VOLUME 18
OCTOBER 2012
NUMBER 3
OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER OF THE CENTRAL OHIO BEEKEEPERS ASSOCIATION NEXT REGULAR MEETING OCTOBER 17, 2012 6:30 PM
Franklin Park Conservatory Downstairs meeting room 1777 East Broad Street Columbus Oh, 43203
OCTOBER MEETING OUTLINE by Nina Bagley Hello all its that time of year for the COBA bee auction October 17, 2012, looks like we are going to have a good auction this year.The auction is going to be a silent auction so this will give every one a chance to use their bee dollars. We have lots of nice bee related items that have been donated by Mann Lake, Barry Conrad, Denny Lamb. Brushy Mountain, Dadant and more. We will have a dollar grab bag table as well. If you did not get your bee dollars for working at the Ohio State Fair, working at the Bee School, the Bee Yard or if you attended a meeting and did not get one, or anything else be honest and write on a paper what you think you are owed and we will have a table with someone to pass out bee dollars to the volunteers that did not get them. Its going to be a good night so lets have fun and use up the bee dollars there will be something for everyone even if you have one bee dollar. Be sure to attend this meeting to take advantage of choosing your officers for the coming years. The election will take place with a full slate of nominations and we will also be taking nominations from the floor. It is important to elect those you feel will do the best job for COBA. The most exciting part of the meeting will be the annual “BEE DOLLAR AUCTION”. This will be a silent auction with a very large selection of items ranging from equipment down to jars of honey. MARK YOUR CALENDARS NOW FOR THE NOVEMBER MEETING---NOV 14th ANNUAL PRODUCTS OF THE HIVE CONTEST AND AWARDS DINNER MEET THE COBA “BEEKEEPER OF THE YEAR” FOR 2012
PRESIDENTS MESSSAGE by Terry Eddy
COBA Meeting Information October, the time when beekeeping is just about finished for the year, is an important time for COBA and a fun and rewarding time for you. During the October meeting the following two items are on the agenda. First, for COBA it is time for the election of Officers. We always need new members with fresh ideas to run for the offices. There will be time at the beginning of the meeting to be put on the ballet for the elections. Please see Steve Taylor before the meeting and he will see that you will be eligible for the current election. Second, for you it is the fun part of the meeting. COBA appreciates the volunteer hours that you gave toward helping COBA but more importantly how you have helped to promote bees and beekeeping. In appreciation of your time, you received ‘Bee Dollars’ that can be redeemed for items that you select in the Bee Auction. Please have fun and I hope that you go home with everything that you want. The November meeting, the last meeting of the year, will be our annual banquet at the Der Dutchman in Plain City. Besides a great meal at a very reasonable price we will have the following activities. Carmen Conrad will announce the winners of honey and bee products competition. She will also hand out the cash prizes at the meeting. The Beekeeper of the Year Award will also be named. This is time for us to recognize the person that has helped beekeeping the most in 2012. I am speaking for the executive board when I say that we are looking forward to seeing each of you at these last two meetings. DON’T FORGET TO BRING YOUR BEE DOLLARS TO THE OCTOBER MEETING! ********************************************** DID YOU KNOW?? Bee Pollen contains more protein per ounce (up to 40%) than any other natural food and is the only food that contains 22 amino acids, 12 vitamins, 28 minerals, numerous enzymes and beneficial fatty acids required by the human body. Pollen Smoothie:
Prep Time: 2 minutes Ingredients: 1 cup almond milk 3-4 large kale leaves
1 tsp. flax seed ground (a coffee grinder works well!) 1 banana, frozen and cut into chunks
1 cup frozen fruit (your choice) 1 tbsp bee pollen 1 tablespoon honey
1 tsp. cinnamon Directions: Combine all ingredients and blend until smooth and creamy.
