Bee Day

A few weeks ago I coerced Jim into writing a blog post about the beekeeping course he's been taking. After his second classroom instruction day, he didn't have a lot to say about it. On Saturday was his hands-on day. He'd asked if I could come along to participate, and they were happy to have me come. Also didn't mind that I brought the camera and stuck it many places!

We met on the property of Lance, the bee inspector for our region (and the teacher). Here he is expounding on the parts of the hive:



He'd set up various stations around his property with activities, and split the class up into groups to go through the stations. Everything from identifying disease, to learning how to set skunk traps, to treating bee diseases, to learning to build an electric fence to keep bears away from the hives, etc. And, of course, everyone got their chance to suit up and have a demonstration right in the bee yard.

Here's Jim:



Yep, I suited up and went in the bee yard also. It didn't occur to me how many people would be horrified that I'd do that, knowing I get allergic reactions from stings. But I felt quite comfortable in the suit--other than hot. The bees buzzing around didn't really *bug* me.



Not everyone suits up. The fellow on the right of this photo has been running bees for 45 years and says he hasn't suited up for over half that time. He did get a couple stings that day, but just gently flicked the bee away. Amazing.



He was in charge of the bee yard demonstrations and lifted frames out of the supers--yes, bare-handed--then handed them around so everyone could see the pollen, the larvae, etc.



Here the White Lab Overalls examine all.



Bees!!



So, now we have a bit of an idea what beekeeping entails and are on to the next steps: preparing our own bee yard and looking for hives to purchase. Will keep you updated!