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York County Beekeepers' Association "Beekeeping that is environmentally correct, economically viable and socially just."
"If the bee
disappeared off the surface of the globe, then man would only have four
years of life left. |
| "Bee Law" |
Nu Bees in York County, PA. Jeremy Barnes An article in Bee Culture, Sept 2006, written by David Tarpy and titled Recruiting Beekeepers, described a successful state-wide approach to Beekeeper recruitment in North Carolina. It in turn inspired us to try something similar on a county level, not least in terms of the declining numbers of beekeepers both in Pennsylvania and at our local meetings. What we could not have foreseen was the media attention given to beekeeping because of CCD, which has given dramatic imperative to our initiative. At the February 2007 meeting of the York County Beekeepers’ Association the following was accepted : “This proposal is designed to attract and support new beekeepers in York County, not only benefiting the agriculture and environment in our area but also doing something proactive to counteract the decreasing number of bees, beekeepers and members of beekeeper organizations nationwide. This program involves Requesting financial support from organizations committed to the health and economic well being of York County Advertising for participants in the local media – ie. people who have an interest in but no prior experience of managing bees. Selecting a suitable number of participants related to the funds available, and providing each with a starter hive (bottom board, one deep brood box, 10 frames of foundation, inner cover and lid.) Bees and queens will be donated by members of the Association. Some financial input from the participant is required, eg. for veils, smoker, gloves and later, further equipment. Each participant with be connected with a mentor from the Beekeepers Association who will assist in the initial establishment of the hive and be available on a longer term basis. Each participant will be required to become a member of the York County Beekeepeers’ Association both for mutual support and for on-going instruction.” A number of members agreed to be mentors and Jeff Davis, a local breeder of Russian queens, offered to donate queens and, where necessary, frames of brood and worker bees. With the proposal accepted unanimously, approaches were made to four business enterprises with connections to local agricultural and the environment. Three responded immediately – Stan Brown of Brown’s Orchards, David Miller of Miller’s Plant Farm, and Bob Kinsley of Kinsley Construction – and we had $650 with which to purchase 10 starter hives (which two members drove to collect so as to save on the high mailing costs) and 100 Pierco frames. A decision was made to purchase unassembled starter kits in that assembling one’s first hive is a good way of becoming familiar with the way in which it fits together. At the same time an article written for the local evening paper by Daina Klimanis who is both a journalist and a member of the local bee association. She interviewed a number of local authorities, including Stan Brown who had been the first to donate to this program, and included the phone number and e-mail address of the association’s President in terms of a contact address. The response was immediate. Within a week we had not only ten interested new beekeepers (and somehow they were stuck with the term ‘Nu-bees’) but we also received calls from people who had equipment but had never used it and others who had kept bees at one time and wanted to begin again but this time with guidance. From the outset our position had been that reading books on bee management and attending short courses is important, yet nothing quite compares with having an experienced beekeeper walk one through that first year. Late in March we had an ‘Assembly Day’ at the pavilion at Brown’s Orchards, at which the starter hives were assembled by the nu-bees together with their mentors, the workings of a hive were briefly explained, each new participant received a folder of information including addresses from which they could order a veil, smoker and hive tool, and examples of journals (eg. Bee Culture) and books (eg. Beekeeping for Dummies) were on display. It was an energizing, collegial affair, followed by ten weeks of hurry up and wait, which was no doubt frustrating for some as they put their newly painted hives in ideal locations and then had to wait for their bees. We ameliorated the anxiety somewhat by organizing in May a hands-on afternoon in which the nu-bees met with Jeff Davis and his breeding colonies to witness their queens were being reared. This was followed by a visit to the hives of one of the club members, together with tea and honey cookies made using a winning recipe from the Pennsylvania Farm Show. Two captured swarms were used to start new hives, some members donated nucs, another came from a retiring beekeeper, and Jeff provided queens as they became available. By June 15th we had 15 new hives established for 15 new beekeepers, each of which was fed sugar water for at least a week to get it started, and orders were being placed for second hive bodies. It was clear to each nu-bee that their objective was to build their colony to 60,000 bees by the fall, each with 60 lbs of honey to see it through their winter. And in the spring of 2008 we’ll start talking about supers. David’s original article suggested that in retrospect it would have been more effective to select the applicants, have them attend a beekeeping course, and only then distribute the equipment and bees. The logic of this is clear and yet our decision has been that sometimes with a little practical experience the short beekeeping courses often make more sense and are less overwhelming. Indeed several of our nu-bees have signed up for the EIS Short Course taking place in Delaware in August. The May meeting of the County Beekeepers’ Association was better attended than any in recent memory and we have a new list of Nu-bees who want to start next spring. Hopefully, with a successful year behind us, we can apply for grant money to fund the next initiative. But the real success of the program will best be measured by how many of those who began this summer survive the winter and are still actively involved next spring. We were advised to expect no more than a 50% longevity rate but we’re hoping that it will be significantly higher than that. Jeremy Barnes is himself a relatively new beekeeper who blossomed because of the mentoring of Jeff Davis, and is currently President of the York County Beekeepers’ Association. For more information about the York County Beekeepers' Association's "Nu-Bee Program", contact Jeremy Barnes at babathemba@mac.com
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