Category: Club News

Hello beekeepers and honey bee enthusiasts!

April has proven to be quite busy in many apiaries. We have been splitting colonies, catching swarms and adding supers for quite a few weeks, it seems! The flowers and trees are blooming and the temperature is stabilizing a bit. If the rain keeps up and doesn’t wash out the young buds and blossoms, we are in for a good season.

Keep the RPBBA Swarm Line handy to share with friends, neighbors, anyone who may need help with a swarm. Encourage people that you meet to call the swarm line instead of using pesticides or calling an exterminator.

RPBBA Swarm Line

(804) 404-BEE1 or (804) 404-2331

May Calendar of Events (all meetings take place at Rockwood Park Nature Center)

Monday, May 13th – RPBBA Monthly Meeting, 7pm (social gathering 6:30pm)

Monday, May 20th – Beekeeping Study Group, 7pm and WORLD BEE DAY!

Tuesday, May 14th & 28th – Honey Bee Festival Planning Committee, 7pm Zoom

May Meeting- During the May meeting, Sue Rawlings from the East Richmond Beekeeping Association, will share her work as an advocate for having the honeybee designated as the VA state pollinator. Following up on the April meeting, we will discuss semantics of this designation and ways we can talk about the benefits of honeybees as they relate to and possibly impact native bees. We will also have a short micro skills segment during the meeting to discuss laying worker issues.

Honey Bee Festival – Saturday, June 22nd Add to Google Calendar

Leading up to the festival, please consider the following:

1. Volunteering on the day of the festival (and/or the Friday before) The festival is larger this year and therefore, we need more volunteers:)

We are happy for all the help we can get; however the following festival areas are in need of the most help.

•Education

•Bake Sale

•Operations

•Guest Experiences (plantings & club table)

You do not have to be a beekeeper or a member of a bee club to volunteer. Volunteers can be kids, family, friends, co-workers, etc. The only requirement is a smile, flexibility and a willingness to help. All volunteers receive a free HBF tee-shirt, learn a lot and have a ton of fun!

More details, including a signup form, can be found here:https://forms.gle/vvwUjwffUB8xhuLS9

2. Other Ways to Pitch In We have several sign-up’s open to support our committee’s. Here’s how you can help

👉Choose something to bake for the bake sale

👉Loan the club a canopy or table

👉Allow RPBBA to extract your honey supers

👉Supply drones for the Drone Petting Zoo

3. Spread the Word What fun is a festival without attendees? Word of mouth and social media are helpful tools to invite others. We have information about the festival on our website, a flier, and an event setup on Facebook. All can be shared. Please help to spread the buzz so we can make this year’s festival a success.

Beekeeping Study Group

For those who have never checked it out, the study group is a great way for RPBBA members to further their beekeeping knowledge. There is no requirement for attendees to pursue certification. The study group is open to all members who want to learn. During the study group sessions, questions from the VSBA Apprentice Study Guide VSBA Apprentice Study Guide are posed for the group to discuss and answer together. There is much to learn during open discussion with our peers!

The study group meets monthly on the 3rd Monday of each month.

Meet Your Friendly Neighborhood Beekeeper: Martha Card

Q: How long have you been a beekeeper and how many hives do you manage?

I got involved with beekeeping about 4 years ago. Although I don’t have my own hives, I am part of the Chesterfield Master Gardeners Bee Team. The program started when a hive was donated and Rick McCormick started mentoring the team.

Q: What inspired you to become a beekeeper?

While enjoying a beautiful evening on my deck I decided it would be nice to have a hive in my yard so I could take honey out of it whenever I wanted. LOL. I googled beekeeper associations and found Rockwood Park Backyard Beekeeper Association. I signed up for the next available class and have attended as many classes as I can since then, including events and classes at Dandelion Springs and the monthly study group. I am inspired by all the members of RPBBA and Rick McCormick who are always willing to answer your questions, which usually begin with IT DEPENDS. 🙂

Q: What is the best thing about beekeeping for you?

It is so rewarding when your knowledge pays off and you understand what MAY be going on in the hives. I enjoy being a member of the Bee Team and sharing information with each other. I look forward to learning more and sharing more.

Q: What’s challenging about beekeeping for you?

I find myself second guessing myself and can’t decide what to do. You get different answers to your questions and just hope you make the right decision. I am certain this will get better with experience and study.

Q: What fun, surprising story would you like to share?

There are always surprises, like when your sugar board is full of comb and drone brood. What is fun is our team doing an event and seeing the look on children’s faces when they see our observation hive. I also enjoy being a member of this association. I am so grateful for all of you and your support. I want to give Rick McCormick a special thank you for his mentorship.

Beekeepers Around Town

Gene DiSalvo participated in Kaechele Elementary School’s Career Day (Henrico County Public Schools) for the 2nd year. This year it was too cold to have an observation hive, but the bee puppet was a hit with kids of all ages! Gene was swamped with kids asking questions and also sharing their knowledge about honey bees and other pollinators (funny when you have a half-dozen kids all excitedly talking to you at the same time)! It was encouraging to hear how much they know about this important pollinator and care about its future existence.

See if you can spot Gene in the group picture.

Hollee Freeman worked with students at the Steward School grades pre-K-12th grade all in one day, as well as participated in their Nature Play Expo. She covered topics such as bees and sleeping, cognition, personality, learning and emotions + the regular stuff :0.

Some of the questions asked by the 12th grade honors psychology class included:

• How do bees communicate emotions with each other?

• Do bees have different communication with different relationships?

• Do bees inherit altruistic traits?

• Do bees dream?

Huge thanks to Kristi Orcutt (and Alex Wright) who jumped right in to help during the Earth Day event at the Petersburg Oasis Youth Farm!

There were more than 100 children and adults in the space of 2 hours! Hollee was busy with the bats so Kristi jumping in was very much appreciated! Whew, thank you! #teamwork

This Month in the Hive (May)

This month, hives should be buzzing. You may be able to see pollen being brought into the hive since this is peak egg laying season for the queen. Your hives may be bursting with bees. The brood nest will extend across 7-8 frames and may reach into 2 full brood boxes in your stronger hives by the end of the month.

A strong hive may collect and store as much as 7 lbs of nectar per sunny, bright day. The bees will combine the nectar with enzymes they produce, and place the nectar in honeycomb cells to evaporate the nectar and age it into honey. Honey will be capped when it reaches under 18% water content. A strong hive working on a good nectar flow in May can cap as much as 80 pounds of mature honey during this month.

If the queen has over-wintered with the hive, then watch for queen cells/signs of swarming. Make certain that the queen has enough room to lay 800-1000 eggs per day, and that she may do so for the entire 21 day cycle for production of a worker. This will mean that a queen in peak fertility will need at least 1 deep and 1 medium super for brood production. (Many beekeepers provide 2 deep brood boxes for this purpose.) If the brood production area has become honey-bound (more than ½ the brood frames are more than ½ full of honey), then provide a larger brood nest or remove honey frames and substitute foundation.

Watch for a failing or disappeared queen. If all the brood is drone brood, then the queen is failing, or has disappeared and been replaced by laying workers. If this occurs, you should combine the queenless hive with a queenright hive or take other steps to requeen the hive.

At the end of May, look out for wax moths. These 1/2 inch wide, gray moths sneak into the hive at night and lay eggs in corners and other places where the bees are unable to remove the eggs. The adult moths will be harassed and forced to leave a strong hive, and eggs will be covered with propolis if not removed. In a weak hive, the eggs will hatch and begin a path of destructive chewing and defecating through the brood combs. Combine weak hives, reduce the size of the brood box, or reduce the entrance to discourage moth entry to weak hives.

Inspect the hive weekly. If you reversed the brood boxes earlier in the year, you may need to do so a second time in May or June. Consider doing so if the lower brood box is nearly empty of brood and the upper brood box is crowded. Make certain that each hive has more than enough supers to store the honey harvest.

Attend your bee club meetings and useful workshops. Make notes of which flowers/trees/shrubs bloom at which times. Order labels, bottles and caps, if needed. Buy, reserve or borrow extracting equipment for late June or July. Order queens for July hive splits. On strong hives, remove the mouse guard if you have not yet done so, unless you are using a mouse guard made of 1/2 inch hardware cloth, which does not obstruct air or bee movement.

[From https://buzzwordhoney.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Northern-Virginia-Honeybee-Annual-Cycle.pdf]

Bee Vocabulary – Laying Workers

Workers become “laying workers” when their reproductive organs respond to the lack of queen pheromone in the colony. Their normally suppressed reproductive organs begin to activate and some of these workers start laying unfertilized eggs. This is their last ditch effort to save the colony. However, this effort, while commendable, cannot save the colony without new workers and thus, the colony dwindles down to basically nothing.

It takes resources, commitment and a good, solid schedule to bring the hive back to queenright (and even then, it may not work). Come to the May meeting and learn more.

For more information, check out the following articles:

https://www.beeculture.com/laying-workers-happens-fix/

https://www.honeybeesuite.com/category/bee-biology/

Looking To Expand Your Pollinator Garden?

This month Tulip Poplar, Black Locust, Wild Blackberry, Privet, Persimmon, yellow rocket, and Sweet Clover will bloom. Alsike Clover, Crimson Clover, Ladino (White Clover), Black Gum, poison ivy, Vetch, Holly, and Raspberries will also bloom this month. At the end of the month, hawthorn hedges will add their nectar.

Regional native plant guides are available that highlight the beautiful variety of Virginia’s native plants. PDF versions are free. Virginia Capital Region native plants provide visual beauty year round. Local native plants support more wildlife species than non-native plants. Native trees, shrubs, and vines that feed the insects, birds, and animals are essential for maintaining biodiversity. Local native plants are adapted to local temperature and rainfall fluctuations. Spraying pesticides for insects or diseases is generally not necessary for native Plants. The guide for RVA area natives can be viewed here: https://www.plantvirginianatives.org/plant-rva-natives

What’s in Bloom (according to Maymont)

1st Week: Maple, Birch, Oak, Cherry, Pear, Silver Bell, Crabapple, Dogwood, Redbud, Camellia, Pearlbush, Sweet-Breath-of-Spring, Forsythia, Boxwood, Flowering Quince, Barberry, Azalea, Periwinkle, Narcissus, Candy tuft, Violets, Tulip, Pansy, Wildflowers

2nd Week: Crabapple, Silver Bell, Cherry, Dogwood, Redbud, Boxwood, Flowering Quince, Wisteria, Barberry, Lilac, Azalea, Periwinkle, Narcissus, Candy tuft, Violet, Pansy, Tulip, Wildflowers

3rd Week: Azalea, Dogwood, Cherry, wisteria, Violet, Pansy, Tulip, Lilac, Barberry, Periwinkle, Candy tuft, Wildflowers

4th Week: Azalea, Dogwood, Wisteria, Violet, Pansy, Tulip, Lilac, Periwinkle, Candy tuft, Wildflowers

https://maymont.org/explore/gardens/whats-in-bloom/

Final Word

The bees are busy and we are busy. Please make time to come out to meetings and to our festivals. You can join the RPBBA on our website. Meetings are open to non-members. Come meet some other beekeepers and find out what RPBBA is all about.

