africanized bees (Apis mellifera scutellata) and five years later, in 1979, both men decide to quit beekeeping. Young Gordon, however, missed working with the bees and imagined having his own apiary someday when he was able to manage them himself. Gordon Deane graduated from the Government’s beekeeper training programme in August 2014 and less than a year later, with the advice and guidance of Hayden Sinanan, Inspector of Apiaries, Gordon’s dream became reality when he registered his apiary of ten colonies continuing the family tradition of beekeeping. He also receives coaching from Ricardo Dandrade, a commercial beekeeper whom he met at the Caribbean Bee Keeping Conference held in Tobago in 2016. Gordon has been a busy man all his life, but now with some free time on his hands, he decided to return to his former passion. Beekeeping has also allowed him to incorporate his other passion – woodworking and he builds all his bee boxes from the Cedar trees grown on his estate. Gordon’s family also help in the honey business, with his wife Beverly and son Andrew taking on the role of assistant honey extractors. And the bees!! Well they are the same Africanized bees which worried his father, Alva, all those years ago. Yes, Gordon has had his share of stings but as he says, “You can’t play sailor and be afraid of powder”.
Bee Fact! To place an order
Bees need a coffee kick start The day does not start for some of us without a cup of coffee, and this is also the case for some bees which get a “jump start” from consuming nectar that contains caffeine. This caffeine is naturally found in the nectar of the flowers of some plants which may have evolved this as an incentive to attract more bees. … Dr. Jo-Anne Sewlal
email us at elsiesfinest@gmail.com
News from the Apiary! Excitement was building as I drove up the hill last Friday on Mundo Nuevo Trace and approached the location of the apiary. The week before, we had collected several sealed super frames of beautiful “Mora honey”, another of the natural forest honey that we produce. The weather had been mostly good this week and I was looking forward to discovering what the bees had been up to. Last year the honey flow from the extensive Mora forest (Mora excelsa) in this area of our Northern Range lasted for six weeks. This would be the second week of production if the trees continue to flower as they did in 2016 and if the weather remains fine. We soon got suited up and gathered all that was needed for our inspection. As we entered the apiary and began to examine each colony, the tell-tale signs of Mora nectar and pollen were revealed by a dusting of white pollen scattered at the entrances. As we opened the boxes, the sweet aroma hit us and the sight of sealed frames of “Mora honey” was a welcome reward for our many weeks of preparation. The “Mora honey” flow had begun in earnest. There is much to look forward to. … Gordon Deane
A Chance Meeting that resulted in a Working Friendship I met Gordon in 2014 when he attended the Ministry’s beekeeping course which I conducted. I met him for a second time when he came into my work place seeking further information and guidance. We struck up a conversation and I offered to help with his beekeeping pursuits. After a successful site visit to his estate in 2015 and some further advice, the project commenced. To date that beekeeping enterprise has successfully grown from a humble start to approximately 30 colonies. This success can be attributed both to the tenacity of this new beekeeper and the weekly advice that was acted upon over the last 2 years. Again this all started by a chance meeting and a successful one week training course back in 2014.
Elsie’s Finest Honey, $180 for a 750 ml bottle.
… Hayden Sinanan — Inspector of Apiaries, Trinidad and Tobago
Health Tips! Unusual uses for honey The ancient Egyptians used honey to treat wounds as early as 3000 BC. Today, honey is still being used for that purpose. According to the Nursing Standard, honey speeds up the healing process by stimulating wound tissues. It’s so effective that, in 2006, a Manchester hospital began importing honey to help treat patients after surgery.
In This Issue Managing Editor Dr Jo-Anne N. Sewlal BSc., MPhil., Ph.D., FLS., CBiol., CSci., MRSB., FRES., FRGS., FBNA., R. Anim. Sci., MIEnvSc. Content Editor: Breanne Mc Ivor MA (Cantab), MSc (Edin) Layout Design: Dr. Jo-Anne Sewlal Contributors: Gordon Deane, Hayden Sinan Breanne Mc Ivor, and Dr. Jo-Anne Sewlal