2015 Newsletter Collection by Missouri State Beekeepers Association

2015 Newsletter Collection Sponsored By:

Missouri State Beekeepers Association PO Box 7514 Columbia, Missouri 65205 www.mostatebeekeepers.org

photo by Danny

February 2015 Eugene Makovec Editor editor@mostatebeekeepers.org

Lake

INSIDE THIS ISSUE From the President ............ 2 Almond giant buys bee biz 4 Gay Andrew, 1946-2014 ..... 4 Neonic levels low in pollen 5 Says U of Tennessee researcher

Local associations ............. Upcoming workshops ........ Membership application ... From the Honey Queen .... Directory of Officers ........

Save the date! 6 7 8 9 9

The MSBAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s annual Fall Conference will be held this year on Friday and Saturday, October 16-17. Location is still to be determined.

Page 2 From the President

Missouri State Beekeepers Association by Valerie Duever

Letter from the President-January 2015 Greetings from beautiful, downtown Bachelor, MO! Let’s start with a few introductions... As was noted in our December newsletter, our MSBA Executive Board has a couple of new faces. John Timmons is now the Past President and oversees our five area directors. Clayton Lee has joined us as Vice President and Mike McMillen is our new Program Coordinator. These two gentlemen are going to be a huge help in coordinating speakers and venues for upcoming events. Charlotte Wiggins is our secretary and Steve Moeller is our treasurer. Both are doing a wonderful job keeping us organized, documented and solvent. Ron Vivian, Wanda Johnston and Dean Sanders are still with us as Membership Chair, Honey Queen Chair, and State Fair Program Chair, respectively. I am Valerie Duever, your new President. For those of you that haven’t met me, I have been playing with bees for nearly 2 decades, have been teaching others how the honeybee functions for half that time, and have been looking for ways to help the general public understand how important ... and how cool ... these little creatures really are. Professionally, I am a BS in Horticulture from Mizzou and have worked as an accountant for a number of years. My husband of 30 years, Jim, is also a Mizzou graduate and keeps me sane and focused. When I first because President, my friends and family gave me grief about being the new “Queen” of the largest Missouri hive ... that I get to direct the worker bees on how to get things done. Since the majority of them are not beekeepers, they don’t understand that it is the worker bee who makes the decisions for the hive. Knowing this, yeah ... I am kind of like the “Queen”. My job is to keep the worker bees happy, keep positive pheromones flowing and to ensure our “hive” survives the rough times. Back in November, Wanda asked me if I would mind hosting Erin Mullins, our 2015 Honey Queen, as she attended the annual MO Governor’s Conference on Agriculture that was held on December 18-20th. I thought ... why not? Might learn a little something and it would be wonderful to talk with Erin about her adventures in Queendom. As it happens, the MSBA is, apparently, a sponsor of this event, and when our contact, Charlie, called to make sure we were bringing honey for the event, I knew I needed to attend. Since I, personally, feel it is a conflict of interest to promote my business through MSBA venues, I asked Nancy and Dom Giofre from Millersburg if they could provide the honey and little honey ice creams for sampling during the trade show. Erin agreed to help with the sampling table that was positioned in front of the AgriMissouri booth during two breakout sessions. It was during the honey ice cream sampling that I met a director of a national farm association who happened to be a fairly new beekeeper. Extremely nice man from the Cape area, his father had kept bees when he was much younger ... think pre-1980’s ... until dad had a severe reaction to a bee sting and decided to not do that any longer. The gentleman decided to take up the beekeeping practice again recently, only to have his bees die after three or so years, so he wanted advice on what happened and why.

After I asked our gentleman friend what resources he had used for his education on beekeeping (The Hive and the Honey Bee), I proceeded to suggest he attend a beekeeping class and hook up with a local association in his neck of the woods so he would have the support of those that are going through the same struggles. Heads up, Grant ... I did give him your name. After our beekeeping conversation, it was my turn to ask him about how we could encourage larger farmers to become more aware of how their daily practices may affect pollinators and our honeybees. His response was to dismiss the importance of honeybees because they were: a) not native and, as such, b) competed for resources that should be reserved for native pollinators. Needless to say, I spent the next 20 minutes helping him understand why agronomists do need to care what happens to the honeybee, even though it isn’t a native pollinator. I tell you this little story to help illustrate how much beekeeping has changed over the past 30 years. The ability to simply purchase a package of bees with a queen, stick them in a hive out back and go get some honey in the fall are long gone. Pests such as varroa mites and hive beetles, coupled with less food for our girls, have made keeping bees very challenging. In fact, we might consider renaming our practice of “keeping” bees to “hosting” or “attracting” bees, because that would be a better description. And if these “in the hive” issues weren’t enough of a struggle, we beekeepers have some interesting public relations concerns. Our contact with the MO Department of Agriculture thinks the main focus of the MSBA is honey production. More than a few people truly believe that the non-native honey bee is competing with more native species of bees for food sources and should go away, even though this “competition” has not been scientifically proven. Many other areas of food production see the honeybee as a necessary expense for their businesses and are starting to explore other ways to pollinate their crops. Don’t even get me started on harvesting or selling honey. I think Eugene did an excellent job of sharing all of our frustration on this in our December 2014 newsletter. The entire landscape of food production really has changed over past 30 years. It seems to be cycling back around to the point where more people have become interested in raising their own and getting connected with the sources of their food. Husband Jim and I tend to teach a number of beginning beekeeping classes during the winter months and we get to work with folks continued on page 5

Page 4

Missouri State Beekeepers Association Almond grower acquires beekeeping operation Plans to invest in research in honeybee health