We are always looking for ways to improve communications in the club. If you have any ideas, suggestions, or announcements, please let me know.

P.S. Jody and I are working on an article for the June newsletter about beekeeping and bee allergies.  If you have bee allergies and wouldn’t mind being interviewed, please let me know.

Also, if you have cool events that you have done related to bees, plants or nature in general let me know.

Also, Also, I need a June Meet your Friendly Neighborhood Beekeeper. This is a great way to share your story and meet new people. Let me know if you wouldn’t mind answering 5 easy questions. 🙂

Enjoy your bees!

-Hollee

Hollee Freeman
Communications

Check us out at rockwoodbeekeepers.com!
Like us on Facebook!
Join our Facebook RPBBA Practical Beekeeping Group!
Keep up with what RPBBA is doing, see Calendar of Events!

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This is the official Rockwood Park Backyard Beekeepers email. RPBBA will never share your email with anyone outside of the organization or for non-club-related business without your permission. If you wish to update your email or be removed from our email list please complete this form.

Hello beekeepers and honey bee enthusiasts!

This is an exciting & challenging time in the beekeeping world! The climate is a little whack-a-mole but, nevertheless, the blossoms are showing their beauty and sharing their sweet scents between the rainy days. This means that your honey bee population is probably increasing and possibly preparing to swarm. In fact, you may have even experienced a swarm or two or four OR prevented a swarm or two or four already!

Keep the RPBBA Swarm Line handy to share with friends, neighbors, anyone who may need help with a swarm. Encourage people that you meet to call the swarm line instead of using pesticides or calling an exterminator.

RPBBA Swarm Line

(804) 404-BEE1 or (804) 404-2331

📢April Calendar of Events (all meetings take place at Rockwood Park Nature Center)

Monday, April 8th @7pm – Monthly Club meeting (6:30pm social gathering)

Monday, April 15th @7pm – Study Group

Tuesday, April 16th @7pm – Honey Bee Festival Planning Committee meeting

Tuesday, April 30th @7pm – Honey Bee Festival Planning Committee meeting

April Meeting

Did you know that there are about 450 species of native bees in Virginia!

As beekeepers, we often get asked questions about all kinds of bees and bee relatives such as wasps, solitary bees, Mason bees, hornets, carpenter bees, bumblebees and more!!

Join us at the club meeting as area naturalists introduce you to some of the other bees and bee relatives that share the environment with us!

7pm Monday, April 8th

(6:30pm social gathering)

@Rockwood Park Nature Center Add to Google Calendar

Honey Bee Festival

Huge thanks to our HBF co-chairs and volunteer committee leads who are well underway with festival planning.

There are many opportunities to participate in this year’s festival. Committees include: operations, guest experiences (plantings & club table), education, children’s area, bake sale, and publicity. In addition to day-of volunteers, we are also looking for help on Friday evening with setup and Saturday with take down.

Volunteers can be anyone, not just RPBBA members. Beekeeping experience or knowledge is NOT required. The only requirement is a willingness to help. If you need service credit just know that RPBBA is a non-profit organization. Volunteers are provided a free Honey Bee Festival t-shirt and we promise to provide an enjoyable experience with good company. More details, including a signup form, can be found here:https://forms.gle/vvwUjwffUB8xhuLS9

In particular, the festival needs a cadre of volunteers for the operations/logistics committee. This committee is the ‘bones’ of the festival and needs volunteers to help direct traffic (vehicular and human), picking up supplies, repairing equipment, making sure other committees have what they need, etc. Operations help is needed in advance to prepare for the big day. Many helping hands makes for less work.

The RPBBA Bake Sale tent is a major source of funds that allows our club to conduct the festival each year. We are on the lookout for anyone who can bake and/or donate items to the club for sale at the festival. Cookies, cakes, pies, anything goes (with proper labeling). Can’t bake? How about donating a case of water? More details including the signup form, can be found here: https://rockwoodbeekeepers.com/bake-sale-sign-up/

The 2024 Honey Bee Festival will be held @ the Chesterfield County Fairgrounds

10300 Courthouse Rd, Chesterfield, VA 23832

June 22nd, 2024, 10AM – 4PM (Note: extended hours compared with past festivals)

Meet Your Friendly Neighborhood Beekeeper: Patricia Williams

Q: How long have you been a beekeeper and how many hives do you manage?

A: I am expecting my 1st nuc any day now!

Q: What inspired you to become a beekeeper?

A: I had a family member who had beehives and gave us honey regularly. I was curious when I visited the hives. I was amazed how organized the bees worked. I thought it would be something my husband and I could do when we retired.

Q: What do you anticipate will be the best thing about beekeeping for you?

A: To help people to connect with our community, to make a difference in the environment and have fun! It is important that bees pollinate plants which provide food and shelter for other animals. A small beehive can make a difference to the gardens and farms in our area. “I heard the low humming of bees can have a calming effect, too. “

Q: What do you anticipate will be challenging about beekeeping for you?

A: Finding evidence of the Queen, how to prevent and recover a swarm, and pest maintenance.

Q: What fun, surprising story would you like to share about getting involved in beekeeping?

A: Ordering my first nuc of bees! I am getting excited in setting up my new hives! I also got my brother-in-law who lives in Tennessee to start his beehives this spring along with me. We are both so excited!

Bee Vocabulary – “Brood Nest”

Bees will use the available cells across frames for various purposes. They will use some cells to store pollen or honey. Other cells will be created for worker, drone or queen cells, which are collectively called the brood nest.

LIST: Common Beekeeping Terms You Should Know – Backyard Beekeeping

This Month in the Hive (April)

On colder days, the bees continue to form a cluster. The brood nest may be as much as 10 inches in diameter. The brood nest continues its slow migration upward into empty honeycomb. The bees will bring pollen and nectar into the hive. The queen is laying several hundred eggs per day at the beginning of the month and the population is growing fast. At the end of the month, the queen will lay 800-1000 eggs per day. The worker population will double this month. Drones will number above 200 by month end.

A congested hive in April will lead to swarms, typically in the last week of April and early May. Congestion exists where the combination of honey, pollen, brood and bees fills 80% or more of the available space. In a congested hive (for reasons about which there is no consensus) the worker bees begin to raise new queens in April. This is done by building “swarm cells” – peanut-like wax cells that often hang down between brood supers, or on the face of brood frames. From depositing the egg to the emergence of a new queen is 16 days. A hive that is storing honey by mid-late April is a hive to watch for swarming.

Henbit, wild mustard, dandelions, redbuds, pears, cherries, “Japanese” magnolias, plums, shadbush, chickweed, and many ornamental shrubs will provide substantial amounts of pollen and sufficient nectar for brood production on sunny days. Many hives that have consumed sugar syrup in March will cease taking it in early April. By mid-April, apples, peaches, crab apples, American holly and autumn olive may begin to supply ample amounts of nectar and some very strong hives will begin to make and cap honey. At the end of the month, nectar flows will be strong from many sources.

Generally, it should be understood that swarms are not good for honey production. Hive bodies should be reversed when the likelihood of 4 or more days of consistent cold (45 degrees or less) weather has passed, or around April 1 in most years. This will reduce congestion by encouraging the queen to expand egg-laying upward and outward into empty brood frames.

Remove any feeders where the syrup becomes moldy. Remove a feeder when 1 quart is not consumed in 1 week.

Place a bait hive for swarms nearby if you have decided to use such a hive. Be prepared to place a queen excluder and honey supers on top of the hive toward the end of April. On a warm day, do a complete inspection of the hive. Can you find any evidence of the queen? Are there plenty of eggs and brood? Is there a compact pattern to her egg laying? If not, locate a new queen and replace any weak or failing queen.

The final touches should be put on new hives and supers that will soon be full of bees and honey. Package bees should be installed as early as possible this month to take advantage of the heavy nectar flows at month end. Watch out for evidence of swarming (queen cells, live queen with no fresh eggs; queen that is reduced in size to fly with swarm). Remove frames with queen cells to a nucleus hive (with at least 2 frames of bees) or cut the queen cells from the frames and use them to requeen weak hives, or destroy them.

[From https://buzzwordhoney.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Northern-Virginia-Honeybee-Annual-Cycle.pdf]

What’s in Bloom (according to Maymont)

1st Week: Maple, Birch, Oak, Cherry, Pear, Silver Bell, Crabapple, Dogwood, Redbud, Camellia, Pearlbush, Sweet-Breath-of-Spring, Forsythia, Boxwood, Flowering Quince, Barberry, Azalea, Periwinkle, Narcissus, Candy tuft, Violets, Tulip, Pansy, Wildflowers

2nd Week: Crabapple, Silver Bell, Cherry, Dogwood, Redbud, Boxwood, Flowering Quince, Wisteria, Barberry, Lilac, Azalea, Periwinkle, Narcissus, Candy tuft, Violet, Pansy, Tulip, Wildflowers

3rd Week: Azalea, Dogwood, Cherry, wisteria, Violet, Pansy, Tulip, Lilac, Barberry, Periwinkle, Candy tuft, Wildflowers

4th Week: Azalea, Dogwood, Wisteria, Violet, Pansy, Tulip, Lilac, Periwinkle, Candy tuft, Wildflowers

Happy Beekeeping!

-Hope to see you all at the meeting on April 8th at 7pm at Rockwood Park Nature Center.

Hollee Freeman
Communications

Check us out at rockwoodbeekeepers.com!
Like us on Facebook!
Join our Facebook RPBBA Practical Beekeeping Group!
Keep up with what RPBBA is doing, see Calendar of Events!

