The main celebration marking the anniversary will take place in September. The society has 82 hard-working beekeepers who keep around 900 bee colonies in the municipality of Cerklje; they keep bees mainly as a hobby and are united in the beekeeping society, and 75 beekeepers attended the annual general meeting. The villages below Krvavec boast a rich beekeeping history. At the 100th annual general meeting, members reviewed the past year’s work and adopted an ambitious work programme for this year, the jubilee year. They held a minute’s silence in memory of beekeeper Štefan Polajnar, who died last year.
Beekeepers still pursue the reasons and goals for which their predecessors founded the Beekeeping Society on 29 January 1920, said Miha Štular, president of the Cerklje Beekeeping Society (ČD Cerklje). At Davorin Jenko Primary School in Cerklje, a successful beekeeping club for pupils, mentored by Boris Jereb, has six young beekeepers. Marko Verbič was elected chair of the meeting. Deserving members of ČD Cerklje received society awards and third-class Anton Janša decorations for special contributions to the advancement of Slovenian beekeeping. These were presented to Polona Kuhar, Vinko Slapnik and Jože Kosem. Beekeepers Ivan Jenko, Jože Brankovič and Jože Klemenc were nominated for the highest awards of the ČZS (Slovenian Beekeepers’ Association), the first- and second-class Anton Janša decorations, while the Mayor of the Municipality of Cerklje, Franc Čebulj, was nominated for the ‘Best Mayor’ award.
A new leadership was elected, with Miha Štular elected president of ČD Cerklje for a second term. Members also adopted an ambitious work programme for the society’s centenary. The main celebration will be held in September; to mark the anniversary, the society will publish a brochure, hold monthly meetings from April to September at its well-kept apiary, organise training sessions and, in December, hold a Mass for beekeepers at Sv. Ambrož.
Mira Jenko Rogelj, MSc, a veterinarian at the Kranj unit of the National Veterinary Institute, said that last year’s beekeeping season had been poor in terms of yields. In previous years, beekeepers had harvested around two thousand tonnes of honey, but last year it was less than 500 tonnes. She drew attention to bee diseases, the problem of feeding bees and the extremely poor foraging conditions. There were no contagious bee diseases in the Cerklje area last year, while the situation across Gorenjska (Upper Carniola) varied. The meeting was also addressed by guests, who wished the society every success and continued cooperation in the future: Lovro Legat, representative of the Gorenjska Beekeepers’ Association and vice-president of the Bled-Gorje Beekeeping Society (ČD); Janko Šarlija, representative of ČD Komenda; Janez Zamljen, representative of ČD Kamnik; and the Mayor of the Municipality of Cerklje, Franc Čebulj, who congratulated the beekeepers on their achievements. The society is actively affiliated with the Slovenian Beekeepers’ Association and, since 2002, also with the Gorenjska Beekeepers’ Association.