The Best Selling BEEKEEPING Magazine In AMERICA! • 12 Big Issues A Year

• The BEST Beekeeping Calendar • The ONLY Urban Beekeeping Section • The ONLY Kids & Bees Activity Page

• Information on Gardening and Also Chickens • Paper & Digital Editions

Keeping Bees Helping Beekeepers For Over

141 Years

$25

Save 40% Off The Newsstand Price! To Order Visit

www.Beeculture.com

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – February 2, 2015 – Paramount Farming, the world’s largest grower of almonds and pistachios, today announced that it has acquired Headwaters Farm, one of the larger beekeepers in the U.S., to ensure the availability of bees to pollinate almond orchards in California. Going forward, the beekeeping operation within Paramount Farming will be called Wonderful Bees. Bees are critical for the annual pollination of almond trees. By getting directly involved in beekeeping operations, Paramount intends to contribute to the long-term health of bees and help the beekeeping industry recover from a recent decline that has been marked by rising costs, greater environmental risks and fewer bees. Beekeepers have been losing a third of their bees every year, on average, for the past ten years. Reports in the last couple of years also point to colony collapse disorder as a reason for a vast, mysterious dying off of honeybees in the U.S. One way that Paramount will contribute to the beekeeping industry is by significantly investing in research and development to figure out better ways to care for and protect bees as well as their hives. This initiative will help bridge the gap between beekeeping science and practical, commercial applications. As a leader in growing almonds and pistachios in California, Paramount Farming has been working closely with Headwaters Farm and other beekeeping operations for years on the annual almond orchards pollination, providing the company with valuable experience with bees. “The survival and availability of bees doesn’t just impact our almond crop; it impacts the domestic food supply as a whole,” said Joe MacIlvaine, president of Paramount Farming. “We look forward to working with the leaders of our new beekeeping operation, Wonderful Bees, to make sure beekeeping continues to be done right and that the industry itself is supported and healthy for generations to come.” Paramount is in the process of creating a beekeeping management training program that lays out a career path for college graduates to join the beekeeping profession. As beekeepers retire, this training program is expected to help raise up the next generation of beekeepers. To boost the entire industry, Paramount will share its best practices with other beekeeping operations. “As a beekeeper, I realize how exciting it is to have a big company like Paramount Farming be so committed to making a positive difference in beekeeping,” said David Mendes, founder of Headwaters Farm. “The way Paramount is committing resources and energy to the risky business of beekeeping is courageous and ambitious. I anticipate that Paramount Farming will change the way beekeeping is done.” Under the terms of the agreement, Paramount Farming will now oversee and have direct access to Headwaters Farm’s beekeeping operation in Florida. The deal has officially closed. Employees of Headwaters Farm, along with the infrastructure and trucks to nurture and transport the bees in the operation’s 20,000 hives, have joined the Wonderful Bees operation. Financial terms of the deal are not being disclosed. This “Catch the Buzz” message brought to you by Bee Culture, The Magazine Of American Beekeeping, published by the A.I. Root Company.

MSBA loses a friend Gay Andrew, 1946-2014 Gay Elaine Andrew, 67, passed away on Wednesday, November 19, 2014 in her home. Gay was born on December 23, 1946, in Quincy. She married Bernie Andrew on December 28, 1966 in Fowler. She was a life member of the Geronteers and a member of the Loraine United Methodist Church, American Legion Auxiliary, Spoon River Activity Association, the Silver Dollar Square Dance Club, Missouri and Illinois State Beekeepers Associations and the Mississippi Valley Beekeepers Association. She enjoyed crafting, scrapbooking, playing cards, crocheting, playing bunco, square dancing, singing, and collecting clown figurines and honey bee memorabilia.

February 2015

Page 5

Studies show neonic level drops dramatically as crop season progresses by Forrest Laws Jan 26, 2015 | Delta Farm Press The Mid-South Extension entomologists who work in cotton, corn and soybeans have been conducting extensive tests to determine how long neonicotinoid seed treatments persist in those crops. The persistence of those insecticides – thiamethoxam, clothianidin and imidacloprid – has become an important issue in the debate over the declines in honey bee populations. Environmental activists have asked EPA to cancel the registrations of those products in those crops. But the entomologists’ studies show the insecticides in the neonicotinoid seed treatments generally drop to extremely low levels by the time honey bees would normally be foraging in those plants. Scott Stewart, Extension entomologist with the University of Tennessee, talked about those studies during a presentation at the Consultants Conference at the Beltwide Cotton Conferences in San Antonio. Stewart’s work involved the application of Poncho (clothianidin) 250, Poncho 500 and Poncho 1250 as seed treatments on corn. “The point I want to make is that during the seedling stage we got very

high concentrations – hundreds or thousands of parts per million,” he noted. “By the time we get to the flowering stage when bees might be foraging on pollen, in this case, we had over a 97 percent reduction in the concentrations of clothianidin.” “The reduction is even more dramatic when you get into other crops. Some of Jeff Gore’s work with an Aeris seed treatment in Mississippi shows that in that early seedling stage we’re talking about hundreds of parts per million of imidacloprid in cotton. By the time, we get to first flower it’s 2.5 parts per million. That’s over a 99 percent reduction.” Other tests in Mississippi and in Arkansas have shown similar reductions between the seedling stage and the flowering stage of the different crops. “I think this provides a lot of context,” said Stewart. “You know we’re losing efficacy in cotton by the third-leaf stage, and we’re at hundreds of thousands of parts per billion. It doesn’t seem very likely to me that one part per billion a month down the road is having any significant measurable effect on bees.” This article reprinted courtesy of the Western Apicultural Society’s January 30 newsletter.