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This is the official Rockwood Park Backyard Beekeepers email. RPBBA will never share your email with anyone outside of the organization or for non-club-related business without your permission. If you wish to update your email or be removed from our email list please complete this form.

Hello beekeepers and honeybee enthusiasts,

It seems that we are all in the middle of an exciting & challenging time! Spring is coming in fast and furious. This means that your honey bee population is probably increasing and possibly preparing to swarm in the near future. Lots of beekeepers have installed swarm boxes or added a box on top of their colonies to increase the volume inside the hive. Soon it will soon be time to make splits-if you’re into that management technique.

📢March Club Meeting

During the March club meeting (7pm on the 11th), Keith White, co-owner of Honey and the Hive Beekeeping Supplies, will give a presentation on how to use bait hives to attract and collect honey bee swarms. Keith will demonstrate how he prepares and sets bait hives and share tips that he’s learned along the way for capturing swarms. Come learn or re-acquaint yourselves with this important information. Come at 6:30 for social time.

Monday, March 18th – join the study group at 7pm

Monday, March 24th – Honeybee Festival planning meeting at 7pm

Honey Bee Festival

The 2024 Honey Bee Festival will be held @ the Chesterfield County Fairgrounds

10300 Courthouse Rd, Chesterfield, VA 23832

June 22nd, 2024, 10AM – 4PM (Note: extended hours compared with past festivals)

Click the link to volunteer at one of our many stations and/or serving in a leadership role https://forms.gle/vvwUjwffUB8xhuLS9

📢 Calling All Swarm Chasers

We have a list of folks on our website (rockwoodbeekeepers.com) who are at the ready to remove swarms. Sometimes swarms can be easily removed; other times it requires an extensive cut-out. Emails are routed to active members in the club who have expressed interest in capturing swarms. These requests are immediate and you should have the flexibility to drop everything and help on short notice. If you are not already on the swarm list and would like to be, signup here. Even if you do not have the experience to go get the swarm yourself, you might want to tag along with an experienced beekeeper to see how it is done.

Keep the RPBBA Swarm Line handy to share with friends, neighbors, anyone who may need help with a swarm. Encourage people that you meet to call the swarm line instead of using pesticides or calling an exterminator.

RPBBA Swarm Line

(804) 404-BEE1 or (804) 404-2331

Meet Your Friendly Neighborhood Beekeeper: Keith White

Q: How long have you been a beekeeper and how many hives do you manage?

A:I started keeping bees in 2016. I told the boss I was only going to have two colonies but I ended up buying three nucs and caught several swarms that first year. I also made a few splits and went into my first winter with nine colonies. The obsession has continued to grow since then and at last count, I have more than forty colonies.

Q: What inspired you to become a beekeeper?

A: A friend of mine keeps and he suggested that I start – he said I had a great place to have colonies. The suggestion took a couple years to take root but when it did, I went all in. Later, my mother told me that my grandfather also kept bees but he stopped before I was old enough to remember. So I guess you could say it runs in the family.

Q: What is the best thing about beekeeping for you?

A: It’s hard to pick just one thing. Catching swarms in the spring is a lot of fun and I like making splits and watching them grow into big, productive colonies. In a broader sense though, beekeeping is the perfect blend of several of my interests – the outdoors, gardening, and woodworking.

Q: What’s challenging about beekeeping for you?

A: It depends. (You really didn’t think I was going to pass on an opportunity to say that, did you?)

Queen rearing is a challenging aspect of being a sustainable beekeeper that I enjoy and continue to improve upon. With each grafting cycle I do, I get a little better and learn another nuance that makes my efforts more productive. I keep telling myself that next year might be the year that I’ll sell queens. Maybe 2024 will be the year.

Another challenge has been staying on the treatment-free path while continually hearing it can’t be done. I have been treatment-free since I started keeping. And aside from the three nucs I bought my first year and some queens I’ve purchased for genetic diversity, I don’t buy bees – I catch swarms and propagate from my survivors. After years of doing this, my overwinter losses are usually less than ten percent.

Q: What fun, surprising story would you like to share?

A: I already mentioned that my grandfather kept bees. He was also a woodworker and used lumber he harvested from the family farm in Madison County, VA. When he passed, I got quite a bit of this lumber. One of my first beekeeping-related woodworking projects was an observation hive for my garage made from this 60 to 70 year old walnut and cherry. I put a swarm in it in May of 2016 and with the exception of a four-day period in 2018, it has been continuously occupied. It’s Bee TV and a bee vending machine all in one.

Q: In what ways do you feel like you are making an impact on the environment?

A: On a very local scale, I’d like to think that I’ve had positive impacts on both the number of pollinators in the area as well as the forage that’s available for them. And as a result of our beekeeping supply business Honey and the Hive, I have had many opportunities for community outreach and education promoting beekeeping throughout the greater Richmond area.

📰Beekeepers in the News

Huge shout out to Mr. C, who provided snacks for the 1st session of the Beginning Beekeeper class. This thoughtful gesture was very much appreciated. Teamwork makes the dream work.

Hollee was recently featured on Channel 12 news talking about writing, teaching and beekeeping. https://www.12onyourside.com/video/2024/02/16/dr-hollee-freeman-discusses-writing-teaching-beekeeping/

If you do interesting stuff in the community related to bees, environmental stewardship or anything cool, shoot an email to the Rockwood Club for a feature in the newsletter. rockwood.beekeepers

This Month in the Hive (March)

In March, the days become longer and the queen steadily increases her rate of egg laying. The brood nest will expand and migrate upward into areas where honey has been consumed. The brood nest is now about 6-8 inches across, and may extend across several frames. Look for drone brood along the bottom edges of frames with brood. Remove some drone brood with a cappings scratcher and look for Varroa mites. If you find Varroa in 30% or more of the drone brood cells, perform a mite count, and decide whether to treat for mites.

The hive may consume as much as 7 lbs of nectar and pollen per week (net of inflow) when cold, rain, snow, or icy conditions prevail. Be sure to check for remaining honey and pollen stores. Food stores can run dangerously low until a heavy nectar flow starts. It may be necessary to continue feeding the hive and that the hive is slightly tilted forward to shield rain from the bottom board.

If using a screened bottom board, you should resist the urge to remove the insert. Leave it in until consistent warmer weather arrives in late April. In late March, you may consider reversing the deep brood supers, or the medium supers that some beekeepers use for brood. This will allow for a better distribution of the brood, and stimulate the growth of the colony. If the brood nest extends across the brood supers, do not reverse until there is a large enough population to keep both halves of the brood nest from death due to chilling.

On a sunny day early in the month, when there is little wind and the bees are flying, have a quick look inside the hive. A temperature above 54 degrees should do for this task. Remove frames for a quick inspection. Inspect for disease and see if the queen is laying eggs. Eggs laid in January and February will all be hatched into new workers by mid-late March and the population will be much higher than in January. You may want to add a pollen patty if you have not yet done so but be careful to add a small piece and watch carefully-you don’t want to entice mites.

[From https://buzzwordhoney.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Northern-Virginia-Honeybee-Annual-Cycle.pdf]

Bee in the Know with your Bee Vocabulary – “split”

If you have a large, healthy hive, it is possible to create a new colony from it by making what is called a split. The basic concept of making a split is that you take a portion of an established colony and transfer it to a separate hive thereby creating two colonies. There are many reasons for making a split. Some beekeepers make splits to increase their apiary or to sell to other beekeepers. Others use splits as a form of swarm control, mite control or to reduce the size of a large colony.

Final Word

If you are not a member of RPBBA, we encourage you to join and bee active. You can join on our website. Please participate in meetings and volunteer to help with the Honey Bee Festival.

We are always looking for ways to improve communications in the club. If you have any ideas or suggestions, please let me know.

-Hollee (please excuse any typos-I’m trying to get this out for the weekend:)

Hollee Freeman
Communications

Check us out at rockwoodbeekeepers.com!
Like us on Facebook!
Join our Facebook RPBBA Practical Beekeeping Group!
Keep up with what RPBBA is doing, see Calendar of Events!

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This is the official Rockwood Park Backyard Beekeepers email. RPBBA will never share your email with anyone outside of the organization or for non-club-related business without your permission. If you wish to update your email or be removed from our email list please complete this form.

Hello beekeepers and honeybee enthusiasts,

February is a busy month full of events for Rockwood Park Backyard Beekeepers. We have the Beginner Beekeeping Class, Honey Bee Festival planning, our monthly club meetings, and the study group all happening in February! Whew!

Meet Your Friendly 2024 Bee Club President: Don Osborne

Hello everyone,

I’ve been President of the RPBBA for about a week now and feel like I’m in a whirlwind!

The Honey Bee Festival Committee is meeting and planning, managing an amazing amount of details for our event. This is going to be a banner year for the festival with a new venue that is larger, more accommodating and has a lot more parking. Activating volunteers will be a substantial boost for our club. So, when you get the call, please say “yes, I’ll be glad to help”.

The new beekeeper’s classes are starting soon and one of the struggles is to find enough people to help teach and support the course. So, if you get the text asking you to help, please respond “of course, anywhere I’m needed”.

Our communications director, Hollee does a great job of keeping us informed and she is focused on helping us to get to know each other, so when she sends you an email asking you to be a feature in the newsletter, I hope you reply “absolutely, anything you need”.

When I was asked to be President, my first reaction was to think of a way to say no, surely there are better people for the job. However, I think back to how much this club has helped me keep my bees alive and strong through the seasons. I know that I owe our club more than I could repay with my service.

When I think of the friends I have made and conversations with members, I realize that the club is important. It is important for us as individuals who are trying to keep bugs in a box alive. It is important to our local community because our bees help the gardens and farms produce. It is important to the greater community by helping pollinators and mother nature. Sometimes we need to be reminded of how important the work of our club is.

Finally, I want to thank Stan for his outstanding work and dedication to RPBBA. He is tireless in his work in leadership and keeping our Master Beekeeper Study Group going. I plan on continuing his commitment to education and expanding opportunities for mentoring, teaching and learning for all our members. Thank you for the trust you’ve placed in me. If you have ideas or suggestions, please reach out to me.

Don

🐝 2024 Beginner Beekeeping Course

NOTE: location & time change – for the 1st class

The first session of the 2024 RPBBA Beginner Beekeeping Course will be held on Saturday, Feb 3rd at the North Chesterfield Library (325 Courthouse Road). The class will begin at 11:30 am and end around 4 pm. Please arrive no later than 11:15 to orient yourself to the space and settle in before class.