COBA’S 2012 Bee Yard Update by Rod Pritchard The COBA bee yard started off with a bang or maybe a buzz this year with our first swarm caught on the April 4th, our first day in the bee yard. We started with several nucs from last year and moved the nucs to a new yard with the intention of raising nucs for sale this summer. We also moved three hives to the Franklin Park bee yard to be used by the advanced beekeeping class and three to the queen project held this year in Blacklick. The beginning class installed four packages of bees into new hives and we held classes on Wednesday from April through October. The bees at both OSU and Franklin Park did very well with the early spring with strong growth of the colonies and lots of pollen and nectar collected. Like most of us in Central Ohio, the drought brought challenges to the yard with queen losses, poor pollen sources and a general feeling of just standing in place and not moving forward. Nucs did not develop as expected with queen cells not being accepted due to high temperatures. We had several queen failures at Franklin Park with swarm queens not being replaced as well as, failures at the OSU yard. Our most successful replacement queens came from those hives or nucs that raised their own or that had queens introduced into the hive as opposed to cells that we introduced. We have sold several hives or nucs this fall in an attempt to lower the number of bees at OSU. Bees have been returned from the queen project to OSU and we are now dealing with how we will treat them for the winter. In a perfect world, we would like to have no more than six hives at OSU going into winter. In general, classes have been well attended and we have enjoyed the support of many of our members both old and new. ********************************************** Three ministers are having lunch and complaining about infestations of bees in their churches. “I’ve had these things in my loft and attic all summer,” one says. “I’ve tried everything—noise, spray, water. Nothing seems to scare them away.”“Yes, me too,” the second minister says. “Thousands of them; they won’t go away.”“I had a problem with them, too,” the third minister says. “But I baptized all mine and made them members of the church. Haven’t seen one back since!” ********************************************** A rather cocky Bee Inspector stopped at a farm and spoke to the old farmer who had a sideline keeping bees. He told him, “I need to inspect your apiary.”The old farmer said, “OK, but don’t go in that field over yonder.”The Inspector replied, “Mister, I have the authority of the Government with me. See this ID? This means I am allowed to go wherever I wish on any agricultural land. No questions asked or answered. Have I made myself clear? Do you understand?”The bee farmer nodded politely and went about his farm chores. Half an hour later, the farmer heard loud screams and saw the Inspector running for the fence and close behind was the farmer’s huge-horned prize bull. The bull was gaining on him with every step. The man was clearly terrified, so the bee farmer immediately threw down his tools, ran to the fence and shouted, “Your ID! Your ID! Show him your ID!”
“HONEY SHOW” BACK AT OHIO STATE FAIR For the first time in over ten years, we had a honey competition at the Ohio State Fair. All thanks and congrats go to the Ohio State Beekeepers Association and a hard working volunteer staff. The OSBA sponsored the honey show with over $1500.00 in prize money! In return OSBA had a very large covered arena in which to promote honeybees and beekeeping as well as the OSBA organization. Local associations were given an opportunity to promote their own groups and upcoming activities. The members of the Ohio State Fair board were impressed with the efforts of Ohio beekeepers and the amount of people our exhibit drew and have asked that we return next year. This will take lots of work and volunteers. OSBA would like to see more associations around Ohio become involved and more entries in the Honey Show. The honey show included honey and hive products, baking and photography and was prominently displayed in the family arts and crafts building.
COBA ‘SWEEPS’ OHIO HONEY SHOW COBA really impressed the judges at the 2012 Ohio State Fair Honey Show with members sweeping the “Best of Show” awards. Best of Show - Baking (classes 1-6) Tess Conrad Best of Show - Honey (classes 7-11) Carmen Conrad Best of Show - Other Hive Products (classes 12-14) Winnie Williams Best of Show - Photography - youth Tess Conrad Best of Show - Photography - adult Carmen Conrad Of the 46 other ribbons, 25 were won by COBA members: Lydia Voorhees, Barry Conrad, Nina Bagley, Kimberly Flippen, Patricia DeMaria, David Crawford, Shawn Rinehart, and Susan Valentine-Cooper. Tess Conrad with her awards The “People’s Choice” award was won by Tess Conrad from the Ohio State Fair voted the publics favorite of all entries. All of these members can now classify their honey as “award winning” for all of the next year! Congratulations to all who won and a big ‘thanks’ to all who entered. Remember, you can’t win if you don’t enter!
ANNUAL ELECTION - OCTOBER 2012 by Scott Taylor Last call - All of the officer positiions are up for election, along with 3 trustees. If you have any interest or ideas on how our club is run, please consider running for one of the positions. We will be holding elections at the October meeting before the Bee Dollar auction. If you are interested, please email Scott Taylor at scott@beehavenacres.com and let him know what position you are interested in. We will also be taking nominations at the meeting. If you are not yet ready to commit to being an officer, maybe you could volunteer to head up one on the many committees that help eep COBA running. ********************************************** COBA’S 2013 BEGINNING BEEKEEPING SCHOOL Due to the overwhelming demand for the beginning beekeepers school the last two years we have decided to schedule two classes for the 2013 year, with a third one possible if the demand is great enough. As in the past each class will consist of four evening sessions plus a hands on session on a Saturday to demonstrate installing a package of bees. Each session will cover two topics , each with a different instructor. It is hoped that this will give a very well rounded experience, with different views on beekeeping in Central Ohio. COBA will also be offereng Youth Scholarships for the school. Please contact Mike Hatter at 937-348-2636 for more information on the scholarships. The first class will be on Wednesdays in February. This class will be held at the OSU Waterman farm complex on Carmack Rd. The second class will be on Tuesdays in March. This class will also be held at the OSU Waterman farm complex on Carmack Rd. The Saturday package installation sessions will be determined later, after we get delivery dates for the package bees. If you know anyone interested in attending next years school they can contact us thru COBA’s website, centralohiobeekeepers.org, They can also contact Barry Conrad @ 614-837-3899 or by e-mail at barry@hiveandhoney.com. Remember that the class size is limited so people need to sign up early to insure not being shut out.