From the President

Beekeeping is changing, and so is your MSBA continued from page 2

from all over the state. Seems like we spend as much time explaining the differences between GMOs and organic as we do explaining how the society of a honeybee functions. There is so much confusing information floating around and being passed off as “scientific evidence” that it is becoming very apparent that we need to step up our game in the education arena. Learning how to keep bees has really changed as well. Methods of communicating and avenues of educational materials are incredibly different and extremely overwhelming. And I will bet you can find statistical information to back up any type of claim. The internet is a fantastic research tool, but it should never be taken at face value. I think it should be used as a way to open up discussions on interesting subjects and not as the last word on any particular one practice. Our MSBA Executive Board has 17 members, and the President and Vice President positions change every two years. I have served on the board for three years now. Some of our other members have been with us for over 20. We have an excellent mix of older, established beekeepers from rural areas, younger and brand new beekeepers from urban areas, and everything between. This entirely volunteer organization is charged with educating the public about beekeeping, supporting beekeepers across the state and presenting new ideas and research in areas that might affect Missouri beekeepers. That is quite a task to tackle. Over the past two years, we have made a few changes that will make us more efficient as an association. We have centralized our banking. We have streamlined our membership process so it is now (or will be pretty soon) entirely online and available

for updating by our individual members. We offer a free firstyear membership to anyone that attends an approved beginning beekeeping class and has an email address. We are evolving into a more supportive role for our local associations as outlined in our Mission Statement. This year, instead of having a Spring Conference, we are inviting a representative from each local association join us for the last two hours of our Executive meetings, and those meetings are going to be moving around the state. We want input, suggestions, and ideas on making a better MSBA from everyone associated with our organization. These brainstorming sessions should make for some excellent speakers and classes that will be offered at future annual Fall Conferences, scheduled for mid-October. As with all things, change can be sometimes difficult and sometimes frustrating, especially if we have never done it that way before. But, like our honeybees, we need to do what it takes to make sure our hive (association) survives and as such, we will work as a team for the betterment of beekeeping as a whole. As your President, I will do my part by listening to comments, suggestions and ideas with an open mind, by helping our members understand that most decisions are made as a group for the betterment of the association, by suggesting ways to communicate more efficiently to our members and to the public and by helping the Board stay transparent in our processes and focused on our goals. I simply request that you, as worker bees, help guide me in this journey by becoming and staying members of the MSBA. Here’s to a wonderful 2015! Looking forward to meeting each of you and thanks for reading. Valerie

Local Beekeeping Associations in Missouri 1 Beekeepers Association of the Ozarks

4th Tuesday of each month, 6-9 p.m. CH Chub O’Reilly Cancer Center, 2055 South Fremont, Springfield MO 65804 Jeffrey Maddox, President maddox65804@yahoo.com www.ozarksbeekeepers.org

2 Boone Regional Beekeepers Association

3rd Sunday of month, 3:00 p.m., Columbia Insurance Group, 2102 Whitegate Dr. (back door), Columbia President Jim Duever, 573-254-3373 www.boonebees.org

3 Busy Bee Club

4th Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m., Cedar County Health Center, Owens Mill Road, Stockton Neal Lee 417-276-3090, Neil Brunner 314-276-4252

4 Eastern Missouri Beekeepers Association

2nd Wednesday of each month, 7:00 p.m., location changes. Bob Sears, President 314-479-9517 www.easternmobeekeepers.com

5 Golden Valley Beekeepers

2nd Monday of each month, 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. Golden Corral, Clinton MO. Tom McCormick, President tomm@goldenvalleybeekeepers.com www.goldenvalleybeekeepers.com

6 Jackson Area Beekeepers

4th Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m. First Presb. of Jackson, 206 E. Washington Contact Grant Gillard, gillard5@charter.net, 573-243-6568

7 Jefferson County Beekeepers Association

2nd Tuesday of each month, 7:30 p.m., Hwy B & 21 Jefferson County Extension Center, Hillsboro Contact Marvin Hook 636-274-1759

8 Joplin Area Beekeepers Association

Last Tue. of each month, 7 pm, SM Bank Community Building (7th and Duquesne Rd), Joplin Contact Dale Foley 417-850-0285

9 Mid Missouri Beekeepers

3rd Sunday, 2 pm, Old Train Depot, St. James. Contact Don Moore, dlmoore2@centurytel.net 573-265-8706

10 Midwestern Beekeepers Association

Most meetings: Fellowship Hall at Graceway, 5460 Blue Ridge Cutoff, Kansas City, MO 64133 Visit midwesternbeekeepers.org for calendar Pres. Cathy Misko, 660-656-3485 cathymisko@earthlink.net

11 Mississippi Valley Beekeepers Association

Last Tuesday of Month in Quincy, IL Contact Bernie Andrew 217-938-4975

12 Missouri Valley Beekeepers Association

3rd Monday, 7pm, Union, location varies President Calvin Brandt cvbrandt@landolakes.com

13 Parkland Beekeepers

3rd Tuesday of month, 7pm, North College Center, Mineral Area College, Park Hills. Pres. Gregg Hitchings PBA_President@mineralarea.edu 573-880-2899

14 Pomme de Terre Beekeepers

2nd Thursday 7 pm, Missouri Extension Office, Hermitage Contact Rebekah Huddleston Rebekah_421@yahoo.com

15 SEMO Honey Producers

2nd Thursday of month, Church of Christ, Poplar Bluff Contact Cory Stevens 573-225-6935 wells.ernie@gmail.com

16 South Central Missouri Beekeepers Association 1st Friday of month, Howell Electric Coop, West Plains Monty Wiens, President 417 257-3994