As a reminder, RPBBA practices reciprocity with the Huguenot Beekeeping Association (HBA). Participants who are unable to make a class at RPBBA, may attend and receive the same instruction at HBA. Both clubs offer the same course on alternating Saturday’s.

2024 Honey Bee Festival Planning

Planning has begun and the date has been set for our 13th annual event (if you did not read the origin story of the RPBBA Honeybee Festival, please check it out in our January 2024 newsletter–it’s an interesting story).

The 2024 Honey Bee Festival will be held

@Chesterfield County Fairgrounds

10300 Courthouse Rd, Chesterfield, VA 23832

June 22nd, 2024, 10AM – 4PM (Note: extended hours compared with past festivals)

The festival continues to grow in popularity and attendance. To this end, we will need additional volunteers. There are many ways to help. Click the link below to see what suits your fancy. We need everything from baking items, volunteering at one of our many stations and/or serving in a leadership role https://forms.gle/vvwUjwffUB8xhuLS9

Thank you in advance for supporting this amazing, educational and fun event.

VSBA Master Beekeeping Study Group

For those who have never checked it out, the study group is a great way for RPBBA members to further their beekeeping knowledge. Several members are studying for the annual VSBA Apprentice and Journeyman exams. However, there is no requirement for attendees to pursue certification. The study group is open to all members who want to learn. During the study group sessions, questions from the VSBA Apprentice Study Guide are posed for the group to discuss and answer together. There is much to learn during open discussion with our peers!

Those interested to attend are encouraged to download the guide in advance and start working through the questions on their own.

Have You Reserved Your Bees For 2024?

Whether you’re a 1st time beekeeper, or looking to replace a colony that didn’t make it through Winter, there are resources for you to source live bees locally.

For those looking to purchase, check out our 2024 Resources for Live Bees & Equipment*. The time is now to start reserving your order(s).

*This is simply a list of local suppliers; RPBBA does not endorse or give preference. Buyers are encouraged to do their own research before making their decision to purchase from any supplier. The Virginia Bee Law requires that honey bees on combs, hives and equipment with combs must be accompanied by a certificate of health issued by the Office of Plant Industry Services prior to being sold in Virginia. For information on this, please visit the VDACS website.

ISO RPBBA Members Willing to Bee a Mentor

A Mentor’s purpose is to help other members with things like installing packages/nucs, in-hive help, capturing swarms or general questions.

With the 2024 Beginner Beekeeping course kicking off in January,we will soon have new-bee’s looking for assistance. If you are a RPBBA member and willing to bee a Mentor, please sign up here. You must be willing to have your contact information shared with other RPBBA members.

The goal is to create a current list of willing mentors, with their general location, to share with those ISO a Mentor near them.

This Month in the Hive (February)

The cluster is still tight on most days. The cluster will break and the bees will move on days where the temperature exceeds 50 degrees F or more. The queen remains in the cluster, and as the days lengthen, she will begin to lay a few more eggs each day. At this point, there are still no drones in the hive and workers will take cleansing flights on mild days.

As the cluster remains centered around the small brood nest, it will migrate upward as the lowest rows of capped brood hatch. The cluster will not quickly move up into new areas of honey after the brood nest forms, and mild days are important to the bees’ ability to move honey/pollen toward the cluster.

Around mid-February, maples begin to blossom and supply nectar and fresh pollen that are extraordinarily valuable to the growth of the hive. The maple blossom continues through mid-March. In areas of higher elevation, the maple blossoms start and end 7-14 days later. The bees will consume about 20 pounds of honey stores and nectar from maples. Alders may bloom in some locations and provide valuable variety in pollen proteins.

Tip: On a day that exceeds 55 degrees, open the hive and quickly check for sufficient food supplies, signs of disease, and to see if the queen is laying. Place a pollen patty near (but not directly on top of) the brood nest. More colonies are probably lost during this time of year than during all other winter months. A colony that is rearing brood will consume about 7 pounds of honey and nectar per week, and if the weather turns bad, a colony with small food reserves can quickly starve to death. Never allow the food stores to drop below 15 pounds. If they have less than 15 pounds of honey, start feeding stored honey or thick sugar syrup (two parts sugar to one part water.) Remember, once you start feeding, you need to continue feeding until the bees no longer consume the syrup, or until the end of April.

Consider whether to sign up for that “Advanced Beekeeper Course.” Attend bee club meetings and get equipment ready for spring. At this time of year, you may be advised to “reverse” the brood boxes on a hive with two brood boxes. It is too early in the year to perform this task with safety, so delay this task until you are confident that warmer weather has arrived. The first week of February may be a good time to add a pollen patty or candy board to a hive that is raising brood. If you enter the hive, you may consider moving a frame of honey from the outside of the hive to an area much closer to the brood nest. Do not place a frame of frozen honey immediately adjacent to the brood nest, however. Let it thaw out first.

Decide now how you are going to deal with the issue of swarms in April, May and June. Read and study the options, and seek advice. Prepare a bait hive now if you are going to use it later in the spring. If you are going to use more equipment to hold queen cells and deal with swarms, then take steps to obtain that equipment. https://buzzwordhoney.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Northern-Virginia-Honeybee-Annual-Cycle.pdf]

Bee Vocabulary – “Pheromones”

Did you know that the Queen gives off pheromones to prevent workers from developing ovaries?!

The queen regulates the goings-on of the colony by emitting chemical blends (pheromones) from her mandibular glands (saclike glands located inside the head above the base of the mandible). The queen’s pheromones are often called the ‘queen signal’. The queen signal is a primer pheromone that keeps the colony in homeostasis (e.g. worker cohesion, inhibition of worker reproduction, and stimulation of worker activities).

When the queen is weak or dies, the low/no pheromonal signal drives workers to rear new queens. If there’s no young brood present in the colony, the workers become disorganized, stop doing their tasks and begin laying unfertilized eggs. The colony becomes unclean and more susceptible to diseases and prey. The hive population dwindles and in most cases, is doomed.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/

Beekeepers in the News

Hollee will be featured live on Channel 12 (12 About Town) on Friday, February 6th at…12 noon! She will talk about her children’s book, Beekeeping Besties: An Apiary Adventure, as well as her new book, City Bees.

Huge Thanks

Rick McCormick would like to thank everyone who helped out with his hives while he was recuperating from knee surgery. We all know Rick and one thing is for sure…he is going to keep educating and sharing about honeybees. Recently, Rick had a group of bee students at his house for a potluck lunch & learning. 😀

Final Word

Thanks to everyone who talks with individuals, as well as, in small and large groups about beekeeping. Every little bit helps people understand the importance of honeybees in our ecosystem and just may encourage folks to become part of the beekeeping community or become bee-friendly in their gardens.

If you are not a member of RPBBA, we encourage you to join and bee active. You can join on our website. We are always looking for ways to improve communications in the club. If you have any ideas or suggestions, please let me know.

With February full of events,we will probably see a lot of each other!

Hollee Freeman
Communications

Check us out at rockwoodbeekeepers.com!
Like us on Facebook!
Join our Facebook RPBBA Practical Beekeeping Group!
Keep up with what RPBBA is doing, see Calendar of Events!

*****************************************************************************
This is the official Rockwood Park Backyard Beekeepers email. RPBBA will never share your email with anyone outside of the organization or for non-club-related business without your permission. If you wish to update your email or be removed from our email list please complete this form.

Hello everyone,Please enjoy the 1st newsletter of the year!
There’s a special feature on the origin of the club.

Happy Reading!
-Hollee

Happy New Year beekeepers!

We have had some ups and downs with the weather. Hopefully everyone’s bees are hanging in there! In the event that some hives didn’t make it, don’t fret, there will be plenty of opportunities to begin again. Several club members will be selling nucs and queens as the spring approaches. There are also quite a few conferences, classes and other events on tap to get us ready for spring. Bring it on!

Meeting Dates (all meetings are held at the Rockwood Park and Nature Center

📅 Monday, Jan 8th – Club Meeting @ 7pm (come early to socialize)

📅 Monday, Jan 15th – Study Group @ 7pm

2024 Beginner Beekeeping Course

The Rockwood Park Backyard Beekeepers Association (RPBBA) is holding their annual Beginning Beekeeping Course over 4 Saturdays (02/03, 02/17, 03/02 and 03/16).

Attendees will receive instruction on the

🐝History, Hive organization & location, 🐝Woodenware and equipment,

🐝Dynamics of the Colony, 🐝Diseases, Pests and Predators,

🐝Getting Started, 🐝The Beekeeping Year, 🐝Floral Sources, and 🐝Bee Field Day (hands-on apiary day)

Participants who are unable to make a class at RPBBA, may attend and receive the same instruction at Huguenot Beekeepers Association, which has classes on alternating Saturdays.

The cost is $105 through Jan12th and $120 thereafter. We are limited to 40 participants (we currently have 26 individuals registered). Registration includes 3 books and a 1-year membership to RPBBA. For more information, including a signup form, please see our website https://rockwoodbeekeepers.com/beginner-beekeeping

2024 BOD Announcement

RPBBA would like to extend a huge debt of gratitude for the outgoing BOD members:

Dennis Marshall, Steve Syrett, Kyree Tanner, and Rick McCormick.

The 2024 is comprised of:

Stan Houk (immediate past president), Sherry Kelley, Theo Hartmann, Don Osborne, and Jody Conway.

As per the recent election, Bill Crouch, Will Wagoner, and Hollee Freeman will join the Board as new members.

The BOD will meet this week to appoint club officers.

Have You Reserved Your Bees For 2024?

Whether you’re a 1st time beekeeper, or looking to replace a colony that didn’t make it through Winter, there are resources for you to source live bees locally.

For those looking to purchase, check out our 2024 Resources for Live Bees & Equipment*. The time is now to start reserving your order(s).

*This is simply a list of local suppliers; RPBBA does not endorse or give preference. Buyers are encouraged to do their own research before making their decision to purchase from any supplier. The Virginia Bee Law requires that honey bees on combs, hives and equipment with combs must be accompanied by a certificate of health issued by the Office of Plant Industry Services prior to being sold in Virginia. For information on this, please visit the VDACS website.

ISO RPBBA Members Willing to Bee a Mentor

A Mentor’s purpose is to help other members with things like installing packages/nucs, in-hive help, capturing swarms or general questions.

