At the May 2020 meeting of the club April Kustov, Wisconsin State Apiary Inspector joined our meeting via Zoom to present Mite Management. The video is over an hour long but is very comprehensive about mite management and treatments.
In the video April refers to different mite treatments and the Wisconsin recommended treatments. Here is the sheet to which she refers. If you would like the Power Point presentation click here. You will need Power Point to view the slides.
Here is the link for the UPDATED BCBA 2020 GUIDE TO PURCHASING BEES 2020. We are not endorsing any specific supplier, but giving members the option to see what’s available, do personal research and make educated decisions. This is the start to a GREAT year, please remember to come to club meetings for additional support and valuable information.
BCBA now has educational posters available for club events or programs. These posters cover important topics such as whats in the bee hive, bee anatomy, how honey is made and the life cycle of bees. Other posters available cover basic pollinators and seeds and endangered pollinators. These posters will make it fun and easy for us as we explain the importance of bees and bee biology.
During one of the club’s virtual meetings about installing and feeding nucs and packages the question came up about feeding using a zip top bag. No one in the meeting had any feedback so Carl Fisher has done some internet research and come up with the following.
Join Brown County Beekeepers Association President Dave Elsen and Vice President Julie Mazzoleni as they demonstrate how to install a nuc and a package of new honey bees. They also take questions from club members on lots of related topics to include feeding the new bees. The presentation is an hour long but well worth it.
During the April 15, 2020 virtual club meeting the subject of performing a sugar roll to check mite load came up. The Minnesota Bee Squad does a lot of good work in the area of mite testing and controls. The only issue with this video, in the club’s opinion, is the person is only wearing head protection. She is not wearing gloves or arm protection. The club always recommends taking the level of personal protection you are comfortable with.
A survey was taken during the November 2019 club meeting asking members to prioritize the purchase of potential items by ranking up to five items from 1 (highest priority) to 5. There were eleven items suggested for potential purchase. The club also voted to allocate up to $1,000 to purchase the top ranked items.
We then added up all of the “votes” an item received and divided the sum by the number of votes. A combination of votes and average score resulted in the following rankings.
| RAnk | Item | Votes | Avg Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Infrared Camera | 12 | 2.08 |
| 2 | Honey Extracting Kit | 11 | 2.27 |
| 3 | Bee Education Posters | 9 | 3.33 |
| 4 | Hive Scale | 8 | 2.25 |
| 5 | Candle / Wax Molds | 8 | 3.88 |
| 6 | Frame Assembly Jig | 6 | 4.0 |
| 7 | Dovetail Jig | 5 | 4.0 |
| 8 | BCBA Medallions | 5 | 4.4 |
| 9 | Laptop Computer | 1 | 2.0 |
| 10 | Printer | 1 | 3.0 |
| 11 | Polariscope | 1 | 4.0 |
As of March 2020 the club has purchased the Infrared Camera and the Honey Extracting Kit items. Both are currently available to rent for club members.
Our March meeting was cancelled where the topic for discussion was going to be “Spring Management Before Dandelions Bloom”. Here is a 3 minute video by Dave Elsen on that subject.
We are hopeful this event will be rescheduled, however, at this time it has to be CANCELLED.
The Brown County Library – Denmark Branch, is hosting the Brown County Beekeepers Association in a one hour presentation on BEGINNING BEEKEEPING. The presentation will be on Monday April 13th at 6:00 PM and will cover : equipment, cost and time.
LOCATION: Brown County Library – 450 N Wall St, Denmark, WI 54208
TIME: 6:00 – 7:00 PM
A quick assessment of overall hive health before a full inspection can be done by tilting the hive forward on the bottom board. In this way you get a feel for the weight of the hive, colony size, and a critical look at the bottom board. Read the full article by Bee Informed Partnership here