17 Southern MO Beekeepers of Monett “MOBees”) 3rd Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m. United Methodist Church, Hwy 37 NW of Monett Kevin Young, President 417-847-5464

18 Southwest Missouri Beekeepers Assn. of Neosho 1st Tuesday of month, Neosho High School FFA Bldg Contact Thelma Ross 417-472-3504 rtross@jscomm.net

19 Three Rivers Beekeepers

3rd Monday, 7pm, University of Missouri Extension, 260 Brown Rd, St. Peters, info@threeriversbeekepers.com President Eugene Makovec 314-703-7650

20 Northwest Missouri Bee Busters

2nd Monday of month, location varies nwmobeebusters.blogspot.com beebusters2012@gmail.com Gerald Auffert, President 660-944-2535

21 Lake of the Ozarks Beekeepers

3rd Saturday of month, 1:00 p.m. Square Deals Ice Cream Shop,Versailles Contact Garrett Blackwell 573-374-7402

22 Northeast Missouri Beekeepers Association

1st Friday of month, 6:30 pm Running Fox Elementary (3 miles south of Wayland) Acting President Randy Ewart 573-248-5561 rewart@centurytel.net

23 Gasconade Region Beekeepers

2nd Tuesday 7:00, First State Comm. Bank, Owensville Pres. Chris Bilbrey 573-692-0698 twaace01@fidnet.com gasconaderegionbeekeepers@hotmail.com

24 St. Louis Beekeepers

4th Tuesday 6:30, Schlafly Bottleworks contact@saintlouisbeekeepers.com www.saintlouisbeekeepers.com

25 Western Missouri Beekeepers

2nd Tuesday 6:30, Moor-View Community Room, Nevada Caroline Phillips, President 417-321-3587 bcphillips81@gmail.com

26 Meramec Valley Beekeepers First Sunday 2 pm, Peace Lutheran Church in Sullivan Contact Sam Elia 573-732-5597 samnora1@gmail.com, or Laurie Rose at laurierose1219@yahoo.com

27 Quad County Beekeepers

1st Tuesday, 7:00 pm, Missouri Extension Office, Troy Contact Fred Meder (573) 760-2574 quadcountybeekeepers.com

28 North Central MO Beekeepers Association

1st Monday, Area Career Center, Macon, 7:00 pm Contact Bill George (660) 646-3354, www.ncmobees.org

29 Bees Alive (Springfield area) www.beesaliveclub.com 1st Thursday, 7pm, Empire Bank, Highlandville Dan Barton, dannyohboy@hotmail.com

30 Wright County Beekeepers

2nd Thursday, Laclede Electric building, Hartville, 7 pm Rick Bledsoe, Contact 417-741-7466 wrightcountybeekeepers@gmail.com

(continued next page)

Local Beekeeping Associations in Missouri holcomb_shannon@yahoo.com

(continued from previous page)

31 Rolla Bee Club

4th Sunday 2pm, Brownwood Estates Clubhouse, 1341 California, Rolla Contact David Draker (573) 578-0561 rollabees@gmail.com www.rollabeeclub.com

32 Swarm Chasers

33 EZ Beekeeping 3rd Sunday, 2 pm, Peace Lutheran Church in Sullivan No dues, focus on Horizontal Hives. Contact Jim Roe 636-357-7658 or email jim.roe@asemonline.org. This group has an open group on Yahoo to exchange information. (Yahoo account needed.)

34 Mark Twain Beekeepers

3rd Monday, 6-8 p.m. No dues. February meeting at % MO Dept. of Conservation, Gregg Tivnan’s workshop near Bunker; call for 701 McCarthy Dr., St. Joseph other months. Contacts: Terry Phelps 573-729-3333 Contact Shannon Holcomb 816-261-8647 Gregg Tivnan (573) 689-2254 or greggtivnan@yahoo.com See our interactive club map on the website at: http://batchgeo.com/map/e64a9d35b439c5309794fbea8516f333

Local clubs, schools announce beginning beekeeping workshops The University of Missouri Extension Center of Adair County will hold a Beginning Beekeeping-Year 1 course on Saturday, February 21st from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. Contact Jennifer Schutter, schutterjl@missouri.edu for details. Pomme de Terre Beekeepers holds its class for Beginning Beekeepers on Saturday, February 21, from 9 am to 4 pm, at the Senior Citizens Building Community Room in Hermitage. Cost is $10. Call 417-852-1499 for more information. Rolla Bee Club hosts a basic beekeeping class on Saturday, February 28, 2015 at Rolla Public Library, 900 North Pine Street, from 9:15 am to 1:15 pm. Cost is $25 per person. Class size is limited. To register, send your name, email and phone number to rollabees@gmail.com and a check to David Draker, 1951 Monterey Drive, Rolla, Mo. 65401. Deadline to pre-register is Friday, February 20, 2015. Bees Alive, along with Nixa Hardware and Seed, will hold a four-week Beginners’ Beekeeping Class, meeting “every Friday in March”, starting March 6, from 7-9 pm. The location is Empire Bank, 502 W. Mt. Vernon St. in Nixa. For information, stop by the bank or call 417725-3512. Midwestern Beekeepers holds its 20th Annual Beginning Beekeeping Workshop on Saturday, March 7, 2015 (8-5:30). The location is: The Point @ Graceway, 5600 Blue Ridge Cutoff, Raytown, MO 64133 (across the street and south of the Graceway Church Fellowship Hall). For information, see www.midwesternbeekeepers.org, or call Cathy at 660-656-3485.