With the 2024 Beginner Beekeeping course kicking off in January,we will soon have new-bee’s looking for assistance. If you are a RPBBA member and willing to bee a Mentor, please sign up here. You must be willing to have your contact information shared with other RPBBA members.

The goal is to create a current list of willing mentors, with their general location, to share with those ISO a Mentor near them.

Heart of Virginia Beekeepers 2nd Annual Conference

The Heart of Virginia Beekeepers are hosting their second annual beekeeping conference on January 13th at Hampden-Sydney College in Farmville.

For more information, including registration, visit The Heart of Virginia Beekeepers

Meet Your Friendly Neighborhood Bee Club: Origin story RPBBA

In a season of new beginnings, let’s take a look at how the Rockwood Park Backyard Beekeepers Association began. (As you read, try to ignore any typos and remember that these memories may be a little dusty and may not be 100% accurate. Thank you Kristi, Gene and Jody for helping me piece together this important piece of our club’s history 🙂

Krisit Orcutt was the Interim Nature Center Manager at the Rockwood Park Nature Center circa 2007. At that time, the nature center had a plethora of snakes on exhibit and more than a few people walked out when they were face-to-face with snakes as soon as they entered. Kristi knew that although education and conservation about snakes was important, the nature center needed much more than snake exhibits to draw people in.

At the same time, a local beekeeper reached out to Kristi asking if she would consider teaching beekeeping classes. She said yes and the rest, they say… is history. In order to teach the classes effectively, Kristi became a beekeeper. Around this time there was a lot of interest in the importance of honeybees, agriculture, and pollination. Kristi and her colleagues connected these themes in their messaging about nature. They wanted lay people to enjoy interactions with nature in their own yards by helping the community know more about the role that honeybees have in the ecosystem and in plant reproduction.

Around 2008, the economic downturn impacted Chesterfield – so much so that the county eliminated nature and outdoor recreation programs. This made the need for a bee club which provided educational and community- focused programs even more important.

During this time, the Rockwood Park Backyard Beekeepers Association was born under the leadership of an experienced beekeeper, Ken Woodard and a few members: Chris Buck, Stacey Taffer, Mason, Kenny, Wilhelm G. and Kristi. Dave Peebles followed Ken as the 2nd president and the club began to hold classes in addition to the meetings. The first “tour de hives” was born and according to Kristi, it was “best thing we ever did” at the time. Also, the Honey Bee Festival began around this time.

Still the county was in an economic downtown and the nature center staff were told that the center was going to close. Kristi and her colleagues started a friend’s group completely (separate from the bee club). They made proposals to the Chesterfield Board of Supervisors to continue to run the nature center using their own funds with minimal support from the county. Thankfully, they were allowed to do so. This is when they put in an observation hive.

From that experience the club exploded. Gene DiSalvo, Sarah Buckley, Paul and Jan Edens joined. The club began to host more classes and John Davis became involved. Kristi met Stan and Carla while she sold honey at Boulevard Flowers in Colonial Heights. One day Carla whispered to Kristi that she wanted bees and a beehive for Stan for Christmas because his father kept bees. This is how Stan started with bees and the bee club and he hasn’t stopped yet! Jody came to the second class and Kristi recalls thinking that the club was in good hands with this group of folks.

As Kristi recounts, the RPBBA started out to make a connection with people in Chesterfield. It was a diverse group of people – from preppers to right wing fundamentalists to left-wing liberals and everything in between! Somehow all these folks were able to be friends despite all the other things that would normally divide them. The pretext of the club was and continues to be a place where everyone is welcome, where any newbie can ask a question without being embarrassed or shamed or talked down by the more experienced beekeepers.

Another tenet of the club was mentoring. It was expected that members mentor one another and as Stan often says, act like a honey bee hive. Additionally, the founders dreamt that RPBBA would collaborate with other clubs and create a uniformity of messaging for classes and that newbies were invited to teach subsections of the beekeeping classes to learn more under the tutelage of an experienced beekeeper. As Kristi recalls, Jody was one of our first victims, ahem…student teachers.

RPBBA continues to strive to be a place that embraces beekeepers of all levels. Currently, the club currently has 152 members. Let’s keep the dream alive as we connect and educate the community all while getting to know each other in the process.

This Month in the Hive (January)

This month the queen is surrounded by thousands of workers. She is in the midst of the winter cluster, where the temperature at the center is about 88 degrees F. At the periphery of the cluster, the temperature will drop to 42 degrees on the coldest nights. The worker bees continuously move in and out of the center of the cluster. The bees in the cluster flex their wing and thorax muscles to generate heat, and they consume honey that was stored in the previous year.

The cluster will continuously move upward into new honey if it is available. On a day that reaches 45 degrees or more in the hive, the bees may be able to move the cluster upward or horizontally into new honey, or they may be able to move honey toward the cluster from other parts of the hive. On a warm day (50 degrees or more) the worker bees will leave the hive to take a cleansing flight, during which they defecate away from the hive. The workers will wait weeks for a warm day if necessary before flying.

The queen will usually begin laying a small number of worker eggs in the 3rd full week of January (about 28 days after the winter solstice), and some worker brood will begin to appear at the center of the cluster at that time.

Food Consumption & Storage

A strong hive may consume 15-20 lbs of honey in January if the weather is consistently cold or wet. Stored pollen will be in demand in the hive after brood rearing commences in the third full week. On a warm day, a few bees may fly out and collect small amounts of pollen from witch hazel and winter aconite. Bees may visit a gardenia in bloom in a garden. These pollen sources are miniscule compared to the bounty waiting later in the year.

Events to Watch For in the Hive

If there is heavy snow, make certain the entrance to the hive is cleared to allow for proper ventilation. Check the weight of the hive by placing one hand under the back of the bottom board and lifting it up. If it feels as if most of the honey is gone, you may need to start feeding the hive this month. Once you start feeding, you must continue feeding until the bees are gathering pollen and nectar on their own. Unless you are confident that a hive is starving, do not open a hive at less than 55 degrees Fahrenheit (without wind chill.)

Tasks to Be Performed

This is a great time to catch up on reading those bee books you received as holiday gifts, or that you requested on inter-library loan. Don’t forget to attend your next club meeting and start ordering, assembling, and repairing the equipment you might need for this coming season. If you have not done so, go ahead and order that package of bees or a nucleus hive, if needed, from a reputable supplier.

[From https://buzzwordhoney.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Northern-Virginia-Honeybee-Annual-Cycle.pdf]

Bee Vocabulary – “torpor” as in: I’m not dead (yet), I’m just in torpor.

Friends, please resist the temptation to knock on the outside of your hives to see if they are alive. Torpor is a natural state of decreased physiological activity. By knocking on your hives, you will disrupt their torpor state and you may just kill them off without even knowing it. Here are some interesting nuggets to keep in mind:

• Honeybees keep the hive temp in the cluster btw 54-57 degrees F.

• When you knock on the hive, the temp rises to about 80 degrees for about 5+ hours.

• Approx ½ cup of food stores are needed to maintain this temp.

We want our ladies to waste their valuable energy during these cold months. So…buy an inexpensive stethoscope if you feel the overwhelming urge to listen for activity OR just be patient. Spring is coming.

Final Word

If you are a member of RPBBA, don’t forget to pay your dues. The amount is miniscule compared to the vast array of knowledge from mentors, study groups and meetings. If you are not a member of RPBBA, we encourage you to join and bee active. You can join on our website. If you are a honeybee enthusiast looking to get started, check out the Beginner Beekeeping course. It’s worth its weight in gold.

We are always looking for ways to improve communications in the club. If you have any ideas or suggestions, please let me know.

Hollee Freeman
Communications

Check us out at rockwoodbeekeepers.com!
Like us on Facebook!
Join our Facebook RPBBA Practical Beekeeping Group!
Keep up with what RPBBA is doing, see Calendar of Events!

*****************************************************************************
This is the official Rockwood Park Backyard Beekeepers email. RPBBA will never share your email with anyone outside of the organization or for non-club-related business without your permission. If you wish to update your email or be removed from our email list please complete this form.

Happy December everyone!

It may be a slow month in the apiary but there is a lot going on as we begin preparing for spring. Read about all of the interesting activities happening! 

RPBBA Calendar of Events

📅 Monday, Dec 4th – Honeybee Festival brainstorming & planning meeting. 7pm virtual https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84388360511  Bring your ideas and questions!

📅Monday, Dec 11th- Annual Holiday Potluck @6:30 at the Nature Center. Main dish, water and utensils will be provided. Bring a covered dish and any other beverages you’d like (no alcohol is permitted in the Nature Center) 

Note: The holiday potluck is in place of our regular meeting. There will not be a study group meeting in December. 

 2024 Beginner Beekeeping Course

The Rockwood Park Backyard Beekeepers Association (RPBBA) is holding their annual Beginning Beekeeping Course over 4 Saturdays (02/03, 02/17, 03/02 and 03/16).

Attendees will receive instruction on the

🐝History, Hive organization & location, 🐝Woodenware and equipment,

🐝Dynamics of the Colony, 🐝Diseases, Pests and Predators,

🐝Getting Started, 🐝The Beekeeping Year, 🐝Floral Sources, and 🐝Bee Field Day (hands-on apiary day)

Participants who are unable to make a class at RPBBA, may attend and receive the same instruction at Huguenot Beekeepers Association, which has classes on alternating Saturdays. 

The cost is $105 through Jan12th and $120 thereafter. We are limited to 40 participants. Registration includes 3 books and a 1-year membership to RPBBA. For more information, including a signup form, please see our website https://rockwoodbeekeepers.com/beginner-beekeeping

Will you be selling nucs, packages or queens this year?

If you plan to have bees for sale next year, let us know by adding your information to the Resources list here: Click here*.

*This is simply a list of local suppliers; RPBBA does not endorse or give preference. Buyers are encouraged to do their own research before making their decision to purchase from any supplier.

Be a Mentor

With the 2024 Beginner Beekeeping course kicking off soon, we will have new beekeepers looking for assistance. If you are a RPBBA member and willing to be a Mentor, please sign up here. You must be willing to have your contact information shared with other RPBBA members.

The goal is to create a current list of willing mentors, with their general location, to share with those near them.

Meet Your Friendly Neighborhood Beekeeper: Kyree Tanner 

Q: How long have you been a beekeeper and how many hives do you manage?

A: I have been raising bees for almost 8 years. I am managing 60 hives right now.  I spent a lot of time doing an internship with another friend that’s more on the commercial side of beekeeping. He has 800 hives. By working with him, I just built up the faith and sense to know what to do for a colony based on their behavior.

