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Here are some links to organizations that are having classes. Let It Bee in Appleton, WI $50 Beginner Beekeeping - 8am-12pm Jan 14 OR Feb 17 at the Holiday Inn, 1565 N. Casaloma Drive, Appleton $50 Advanced Beekeeping - 1pm-5pm Jan 14 OR Feb 17 at the Holiday Inn, 1565 N. Casaloma Drive, Appleton Register online www.letitbeeinc.com/collections/classes  Heritage Honeybee in Sullivan, WI  FREE, Beekeeping 101 class - 9am-3pm Feb 9th and 10th  (Jan class is full) In Person, must attend both days Register online  ..read more

 Time is running out... Order bees if you haven't already. Here are some suppliers that I know of ..read more

For Southern and Southeastern Districts FREE for WHPA members; $5 for non-members at the door. Sat, March 11, 2023, 1:30 PM – 4:30 PM CST Concord Community Center, W1095 Concord Center Drive Sullivan, WI 53178 Enjoy an afternoon of beekeeper fellowship over coffee and treats along with numerous door prizes! Learn from and ask questions during a Panel Discussion covering the following topics: -Varroa mite management from Spring to Fall -Inspections and equalizing colonies -Tips for increasing honey production -Managing the brood nest for better over-Wintering -And more... P ..read more

Warmer weather means active bees. The weather is in a warming trend. Everyone with survivors should be checking the food levels in the hives every 10 days or so until the end of April. Food being sugar and pollen patties, because it's too cool for syrup until we're consistently in the 50's. The colonies will be building up exponentially as more and more bees emerge, and the demand for food will also grow exponentially.   Cold snaps will continue to occur and the nurse bees won't leave the expanding broodnest. Food should be directly above them so they can form a column up to it. If i ..read more

Western Apicultural Society  FEBRUARY 2022 Mini-Conference Webinar February 16th, 7 PM Mountain Daylight Time (8 PM Central Time) Topic: Bee Nutrition ​Part 1: Honeybee Nutrition Basics (60mins) Part 2: Nutrition and feeding management (35mins) Followed by a Q&A Speaker: Dr. Dale Hill  is an expert in the field of animal nutrition with 38 years of nutrition formulation experience and is the primary developer of Dadant’s AP23 pollen substitute. Dr. Hill is the author of the updated nutrition chapter in the latest edition of the “The Hive and the Honey Bee”. He also teaches the ..read more

How do you like your RAW honey? Most will agree that RAW honey comes straight from the hive without being pasteurized or filtered. This kind of honey usually crystallizes over time, causing the honey to be grainy or sugary. While that is a good sign, all the nutrients are still in the honey, it can turn some people off.  Now that we have had honey for a few months now, most of you are probably experiencing crystallized honey in your jars. Once the crystallization starts, it will continue to consume the whole container. The honey will get thicker and may even turn solid. The best way to ..read more

South Western Ohio Beekeepers Association FREE Zoom Meeting Title: Mite Management for Fall and Winter Bee Health When: 16 Nov. 2021 at 7:30 PM ET (Cincinnati time). Speaker: Barbara Bloetscher  Barb has been the State Entomologist/Apiarist at the Ohio Department of Agriculture since 2009. Prior to that, she worked for 23 years at The Ohio State University as an entomologist and agronomic diagnostician in Extension.  As State Entomologist, she oversees the Apiary Program and identifies insects and other arthropods submitted from Ohio Nursery inspectors and businesses. Barb monitors ..read more

Thursday, November 11, from 8 - 10 pm CST The Western Apicultural Society is hosting another Webinar.   The speakers are Dan Winter of the American Beekeeping Federation (ABF) and Chris Hiatt of the American Honey Producers Association (AHPA).  The topics of discussion aren't listed, but it's probably worthwhile to give them a listen.   As always, you have to register for this free event. https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_HkXZussXRYGiWcq2fF6KnQ ..read more

First of all, what is absconding?   When a colony absconds, all of the bees leave, including the queen.  This is rarely a spur of the moment decision by the colony, but is weeks in the making.  Once the decision is made to abscond, the foragers stop bringing in nectar and pollen for storage, the queen stops laying, and the colony waits around for the pupating bees to emerge.  Then the workers engorge with honey and off they go in search of a new home.  What the beekeeper finds is an empty hive.  The triggers for absconding are not well understood or agreed up ..read more