FOR SALE:

PACKAGE BEES For April pickup in Lynnville, Iowa. These are 2#, 3# and 4# packages from C.F. Koehnen and Sons. Your choice of Italian or Carniolan queens. Contact Phil Ebert: 641-527-2639 ehoney37@netins.net www.eberthoney.com

Page 8

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

Renew instantly online! www.mostatebeekeepers.org Use your credit card or PayPal!

Mail to: P.O. Box 7514 Columbia, MO 65205

e You Sav New

Association Member Subscription

25%!

(Rates listed below are 25% below regular rates.)

U.S. 1 Yr. $21.00 2 Yr. $39.75 3 Yr. $56.25

Renewal

Prices good through Dec. 31, 2015 Return white copy to: American Bee Journal, 51 S. 2nd St., Hamilton, IL 62341 Retain yellow copy for your records.

Subscriber’s Name

Association

Address

Secretary’s Name

Address

City, State, Zip

Address

Phone

City, State, Zip

Phone

THE HAWLEY HONEY COMPANY 220 North Elm Iola, KS 66749 620-365-5956 (After 8 pm 620-365-7919) White clover honey strained in 5-gallon buckets. We will pack it in your jars for an extra fee. Bee Equipment - New and Used - Used Extractors Corn syrup, sugar syrup and SUGAR Bees -- Frames of brood Call for prices. Can deliver to Kansas City, Joplin or Butler, MO

Canada 1 Yr. $37.75 2 Yr. $74.00

Foreign 1 Yr. $45.00 2 Yr. $85.75

WEAVER’S FAMOUS QUEENS And Package Bees

Buckfast & All-American BEEKEEPING SUPPLIES AND BEGINNER’S KITS THE R WEAVER APIARIES, INC. 16495 C.R. 319, NAVASOTA, TX 77868

Phone (936) 825-2333 FAX (936) 825-3642

EMAIL: rweaver@rweaver.com WEBSITE: www.rweaver.com

February 2015 Honey Queen report by Erin Mullins Greetings Everyone!! I have been one busy Queen! It’s only been three months since I was crowned and I’ve already attended six events. Right before Christmas MSBA President Valerie Duever, Nancy Giofre and I attended the Missouri Governor’s Conference on Agriculture. Valerie and I attended the whole conference this year and we both had an amazing time! We helped pass out samples of the Honey Ice Cream that Nancy makes. It was a hit with everyone. We also learned Queen Erin many things involving the big topics in agriculture today. January has been my busiest month so far! In one week I attended both the Great Plains Growers Conference and the Northwest Missouri Beebusters beginning beekeeping class. On January 17th I attended the St. Joseph Sport show and helped out the Swarm Chasers beekeeping club. One of my honey customers was there displaying his Trophy Whitetail Deer Collection. He was surprised to find out that I am the Missouri Honey Queen, and told me about recipes he uses my honey for. Finally, the weekend of the 23rd and 24th I attended the Honey and Wine Tasting event sponsored by the St. Louis Beekeepers, and a beginning beekeeping class sponsored by the Boone Regional Beekeepers. Both events were fabulous and it was great to see so many familiar faces and to make friends with new ones! Some events I have coming up are the Eastern Missouri Beekeepers beginning workshop February 7th, and the beginning beekeeping class in Kirksville on February 21st. If you have an event and would like me to attend, be sure to get ahold of Queen Chair Wanda Johnston at queenchair@MOStateBeekeepers.org and we can make arrangements!! I hope that everyone’s bees are surviving the winter months. Just a few days ago mine were out flying and we are expecting some 60 degree weather again and I hope to see them out again!!

DRAPER’S SUPER BEE We offer fast and courteous service to all beekeepers. We sell beekeeping supplies, containers, bee pollen and honey for those who run short. Order is shipped the same day as received in most cases. Free catalog on request. Pick up orders at our warehouse must be pre-ordered and picked up by appointment only. Business hours: Mon-Thurs 8-5, closed 12-1 Brenda and Larry Draper Draper’s Super Bee 914 “S” Street, Auburn, NE 68305 402-274-3725

Page 9

Directory of Officers President: Valerie Duever 314-402-4841 2362 County Road 185, Auxvasse MO 65231 president@mostatebeekeepers.org Vice President: Clayton Lee 573-864-5172 90 E. Pope Lane, Smithville, MO 64089 vicepresident@mostatebeekeepers.org Secretary: Charlotte Wiggins 573-364-1908 secretary@mostatebeekeepers.org 1001 Bluebird Ln, Rolla, MO 65401 Treasurer: Steve Moeller 573-886-0662 PO Box 7514, Columbia MO 65205 treasurer@mostatebeekeepers.org Membership Chair: Ron Vivian 816-690-7516 443 Fricke Road, Bates City MO 64011-8280 membership@mostatebeekeepers.org Past-President: John Timmons 636-940-8202 952 Greenleaf Drive, St. Charles MO 63303 pastpresident@mostatebeekeepers.org Northwestern Director: Roger Nichols cell 816-456-6983 northwestdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Northeastern Director: Steve Harris 314-805-6451 1224 Sherbrooke Road, St. Charles MO 63303 northeastdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Southeastern Director: OPEN Southwestern Director: Bruce Snavely 417-732-5219 508 Casady, Republic, MO 65738 southwestdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Central Director: Bob Brammer 660-415-6480 31649 Lake St., Macon MO 63552 centraldir@mostatebeekeepers.org Program Chairperson: Mike McMillan 2005 Devonshire Dr., Columbia, MO 65203 program@mostatebeekeepers.org Vendor Liaison: Tim Hyde tim.hyde@yahoo.com Newsletter Editor: Eugene Makovec 135 Alex Dr., Foley MO 63347 editor@mostatebeekeepers.org