Q: What inspired you to become a beekeeper?

My aunt and a good friend inspired me to become a beekeeper and I now have a passion for it. My aunt and my friend kept saying to me that if there is something that you are passionate about and want to do, then put your mind to it and it will happen.

After that, I told my friend that I wanted to raise bees, and he said ok! He was an elderly guy who went to auctions to buy stuff.  One night, he and his wife invited me over for dinner. After dinner he left the table and came back with some bee supplies that he got from an  auction. He said to me, “It’s yours.”  That’s how I got started into the beekeeping world. 

Q: What is the best thing about beekeeping for you?

The best thing about beekeeping is that hard work pays off (i.e. reap what you sow). Harvesting the honey makes you feel successful and that there always a huge market and demand for honey and bee essentials.

Q: What’s challenging about beekeeping for you?

The challenging thing about beekeeping is keeping your colonies healthy as possible so they can last forever. Plus, meeting the colony standards. I’m sure just about every beekeeper can agree as well.

Q: What fun, surprising story would you like to share?

The funniest story of my beekeeping life occurred when I was getting into beekeeping. I was in the 8th grade and I can remember leaving school early because I got a call from the post office that my bees had arrived. 

I left school and went to pick up my package of bees. I was super excited. I got home, got everything straight and suited up to install my bees. However, I totally forgot to zip up my suit! I only had on shorts and a tank top! Well, those bees were nailing me left and right so I came out of the bee suit and started running. Of course, they were still nailing me so I stripped down to my underwear and I ran down to the powerline where there’s a neighbor who can see me right out of their back kitchen window. I said to myself – I don’t care if they see me like this! I finally get away from the bees and said, “God,  it’s in your will but I’m not a quitter.”  After that, I walked back up the power line picking up my clothes and getting back in my suit. I went back to the bees and they were just as calm as they could  be! God took care of them and answered my requests.

Q: In what ways do you feel like you are making an impact on the environment and/or the community?

I feel like the more people I mentor, tell how important bees are and get them into raising bees– I feel like it’s improving pollination, as well as our food sources and world. Researchers have predicted that if bees were to leave the face of the earth, we, as humans, would lose the majority of our essential life within 4-5 years. Without bees, the availability and diversity of fresh produce would decline substantially, and human nutrition would likely suffer. Crops that would not be cost-effective to hand- or robot-pollinate would likely be lost or persist only with the dedication of human hobbyists.

Heart of Virginia Beekeepers 2nd Annual Conference

The Heart of Virginia Beekeepers are hosting their second annual beekeeping conference on January 13th at Hampden-Sydney College in Farmville. 

For more information, including registration, visit The Heart of Virginia Beekeepers

🐝🐝🐝

Give the gift of bees. Rick McCormick has a great idea! Consider giving the gift of honeybees to a family in need through Heifer International. Click the link for more information. https://www.heifer.org/gift-catalog/animals/gift-of-honeybees.html 

This Month in the Hive (December)

The bees are in a tight cluster now. Egg laying has pretty much halted. You may see bees flying on sunny days when temperatures are over 50 degrees. Weeks after the winter solstice, the queen’s egg laying will recommence, but not this month:)

The hive may consume 10-12 pounds of honey during this month, depending on the weather. Mild weather may actually cause more honey consumption due to increased movement.

You should stay out of the hive this month. Make sure the entrance and ventilation holes are not blocked. Make sure the mouse guard is not chewed through. Plug any large holes in the brood boxes to prevent drafts.

Read a good book on beekeeping; study the latest research reports on bee health. Review what worked well and what you might want to change next year. Request catalogs.

Final Word

If you are not a member of RPBBA, we encourage you to join and bee active. You can join on our website. We are always looking for ways to improve communications in the club. If you have any ideas or suggestions, please let me know -Hollee 😀

Hello Beekeepers !

Summer/Fall/Winter–it’s all here at the same time! Just a few simple things to consider as you complete your winter prep (there’s more to it than this but this is a good starter list) – remove extra space (boxes) in the hive, remove any queen excluders, Langstroth top entrances should be open to allow ventilation through the hive.

RPBBA Calendar of Events

📅 Monday, Nov 6th – Honey Bee Planning meeting @7pm

📅 Monday, Nov 13th – Club Meeting @ 7pm

📅 Monday, Nov 20th – Study Group @ 7pm

November Meeting

During our November Club Meeting we will have presentations about products from the hive. This will be an informative and delightful meeting. Doors open at 6:30pm for socializing.

2023 Beginner Beekeeping Course

RPBBA’s Beginning Beekeepers Classes will start on Saturday, Feb 2nd at the Rockwood Park Nature Center and will continue every 2 weeks for 4 sessions. The class is held from 9am-4pm each session.

Participants will receive instruction on:

🐝History, hive organization & location 🐝Woodenware and equipment

🐝Colony dynamics 🐝Diseases, pests & predators

🐝Getting started 🐝The beekeeping year

🐝Floral sources 🐝Bee Field Day (hands-on apiary day)

Register on the RPBBA website. This class fills up quickly.

rockwoodbeekeepers.com/beginner-beekeeping.

Will you be selling nucs, packages or queens this year?

Ever so often, the question pops up- how do I get started? Where can I get my bees? We are in the process of updating the 2023 Resources list. If you plan to have bees for sale next year, tell us your plans. Click here to have your information added to our 2024 Resources*.

*This is simply a list of local suppliers; RPBBA does not endorse or give preference. Buyers are encouraged to do their own research before making their decision to purchase from any supplier.

Virginia State Beekeepers Association (VSBA)

We are HERE at the VSBA and ready to learn, share and connect with other beekeepers and bee enthusiasts!

Make your plans now to join VSBA for the Spring 2024 (July). Organizers are looking at some locations in SW Virginia (so you know it’s going to be beautiful!)

Give the gift of bees. Rick McCormick has a great idea! Consider giving the gift of honeybees to a family in need through Heifer International. Click the link for more information. https://www.heifer.org/gift-catalog/animals/gift-of-honeybees.html

Heads Up: Winter Preparation Workshop

There’s a hands-on opportunity for winter preparation at Dandelion Springs Apiary on November 12th. Learn more and register here:

Winter Prep Workshop 2023 — Dandelion Springs Apiary

This Month in the Hive (November)

The cold weather has arrived (maybe). Colder temperatures will find bees gathered into a cluster that is broken only when the temperature outside the hive rises above 57 degrees. During these warmer days, bees will take cleansing flights.

This is the month to make sure that there are sufficient winter stores in your hives. It is becoming too cold to feed syrup.On a warm day, heft the hive and add honey frames or candy boards. You may consider feeding a pollen substitute in the form of a patty. If your hive(s) have sufficient honey now, you may need to wait until January/February to add candy boards and pollen patties.

It is generally a good idea to stay out of the hives in November unless there is an emergency. The queen should stop laying by the end of November and the population should be steady, with a few bees lost each day. Remember to keep snow and ice from blocking entrances and ventilation holes in the hives.

Use this time to clean and organize your materials, order bee gifts for the holidays, and say thank you to family and friends who’ve endured you and the bees during the spring and summer. Reserve packages or nucleus hives for next April if not already done.

[From https://buzzwordhoney.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Northern-Virginia-Honeybee-Annual-Cycle.pdf]

Meet Your Friendly Neighborhood Beekeeper: Dr. Hollee Freeman

Q: How long have you been a beekeeper and how many hives do you manage?

A: I have been a beekeeper for 5 years and I currently manage 8 colonies.

Q: What inspired you to become a beekeeper?

A: I have always loved nature and found myself observing and taking photos of bees. I wanted to install a few hives on the grounds of my workplace, but to no avail. I didn’t have enough information (or energy) to convince the staff that it was a great idea. A few months later, I visited a micro-farm co-managed by a friend. I noticed that she had beehives on the site. She agreed to let me tag along with her for a season and my love of beekeeping was born!

Q: What is the best thing about beekeeping for you?

A: The best thing about beekeeping for me is both the alone, quiet time (complete with the buzzing of the bees) that I experience when in my apiary AND the absolute delight when working with students and adults to learn more about honeybees and beekeeping.

Q: What’s challenging about beekeeping for you?

A: The most challenging thing for me is managing pests. I hope that with continued experiences and learning from more experienced beekeepers, I will be on the offensive with the pests and not the defensive!

Q: What fun, surprising story would you like to share?

A: One Saturday while working with students (who are refugees) in the Tusome Pamoja program, I asked the class, “what do you remember about class last week” (we’d visited one of my out-hives and talked about honeybees). I heard a quiet voice say “ba”. I walked closer to her and said- please say that again. I heard, “ba” again and I knew that I needed to tread lightly. I did not want to move away from this comment, yet I did not understand what she was trying to say.

A student near her said to me – she’s saying ball. “Ok! Ball”, I responded but I was still confused. I did not know what she was referencing and I didn’t want this to be the last time she spoke up in class.

After a few seconds of going through the Rolodex in my mind , I gasped – ?BALL! Yes! The bees get into a ball when it’s cold.” I made the shape of a ball with my hands. “A ball- a cluster! Wow you remembered THAT!”

This student who has only been in the United States for a few months remembered that the bees form a cluster when it’s cold. I was so happy and surprised at that comment! It made me happy to be a beekeeper.

Q: In what ways do you feel like you are making an impact on the environment and/or the community?

A: I am so delighted that I have the opportunity to share my love of honeybees and beekeeping with students and adults on a regular basis. Rick McCormick got me started sharing about bees during Maymont’s summer camp. This year, I was able to provide professional development to staff at Maymont in addition to work during their summer camp. I also work with students in many schools and organizations such as Fit4Kids. I co-manage the CityBeesRVA program to provide access to community members and I have created a BIack Beekeeper Coalition to add more racial and age diversity into the world of beekeeping. We have grown from 4-17 new beekeepers within a year! I also provide beekeeping classes to students in the Tusome Project, as well as the Cultural Roots HomeSchool Co-op through a grant that I successfully acquired. Through these avenues, I am introducing students (and adults) to not only the wonder of honeybees and beekeeping but environmental science more broadly. Even if participants don’t fall in love with bees and beekeeping, my goal is for them to have a newfound respect for this important insect.

(left pic: Tusome Pamoja students reading bee books to each other. Right pic: The buckwheat honey did not go over well during the honey tasting in class.)