COBA 10th Annual Awards Dinner and Honey Contest by Mike Hatter Wednesday - November 14, 2012 Der Dutchman 445 S Jefferson Ave Plain City. Ohio Arrive 6:00-7:00 p.m. We will begin dinner at around 7:00. On Wednesday November 14th, the annual COBA Banquet dinner and honey competition will be held at the Der Dutchman restaurant, 445 S. Jefferson Ave. Plain City, OH. Doors open at 6pm. Dinner buffet will include: broasted chicken, roast beef, fish, side dishes, and pie. Price includes tax and tip. Adult dinners are $17.50, $9.00 for kids 9-12, and ages 4-8 eat for $7.00. Please RSVP to Mike Hatter (937-348-2636 or mike.hatter@yahoo.com) by November 8th. Cash or checks made out to COBA are due at the door. Don’t forget to get your honey entries to Carmen by Sunday November 11th . Each entry earns a chance for prize money and bragging rights. Good luck and see you there!
Annual COBA Honey Show coming soon! by Carmen Conrad Our November dinner meeting will be November 14th at Der Dutchman, and that means it's time for the annual honey show and competition. Categories include pollen, beeswax, comb honey, cut comb honey, creamed honey, extracting frames, liquid honey (4color ranges) and chunk honey. As always I stress that this is a learning event, designed to help our members that wish to learn more about honey competition. We hope to make it a fun experience, I'll give a few tips and answer questions the night of the dinner. Entries must be at my home, 6240 Wright Rd, on or before November 11th. This will give me time to judge and prepare for the meeting Nov. 14th. Barry or Brad will be logging in entries so that I will not have information on whose honey I am judging. Remember - this year there will be cash prizes totaling $100.00 dollars. Everyone entering the competition will be eligible to win prizes. An exhibitor will be given one raffle ticket for each entry made in the show. Tickets will be drawn raffle style. We had fun doing this last year - good luck to all who enter.
COBA HONEY PRODUCTS COMPETITION RULES 1. Owners name will be on small card attached to product by rubber band or string 2. Only one exhibit in same class by one exhibitor 3. All exhibits be produced from State Registered exhibitors apiary. 4. Exhibitor must be a current paid up COBA member. 5. No labels on products allowed 6. No entry will be acceptd after Nov 11th 2012 7. Winners and awards will be announced at the November 2012 dinner meeting. ENTRIES: Class: 1. Pollen 2 - 1lb. jars 2. Beeswax 1 - 1lb. block 3. Comb honey - rounds 2 - rounds 4. Cut comb 2 square boxes 5 Creamed honey 2 - 1lb jars 6. Extracting frames 1 shallow or medium 7. Liquid honey 2 - 1lb jars 7a water white incl extra white 7b white 7c light amber incl extra light amber 7d amber incl dark amber Following are some of the things products will be judged on. Pollen: freedom from fine and course debris and dust. Disquallfy for mold or insect presence. Flavor and smell, downgrade if unnatural. Correct dryness. Attractiveness (color) Beeswax: Color - straw to canary yellow. Cleanliness. Freedom from cracking and shrinkage. Uniformidy of appearance. Comb honey: Uniformity and completness of filling. Cappings, uniformity and whiteness. Quality of honey, flavor, aroma, no crystals.Cleanliness of product and container. Cut comb: Same as for comb. Appearance includes how well drained the section is before packing. Creamed honey: Appearance and suitability of containers. Uniformity and accuracy of volume of honey in container. Firmness of set, absence of froth or impurities. Color, flavor, aroma and texture (fine granulation). Extracting frames: Quality of honey. Cappings - white, complete, even, free from stain.. Uniform color throughout the frame. Thickness for ease in uncapping. Liquid honey: Appearance and suitability of containers. Uniform and accurate fill. Freedom of crystals and impurities. Color and clarity, flavor and aroma. Moisture content. Moisture will be graded on a scale of 0 to 20 points. Honey that is over 18 percent moisture will receive 0 points with maximum 20 points for honey with a moisture content of 16 to 15.8 percent moisture. Honey with a moisture content of less than 15.5 will receive progressively less points. Main thing to remember: This is to be a fun and learning experience. If you are unsure of the color class of your entry, we will help find the right class. We hope to be able to give some helpful tips and suggestions that will help if you decide to enter in a local, state, or even a national show.
Judging will be done Monday November 12th. so all entries must be in by Sunday November 11th.
CENTRAL OHIO BEEKEEPERS ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER EDITOR: BARRY CONRAD (614-837-3899)
President
Vice President
Terry Eddy 5511 Durrell Road Columbus, Ohio 43229 614-848-3326
Dan Wampler 1315 Rockmill Rd NW Lancaster, Ohio 43130 740-654-4045
Treasurer
Secretary
Barry Conrad 6240 Wright Road Canal Winchester, Ohio 43110 614-837-3899
Gail Walters 471 Highgate Ave Worthington, Ohio 43085 614-848-3760
CENTRAL OHIO BEEKEEPERS BARRY E CONRAD 6240 WRIGHT ROAD CANAL WINCHESTER,OH 43110
! ICE ERS T O C G N OFFI 2 N I T F E O 201 ME ION R 17, T BE M EC EL OCO 6:30 P