314-703-7650

Auxiliary Chairperson: Dolores Vivian 816-690-7516 443 Fricke Road, Bates City MO 64011-8280 auxiliary@mostatebeekeepers.org Queen Chairperson: Wanda Johnston 816-392-4960 queenchair@mostatebeekeepers.org State Fair Chairman: Dean Sanders 816-456-4683 cell 37804 Old Pink Hill Road, Oak Grove MO 64075

Missouri State Beekeepers Association PO Box 7514 Columbia, Missouri 65205 www.mostatebeekeepers.org

Is your equipment looking a little weathered? Now is the time to upgrade for the spring season. And what better way than to leaf through this issue and support the advertisers who make it possible! photo by Eugene Makovec

This newsletter is published six times per year, in even months. Submissions are due by the 15th of the month prior to publication. The email edition is in color, and contains hyperlinks and bonus back-page material, while the print version is in black-and-white. If you are a member currently receiving the printed newsletter and you wish to upgrade, just send an email to editor@mostatebeekeepers.org with “email newsletter” in the subject line. I’ll reply with confirmation, and add you to my list. Advertising rates are as follows:

Business card size Quarter page

$15.00 $35.00

Half page Full page

$50.00 $100.00

Classified Ads: Advertise one to three beekeeping-related items in a one-line ad at no charge. This service is for non-commercial MSBA members only, and is limited to one ad per item per calendar year. Honey Trading Post: This is a free service to members wishing to buy or sell honey on a wholesale basis. Just email or call the editor with contact information and whether you are buying or selling. Pricing is between the interested parties.

Missouri State Beekeepers Association PO Box 7514 Columbia, Missouri 65205 www.mostatebeekeepers.org

April 2015 Eugene Makovec Editor editor@mostatebeekeepers.org

Church and State and Agriculture: An American flag braves the late winter breeze between the Missouri State Capitol and the spire of St. Peter Catholic Church. Astride the Capitol dome stands Ceres, Roman goddess of agriculture. A committee of five MSBA members met in Jefferson City on March 17-18 to testify before House and Senate Agriculture Committees in support of a bill to relax stringent Health Department regulations on the sale of honey. See story on page 7. photo by Eugene Makovec

INSIDE THIS ISSUE From the President ............ 2 Bees, honey prices up ...... 4 Queen rearing workshops 4 Fedor Lazutin, 1966-2015 .... 5 Steve Harris, 1947-2015 ...... 6 Annual winter loss survey 6 BIP responses due April 30

Oxalic acid approved ...... 6 MSBA at the Capitol ........ 7

Honey bill passes Ag Committees

Local associations ............. 8 Membership application ... 10 From the Honey Queen .... 11 Directory of Officers ........ 11

Page 2 From the President

Missouri State Beekeepers Association by Valerie Duever

Wow, we have been so busy the past couple of months that I almost forgot about the newsletter. Thank goodness Eugene is organized! Welcome to our newbees. Many talented folks have taken the time to teach beginning and advanced beekeeping classes all around the state. During your local association meetings, please be sure to thank them for sharing their knowledge, experiences and wisdom that encourages others to become beekeepers. In case you haven’t been following along, there are some exciting events taking place in Jefferson City with what is affectionately known as “the honey bill”. House Bill 1093 (HB1093) and Senate Bill 500 (SB500) were both introduced and read over the past month. Basically, both of these bills are requesting changes to the current laws requiring either a commercial kitchen or a processing facility for any honey bottled that is not sold at a Farmer’s Market. Eugene has been providing updates as this bill works its way through our legislative process. A big THANK YOU to all the folks that are working so hard on making sure this stays alive and continues to stay in front of those that can help make this change. I was able to meet with the Dean of CAFNR, who happens to be an entomologist, as well as two other professors and two gentlemen from University of Missouri Extension, to discuss the possibility of developing a certification program for beekeepers. It is in the very early stages, but we are all very excited at the possibility of this taking place. Stay tuned and we will help update you as things progress. The two Extension folks I mentioned, Travis Harper and Jim Quinn, are truly friends of the beekeeping community. They were able to obtain a grant, in partnership with the Missouri Vegetable Growers Council, that is helping to pay for beginning and advanced beekeeping classes around the state. Travis is a beekeeper himself and has always been very positive and supportive of any efforts that involve providing education to potential beekeepers. Jim is an incredibly gifted grant writer … what a great combination. With their guidance and support, we will get some type of certification program together but it might take a few years before this project is completed. Speaking of grants, we are learning about a number of ways we can fund both education and research in the world of honey and bees. One of our southeastern beekeepers is working on a grant that incorporates nectar-rich cover crops with traditional agricultural crops, benefiting both the farmer and the honeybee. Another researcher in the same area is working on a grant to cover the cost of flags so folks that crop dust will be able to see and avoid hives while they are doing their job. It makes me very excited to see how we all work together … just like our bees do in their own little hives. April will be buzzing with package bees being delivered, nucs being created and the flowers starting to open.