Bee Vocabulary – “candy board”

A candy board is a hardened sugar mixture that’s made to be emergency feed during times of cold weather. Think of it as a large sugar cube. It is placed inside the hive, sitting on top of your frames, just below the inner cover.

Final Word

If you are not a member of RPBBA, we encourage you to join and be active. You can join via our website. If you are a honeybee enthusiast looking to get started, check out the Beginner Beekeeping course.

We are always looking for ways to improve communications in the club. If you have any ideas or suggestions, please let me know.

-Hollee

Hollee Freeman
Communications

Check us out at rockwoodbeekeepers.com!
Like us on Facebook!
Join our Facebook RPBBA Practical Beekeeping Group!
Keep up with what RPBBA is doing, see Calendar of Events!

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This is the official Rockwood Park Backyard Beekeepers email. RPBBA will never share your email with anyone outside of the organization or for non-club-related business without your permission. If you wish to update your email or be removed from our email list please complete this form.

Hello beekeepers and honey bee enthusiasts,

Hopefully your bees are finally settling down as we ease into cooler weather. Be attentive- hive pests such as the small hive beetle and wax moths may be on the rise. For those who attended any of the workshops held recently on winter prep, we hope that you now have additional information to help you get your colonies as strong and healthy as possible going into the winter months.

If anyone out there is still looking for guidance, the club is here with many smiling faces and tons of experience to help. The RPBBA Practical Beekeeping Group (Rockwood Park Backyard Beekeepers Group) is a great first start for those who use Facebook. Also, you can also come out to a meeting or email us! There is still time for some last minute preparations.

RPBBA Calendar of Events

📅 We have rescheduled the Club Potluck/Picnic to Monday, Oct 9th @6:30 pm at the Nature Center- This potluck is in lieu of a formal meeting (note: limit of 2 people per member). Come on out to chat with club members and enjoy great food.

A flier and RSVP link was emailed to RPBBA members. The club will provide fried chicken, water, and tableware. Please bring

1. A side to share

2. Lawn chairs

3. Any soft drinks you might like

Alcohol is NOT permitted on the property.

If you have not already RSVP’d on SignUpGenius, now is the time. When you sign up, please leave a comment to let everyone know what you plan to bring. Thanks in advance. Add to Google Calendar We hope members and their families can join us.

📅 Monday, Oct 16th @7pm – VSBA Master Beekeeping Study Group

This study group meets monthly on the 3rd Monday of each month. The study group is a great way for RPBBA members to deepen their beekeeping knowledge. We are making our way through the VSBA Apprentice Study Guide. In addition to going through the study group content, we discuss and problem-solve for what folks are experiencing in their hives. The study group is open to all members who want to learn and there is no requirement for attendees to pursue certification.

The Annual Holiday Party will be held on Dec 11th. Stay tuned for more details.

Beginning Beekeepers Classes will start on Saturday Feb 2nd at the Nature Center and will continue every 2 weeks for 4 sessions. Watch for details since this class falls up quickly.

Club News – Board of Directors Nominations

It’s that time of year again – time to begin our change of leadership. The Board of Directors consists of a maximum of 9 members per by our By-Laws and Articles of Incorporation. We have 5 Directors (elected in late 2020, for 2021-23). These 2 years terms are coming to an end for the following people:

1. Stan Houk

2. Dennis Marshall

3. Rick McCormick

4. Steve Syrett

5. Kyree Tanner

As a club, we can choose to renew the Board of Directors for another 2 year term or replace them with newly nominated and elected members.

The role of the Board of Directors (BOD) is to select Officers (President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Communications) for next year, vote on club business, and oversee the functions of the club (e.g. the club picnic, holiday party, selecting a Honey Bee Festival chair, etc). The BOD meets a few times a year, as needed, for discussion. If you wish to nominate someone for the Board of Directors or even volunteer yourself, please send an email to rockwood.beekeepers November 1st. Each person nominated to serve on the Board of Directors will be contacted by a member of the Nominating Committee to confirm their interest & willingness to serve.

Speaking of the Nominating Committee, the club is in need of volunteers to join the Nominating Committee. Any RPBBA member can make nominations. However the purpose of the Nominating Committee is to receive the nominations, verify willingness to serve with those nominated, and put forth a slate of candidates for election. This committee should have at least 3 members. If you are interested and willing to volunteer as a member of the nominating committee, please email rockwood.beekeepers November 1st. The club needs you.

Please consider volunteering or, if you are nominated, please consider serving. We need new ideas, new perspectives and can always use more energy from new people helping. Your involvement in the club helps make RPBBA the best it can be. Thank you.

Members of the club will visit the site of the Chesterfield County Fairgrounds soon to begin to plan for the Honey Bee Festival. Send us an email if you are interested in helping out with this walk-through.

Virginia State Beekeepers Association (VSBA)

Reminder: VSBA Annual Meeting and Master Beekeeper Testing

The Fall VSBA meeting will be November 3 & 4th in Williamsburg, VA. Lots of educational and engaging workshops and activities. Randy Oliver, one of the premier honeybee researchers in the U.S. will give presentations along with many others.

Testing for Apprentice, Journeyman, and Master Beekeeper certifications also takes place at the VSBA. If you’re behind on your studying, consider coming to the study group. More information about the VSBA programs can be found on their website: https://www.virginiabeekeepers.org/

Girls Who Hike Virginia, (a 501(c)(3) nonprofit), is looking for donations of honey sticks or other items for their Adventure Summit in October. They expect approximately 80 attendees and would love for them to have a honey stick for their hike. Find out more about Girls Who Hike Virginia from their social media or website https://www.gwhva.org/page/1938622-about-us

Meet Your Friendly Neighborhood Beekeeper: Jacob Schwartz

Q: How long have you been a beekeeper and how many hives do you manage?

A: I have been a beekeeper for 3 years and I currently manage 9 Colonies.

Q: What inspired you to become a beekeeper?

A: When I was a child around the age of 10-12 years old, I loved to visit the zoo in my hometown. My favorite part of the zoo was to visit the honeybee exhibit! I could stand there for hours (while the rest of my family saw the rest of the zoo) and watch the bees work away, always trying to strengthen and grow the colony. I was fascinated that each bee knew exactly what they’re role was in the hive and that they had a specific job and purpose. Bees were so fascinating and I knew from that moment that someday, I’d love to learn more about bees and eventually own bees!

Q: What is the best thing about beekeeping for you?

A: Currently I have come to enjoy teaching new beekeepers how to manage and keep bees. When I started beekeeping, I was extremely hungry for knowledge and learned everything I could either read and experience whether or not it was in my own hives or in Jody and Theo’s hives at Dandelion Springs Apiary. With many mentors teaching me how to manage my own bees, I eventually found fulfillment in spreading all the lessons and opportunities I had been blessed with by great mentors. Though I am a young beekeeper with much to learn, I enjoy working shoulder to shoulder with new beekeepers that are diving into the world of beekeeping. The sense of accomplishment when those beekeepers do well the next season is amazing to say the least.

Q: What’s challenging about beekeeping for you?

A: The most challenging thing for myself in the world of beekeeping is to not overextend. I know every beekeeper has dreams of managing x amount of hives and trying different methods as they learn and grow. The issue I have is wanting to overextend past the bandwidth I have. Understanding where all of your commitments are whether it be financial, work, school, family commitments, etc. can be hard to manage together no less throwing on management of many hives and all their different intricacies and issues. The best way I try to deal with this is to under commit and try to over perform.

Q: What fun, surprising story would you like to share?

A: My wife would tell you that the best part of my beekeeping experience is beeing chased out of my yard by angry bees but my favorite beekeeping story was when my neighbor and I were asked if we’d be willing to do a cut-out for a family that had an issue with bees inside the overhanging porch roof. My neighbor and I are not carpenters and we made sure the home owners knew that before we came to cut into their home. That being said…we were able to cut a small section out of the roof area to get into this sealed off overhang space that was inaccessible to manage without cutting into it. The only issue with the hole we cut was that there was a metal liner in the roof that we were not able to cut

through once we made the initial hole.

Luckily for my neighbor, he was not small enough to get into the roof space to extract the bees. Which meant that I was nominated to crawl into the dark space with upwards of 80k bees (it was a massive hive that had probably been there for years). It ended up being so tight in that area that I could practically just move my arms and look left and right and I had the uncomfortable thought of “what if my suit were to fail right now and these bees became extremely mad…”. Luckily for me we were doing the removal in the spring during the honey flow and they were the most gentle bees I’ve ever experienced. They literally let me scoop them out of the main cluster with only a medical glove. We managed to get all of the bees out of the overhang space when I made the mistake shifting my weight and almost falling though their roof! Thankfully I only broke their drywall under the overhang and not all of my bones on the concrete porch below lol. At the end of the day we made out with homemade cooking from the homeowners, a large amount of honeycomb, and 2 hives worth of free honeybees!

Q: In what ways do you feel like you are making an impact on the environment and/or the community?

A:I try to make a small difference in the local environment by supporting sustainable practices when beekeeping. My goal would be to encourage the community to learn as much as they can about all pollinators and how to manage home spaces to best support wildlife and pollinators. I try to use my hives as a talking point to do this. The best impact I have on my community is to assist new beekeepers in learning the ropes and encouraging them to seek as much knowledge on beekeeping as they can.

Thank you for the opportunity to share my experiences, stories, and thoughts on beekeeping!

Beekeepers in the News
As you may know, Hollee has been working hard to introduce lots of people to the beauty and wonder of beekeeping and to diversify the cadre of local beekeepers. Her film, Beekeeping While Black: The Sacred Power of Bees has been accepted to another film festival! You can watch this 19 minute film here: https://youtu.be/hpod4jvh1Nk?si=cLeRfVOc18TPjaLb

If you have news items to share, please send them to the Rockwood email.

Bee Vocabulary – “Corbicula”

Also known as the Pollen Basket. This is a flattened depression on the outside of the bee’s back legs. It is used to carry collected pollen from flowers back to the hive. As the bee returns to the hive the beekeeper can often see full pollen baskets in a variety of vibrant colors.

This Month in the Hive (October)

The bees are settling down for the winter. Varroa mites may or may not be under control–time to work on this in earnest, if you haven’t already. You may see considerably more propolis as bees reduce their entrances and drafts. Egg laying has probably slowed to 200-300 per day. However, look for continued egg production and capped brood, as new bees are needed to keep the population strong for the winter. On cold nights, the cluster forms around the queen, and may remain tight until temperatures rise. Drones are gone by month end in almost all hives.

