February 4 Meeting – Planning for the Year

7:00-7:30 Beginners session and Q&A (Robert Clark)
– Checking the health of the overwintered colony
– Preparing for spring
7:30-8:00 Tea time and announcements
8:00-9:00 The year in beekeeping (Nathan Rausch)
A review of the annual stages of the honey bee hive through the year, including how beekeeper action impacts hive activity 6 months later.  How a blackberry honey harvest in July actually starts with preparations in the autumn, and other details you may not have learned in your beekeeping 101 course.

First meeting of the year! Lots to plan: woodenware, packages, classes, mentoring, and other preparations for the new bee season.

2014 beginners sessions: This year’s Beginners sessions will use the same presenter, long-time beekeeper Robert Clark, to provide continuity and a preview of what beginning beekeepers should do for the upcoming month. Topics will be based on an annual, local beekeeping management calendar (Feb-Nov). Each 30-minute session will usually have 15 minutes on upcoming colony activities, followed by Q&A.  Emphasis will be on basic principles of how honeybees respond to beekeepers’ actions. Click here for the beginners’ hive calendar.

Upcoming main topics:
March:  Orchard mason bees (Roger Ledbetter)
April:  Small-scale queen rearing (Paul Hosticka)
Details will be posted after the February meeting.

Meetings are 7:00-9:00 pm on the first Tuesday of each month at Meadowbrook Interpretive Center (directions to Meadowbrook). Meetings are open to the public.

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