May will hopefully be warm and sunny, providing lots of nectar and pollen to our bees. It will also be a great time to purchase a nuc or two. And June should be rocking and rolling, with everything in full bloom. Don’t forget to celebrate Pollinator’s Week (June 13 thru 20th). Actually, just keep an eye on our MSBA website calendar for upcoming events … and let us know if you have something to add to the calendar. I will be reaching out to local associations to make plans to attend one of their meetings. I want to personally meet and greet every local association on their turf … I believe we are up to 34 at this writing. Let’s see …what else? … We are still finalizing the plans for the fall conference but that will be determined by early April, so watch the calendar for more information. We are thinking late October and in Mid Missouri area. If you have ideas on topics you would like to see presented or covered at this annual conference, let us know. Finally, I invite you to get involved. Become a committee member. Volunteer to help at the State Fair. Become a mentor for someone that has never kept bees. If you would like more specific ideas, give me a shout. I’m sure we can use your help, regardless of your experience level. And, if you are like me, you get so much more from the experience by just being brave enough to say, “Sure, I can do that!” Thanks for being a member of the Missouri State Beekeepers Association and I hope you have a wonderful next couple of months. Valerie

Page 4

Missouri State Beekeepers Association Bee colonies, honey prices up in 2014 per USDA Missouri produces less per colony, but commands higher price

The Best Selling BEEKEEPING Magazine In AMERICA! • 12 Big Issues A Year

• The BEST Beekeeping Calendar • The ONLY Urban Beekeeping Section • The ONLY Kids & Bees Activity Page

• Information on Gardening and Also Chickens • Paper & Digital Editions

Keeping Bees Helping Beekeepers For Over

141 Years

$25

Save 40% Off The Newsstand Price! To Order Visit

www.Beeculture.com

Released March 20, 2015, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). United States Honey Production Up 19 Percent Honey production in 2014 from producers with five or more colonies totaled 178 million pounds, up 19 percent from 2013. There were 2.74 million colonies producing honey in 2014, up 4 percent from 2013. Yield per colony averaged 65.1 pounds, up 15 percent from the 56.6 pounds in 2013. Colonies which produced honey in more than one State were counted in each State where the honey was produced. Therefore, at the United States level yield per colony may be understated, but total production would not be impacted. Colonies were not included if honey was not harvested. Producer honey stocks were 41.2 million pounds on December 15, 2014, up 8 percent from a year earlier. Stocks held by producers exclude those held under the commodity loan program. Record High Honey Prices Honey prices increased to a record high during 2014 to 216.1 cents per pound, up 1 percent from 214.1 cents per pound in 2013. United States and State level prices reflect the portions of honey sold through cooperatives, private, and retail channels. Prices for each color class are derived by weighting the quantities sold for each marketing channel. Prices for the 2013 crop reflect honey sold in 2013 and 2014. Some 2013 crop honey was sold in 2014, which caused some revisions to the 2013 crop prices.

Missouri colonies increase by 20 percent, honey prices by 36 percent The full USDA report, available at http://www.usda.gov/nass/PUBS/TODAYRPT/hony0315.pdf, also provides statistical breakdown per state. Missouri is shown to have approximately 12,000 managed hives (up from 10,000 in 2013), producing an average of 47 pounds per hive (same as 2013), with a selling price of $3.57 per pound (way up from $2.62 in 2013). That works out to 564,000 pounds of honey, worth $2,013,480, produced in this state in 2014! Note that this report does not include beekeepers managing five or fewer colonies, Given the large influx of new beekeepers over the last several years, it is safe to assume that actual numbers of managed colonies are significantly higher than shown in this report. It may also be that the average production per colony would be slightly lower if these newer beekeepers were included.

Local clubs announce Queen Rearing workshops Three Rivers Beekeepers holds its annual Queen Rearing Workshop, instructed by Cory Stevens, on Saturday, May 30, from 8 am to 6 pm, at the University of Missouri Extension Center in St. Peters. Cost is $85. Visit www.ThreeRiversBeekeepers.com/qrw for information and registration. Midwestern Beekeepers is holding a Queen Rearing Workshop, also featuring Cory Stevens, on Saturday, May 2, at the Jerry L. Litton Visitor Center in Smithville. For information, see www.midwesternbeekeepers. org, or call Cathy at 660-6563485. Note:This class is full. Boone Regional Beekeepers will hold a Queen Rearing Class featuring Cory Stevens, with two dates to choose from, June 6 or 7. The location is Columbia, and pre-registration is necessary. Contact Marty Comstock for information: treasurer@ Cory Stevens assists students in the grafting of larvae into queen cups boonebees.org at the Three Rivers Beekeepers 2014 Queen Rearing Workhop.

April 2015

Page 5

Fedor Lazutin: Keeping bees with a smile, 1966-2015 by Dr Leo Sharashkin For many, beekeeping begins with the hives. For others it begins with the bees. For Fedor Lazutin it began with the flowers, and a vision. Leaving the city in the early 2000’s he leased some 300 acres of abandoned agricultural fields sown in forage grasses - a desert in the bees’ eyes. His family built a small cabin and started planting hundreds of different species of trees, shrubs, and wildflowers beneficial to the bees. Fedor wrote in Keeping Bees With a Smile: “The magnificent linden trees stand to this very day as a living reminder of the good people who planted them so long ago. What else could serve as such a beautiful memory of a human being?” When I visited his homestead in 2010 it was hard to believe that the lush landscape drowning in flowers and filled with the buzz of the bees had been a barren old field just a few years earlier. And this was true not only about Fedor Lazutin’s acreage. Inspired by his example others had followed suit and created an eco-neighborhood of some eighty families who shared the desire to work together and restore the Earth - just as bees do. Beekeeping without sugar or splits Fedor’s beeyard drew visitors from around the world. He never fed his bees sugar, did not treat against disease or parasites, inspected the brood nest only once per year - and joked that it was one time too many. In his hundred beautiful peaked-roof hives, he never had to locate the queen - not even once. In his entire beekeeping carrier he did not make a single split, relying instead on natural swarming. Many other things we take for granted (like queen excluders or buying bee packages) he had no use for at his apiary. Fedor brought back the tradition of keeping bees in single-box horizontal hives, and perfected his techniques to a fine art. With the horizontal hive layout, you have access to all frames without having