Typically in Central VA, the frost does not come until after mid October. Before this time, some gathering of nectar may still be occurring. Asters, daisies, and goldenrod may provide substantial amounts of pollen for winter brood.

There’s a lot to do to get ready for winter:

• don’t forget to attend your bee club meeting

• watch for robbing on warm days

• mitigate pests including mice by installing mouse guards, after making sure there is no mouse inside the brood boxes

• combine weak hives

• finish feeding sugar solutions for the winter

• remove all honey supers not intended as a source of honey for the winter

• remove chemical strips, if you used them (assuming you have had them on for the required number of days)

• reserve packages or nucleus hives for next April

• install the plastic insert on the bottom of the screened bottom board if you use screened bottom boards. If you use solid bottom boards, decide whether to reverse the boards to utilize the small entrance on the “winter” side of the bottom board.

[From Northern Virginia Honeybee Annual Cycle]]

Final Word

If you are a member of RPBBA, you will receive a separate email with the Board of Directors election ballot. Please be on the lookout for it! If you are not a member of RPBBA, we encourage you to join and be active. You can join on our website.

We are always looking for ways to improve communications in the club. If you have any ideas or suggestions, please let me know.

I hope to see you at the meeting on Monday, October 9th at the Nature Center.

Hollee Freeman
Communications

Check us out at rockwoodbeekeepers.com!
Like us on Facebook!
Join our Facebook RPBBA Practical Beekeeping Group!
Keep up with what RPBBA is doing, see Calendar of Events!

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This is the official Rockwood Park Backyard Beekeepers email. RPBBA will never share your email with anyone outside of the organization or for non-club-related business without your permission. If you wish to update your email or be removed from our email list please complete this form.

Sharing the below on behalf of RBA
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Hello All

It is time for the State Fair of VA 2023 and again this year the Richmond Beekeepers Association will be sponsoring the Virginia Beekeepers Honey Booth.  This year as in the past we will need volunteers from all the bee associations to work the booth.  The State Fair of VA runs for 10 days, starting Friday September 22nd thru Sunday, October 1st.  We will need volunteers to fill two shifts a day, first shift 10:00am to 4:00 pm and the second shift 4:00pm to 9:00pm each of the 10 days.  The volunteer’s bee association will receive a portion of the profits made from the sale of honey and other products of the hive, based on the number of shifts worked.  This is a great way to earn money for your club and also meet other beekeepers from the central Virginia area.  All beekeepers in VA can sell their honey at the VA Beekeepers Honey Booth.  The honey must be properly labeled with their contact information and they must  also volunteer to work at least one shift in the honey booth.  The beekeeper will receive wholesale price for their honey sold minus 22% which goes to pay fees for the booth, taxes, insurance and other expenses incurred in running the honey booth. The beekeeper needs to bring their products to Meadow Pavilion on Thursday September 21st between 3:00pm and 7:00pm.

The State Fair of VA is located at Meadow Farm in Doswell, VA (just past Kings Dominion) in the Meadow Pavilion with other agriculture displays.  Admission tickets will be sent to each volunteer for each day worked.

We will be using SignUpGenius again this year for volunteers to sign up for their shift or shifts they wish to work.  The link is http://bit.ly/vastatefair.  Once you have signed up you will receive conformation via email.  If you have any questions or concerns or need help to sign up please contact Steve White at 804-337-9235 or email slwhite63@gmail.com or Gay Stapleton at 804-672-8408 or email at rbrtstapleton@yahoo.com.

Bob Stapleton,

Honey Booth Co-Chairman

Hello beekeepers and honeybee enthusiasts!

We are experiencing the hottest summer on record since 1940 when records first collected (UN World Meteorological Organization and European Climate Service)! Even though it’s hot hot hot, it’s time to think about preparations for overwintering. Lots to think about: maybe a final honey harvest, feeding, treating for mites, combining weak hives with strong ones, etc. We will be covering all that and more at our meeting this month. Come on out and get some valuable information. 

September Meeting & Study Group

Our meeting this month will be 7pm, Monday, September 11th at the Rockwood Park Nature Center. We will discuss Fall actions needed to prepare hives for winter. Whether this will be your 1st winter or you’re a seasoned beekeeper, this is good information to have and share. We hope to see you all there. Doors open at 6:30pm. Add to Google Calendar

Study group meets on September 18th at 7pm at the Rockwood Park Nature Center.

RPBBA Club Picnic 

The club picnic will be held on September 23rd from 4-8pm at Gregory’s Pond Fishing Club (3501 Gregory Pond Rd).  If you have not already marked your calendar and RSVP’d on SignUp Genius, now’s the time. Add to Google Calendar We hope all members and their families can join us. A flier and RSVP link was emailed to RPBBA members. The association will provide fried chicken, soft drinks/water & tableware. Please sign up to bring: 

1. A Side to Share
2. Lawn Chairs
3. A Picnic Blanket for your family 

Grills will be set up in case anyone needs them. Alcohol is permitted, BYOB, but please keep in mind this is a family-style event. Fishing is allowed from the pond, BYOP&B, bring your own pole & bait. If you’ve got other fun outdoor games like cornhole or horse shoes, bring ’em!

Virginia State Beekeepers Association (VSBA)

Join us at the VSBA fall meeting. There will be engaging speakers, workshops for beginner and intermediate beekeepers, supplies, fun social events, sightseeing and more! 

Come meet beekeepers from far and wide, learn some important information and talk about bees all weekend! What could be better? Nothing! 

See the VSBA website for details and to register https://www.virginiabeekeepers.org/

State Fair of Virginia

The always fun State Fair of Virginia will take place at Meadow Farm in Doswell, VA (just past Kings Dominion) from Friday, September 22nd- Sunday, October 1st. https://www.statefairva.org/. 

VDACS Beehive Distribution Program

Applications for the program are currently being accepted through September 12th 

https://www.vdacs.virginia.gov/plant-industry-services-beehive-distribution-program.shtml

Beekeepers in the News

The Virginia Climate Action folks visited Hollee’s apiary for a workshop on National Honeybee Day. Together they completed a hive inspection and honey extraction. It was a great event for a great cause. Huge thanks to Mr. C for the assist. 

Meet Your Friendly Neighborhood Beekeeper: Christine Moran 

[Hollee (L) & Christy (R) at Spikenard Farm Honeybee Sanctuary learning about biodynamic beekeeping.]

Q: How long have you been a beekeeper and how many hives do you manage?

A: I began beekeeping in 2016 under the mentorship of Rick McCormick. In a good year, I have 6 hives and in a low year 2.

Q: What inspired you to become a beekeeper?

A: I was certified as a Master Gardener a few years previously. I became interested in how native bees, bumblebees and honey bees contribute to my flowers and vegetables.

Q: What is the best thing about beekeeping for you?

A:   During the pandemic, I was home 24/7. We have one acre with no grass!! So, I began to watch ALL the bees on our property. When one is moving too fast, the tiny native bees are missed. I love watching the bumblebees play as they gather. I have also learned to respect the contribution of wasps. I maintain all sorts of habitats on the property for all the pollinators. I worry about butterflies. Their population is low, but I keep their resources active.

Q: What’s challenging about beekeeping for you?

A: My greatest challenge is SHB!! I’m constantly reading and recently visited Spikenard Sanctuary to learn their methods.

Q: What fun, surprising story would you like to share?

A:  Rick was helping me inspect a large hive. I cover each box with a towel to keep the girls calm. It was standing at least 5 high when the whole stack fell over.  We both were shocked and laughing at the same time! Because of the towels, the girls were relatively calm. Inspection proceeded!(This bee inspection episode was recorded!!)

 Q: In what ways do you feel like you are making an impact on the environment and/or the community?

A:  I believe in leading by example. If I can show or tell one person about bees and sustainable living, then I have succeeded!

This Month in the Hive 

As John Davis mentioned during our August club meeting, this is the perfect time to think about your goals for fall/winter, what steps you will take to get there, and what resources you need.

The hive population is decreasing due to reduced egg-laying by the queen. Also, drones may begin to get kicked out of the colony toward the end of this month. Typically, we have a frost in mid-October and the bees will begin to cluster when the temperature inside the hive drops below 57 degrees.

In a year with adequate rainfall (4-6 inches, spread across the month), asters, daisies, ragweed, clovers, tickseed, and goldenrod may provide substantial sources of nectar. In these conditions, strong hives may make up to 20 pounds of honey during September. 

In years with drought conditions, however, September can be disastrous for the hive, with the bees consuming the honey and pollen that should be saved for winter.Feeding of syrup and pollen substitutes may be essential since September is proving to be a month with very little rainfall. 

Consider removing the queen excluder if you left it on the hives after the harvest. Check on the queen. If you are going to use it, feed and medicate with Fumagillin in syrup to fight nosema towards the end of the month. (Only the first 2 gallons of syrup per hive are medicated if you are using it.) Add chemical mite treatments if you did not do so in August and if you are using those treatments. Now is the time to use menthol crystals for tracheal mite control, if you are going to do so. If it is dry, or you made up splits in July, feeding continues until the bees will take no more syrup.

[adapted from https://buzzwordhoney.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Northern-Virginia-Honeybee-Annual-Cycle.pdf]

Bee Vocabulary – “candy board”

A candy board is a way to feed your bees through winter. During colder temperatures, the honeybees will form a cluster to keep warm. As they eat through their food stores, they’ll move upward in the hive. A beekeeper can make a candy board and place it at the top of the hive to supplement feeding to avoid starvation. There are various mixtures for candy boards. Think of it like a large sugar block or sugar brownie.

Final Word

If you are not a member of RPBBA, we encourage you to join and be active. There is a constant flow of activities within the club to be as active as you want to be. You can join on our website.

If you have an event that you’d like to share or if you would like to be featured in our Beekeeper for the Month, please email 

We are always looking for ways to improve communications in the club. If you have any ideas or suggestions, please send an email to rockwood.beekepers@gmail.com

We hope to see you at the meeting 7pm, Monday, September 11th at the Rockwood Park Nature Center. Our club meetings are open to members and non-members with no pressure to join. I hope you can bee there!

Attend bee meetings and state and local fairs and festivals. Give honey to your neighbors, and make sure they understand how good the bees are for gardens, flowers, and the growing environment in general.

-Hollee