to lift a super. You can pull honey from one end of the hive without disturbing the brood chamber on the other, minimizing disturbance. You can even remove old dark comb from the brood chamber without encountering a single bee. To achieve this, early in the season close the entrance of your horizontal hive and open another on the opposite end. The bees will move their brood nest there Fedor Lazutin in October 2014 - closer to the fresh air and the influx of nectar and pollen. Late in the fall, when the bees form the winter cluster, you are able to remove the abandoned old dark comb and the bees won’t even notice. Natural beekeeping that works When one of my Ozark neighbors heard that I wanted to follow a similar natural approach with my bees, he had a nervous laugh. “You can’t keep bees naturally anymore. I fumigate all my hives every fall, and even then half of them may not survive until spring. Imagine what will happen if you don’t treat!” However, my own experiences with horizontal hives and natural beekeeping are those of healthy bees and joy. Swarm traps work remarkably well, and horizontal hives are easy enough for my 5-yearold boy to manage. I am very grateful to Fedor Lazutin for introducing me to Keeping Bees With a Smile and the natural methods. I am in touch with beekeepers the world over who share this sentiment. Spreading the word A bee in the hive works until the very last moment contributing to the common wealth and perpetuation of her colony. Very similarly, Fedor Lazutin continued to travel and inspire others with his bee-friendly beekeeping - for as long as his wings could carry him. In October 2014 - just four months before his passing - Fedor came all the way from Russia to Missouri and presented to hundreds of people across the state. His talks at the Missouri State Beekeepers Association conference, at Saint Louis Beekeepers Club meeting, and the two-day comprehensive natural beekeeping course in Rockbridge, Missouri, expanded our understanding of the beekeeping alternatives available to us all. To celebrate Fedor Lazutin’s life work, his comprehensive book Keeping Bees With a Smile: A Vision and Practice of Natural Apiculture is now available for only $25 (save $10 off the regular price). Visit www.HorizontalHive.com or mail a check for $29 (this includes shipping) to Deep Snow Press, HC 73 Box 470, Drury, MO 65638. Discounts good through April 30, 2015. Dr. Leo Sharashkin lives on a homestead in south-central Missouri where he catches feral swarms and keeps bees treatment-free in a variety of horizontal hives. The bee-friendly horizontal hives of Fedor Lazutin’s design are well-insulated Leo is a regular contributor to American Bee Journal and teaches natural beekeeping courses around the country. His website (with and minimize the keeper’s intervention in the life of the bee colony. Photo by Fedor Lazutin free hive plans): www.HorizontalHive.com

Page 6

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

Missouri beekeepers lose a beloved friend The MSBA lost a long-time friend on February 20. Steve Harris, of St. Charles, died after a long-term illness. Steve was long active in St. Louis and Missouri beekeeping circles. He was a past President of the Eastern Missouri Beekeepers Association (EMBA), Northeast Regional Director of the MSBA, and a member of Three Rivers Beekeepers. He received Beekeeper of the Year honors from both the EMBA and MSBA, and was a fixture at the Missouri State Fair’s MSBA booth. But Steve was best known for his self-deprecating humor, his swarm stories, his good-natured ribbing of our Honey Queens, and his tireless dedication to the cause. We miss him already. Steve Harris poses in a fur hat at the MSBA’s 2011 Spring Conference in Branson. Sharing in the fun are Dean Sanders, left, and Tim Hyde.

Oxalic Acid registered by EPA for use against varroa by Chris Kulhanek, Bee Informed Partnership http://beeinformed.org/2015/03/oxalic-acid-registered-by-epa-foruse-against-varroa-mite-on-honey-bees/ Oxalic acid (CAS #144-62-7) has just been registered by the EPA for use on honey bee colonies here in the US. Oxalic acid has been legal to use on honeybees in Europe and Canada and is a naturally occurring chemical that can be found in a number of plants. It also occurs naturally in honey and is commonly used as wood bleach. A few oxalic acid applications have been registered (per the EPA): Application Methods and Labeling Oxalic Acid will be labeled for application by three different methods: 1. By Solution to Package Bees (Oxalic acid in sugar solution is applied as a spray to the package) 2. By Solution to the Beehives (Oxalic acid in sugar solution is trickled between frames and other spaces) 3. Vapor treatment of Beehives (Oxalic acid dehydrate is heated and the vapor sublimates in the hive.

The most useful application method for side-liner and hobby beekeepers is trickling the oxalic/sugar syrup mixture between the frames. The product label includes important information on dose and personal protection equipment including, but not limited to: gloves, goggles and a respirator. It is particularly important to not breathe in the dust when you are preparing the solution. Be certain to read and follow the label directions to ensure the best results when treating your bees. Always be sure to monitor your bees for varroa mites so that you know the mite load before you prophylactically treat your colonies. If you treat with the same synthetic chemical at each treatment, this continual exposure may cause the mites to develop resistance to that specific varroacide. Additionally, treatments can negatively impact honey bee larval development and adult life span and should be applied only after the mite levels have crossed the threshold for treatment. That threshold is different for different operations. It is not likely that mites will develop resistance to a naturally occurring compound such as formic or oxalic acid as these acids desiccate mites and it is difficult to see a resistance developed to this mode of action. Editor’s note: Additional research, mixing and application information is available at http://scientificbeekeeping.com/?s=oxalic+acid

Bee Informed Partnership ... National Loss Survey Underway Beekeepers needed! Thank you for your interest in participating in the National Colony Loss Management Survey organized by the Bee Informed Partnership and sponsored by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). Please go to our online survey at http://10.selectsurvey.net/beeinformed/TakeSurvey.aspx?SurveyID=BIP2015 and complete the survey there. It will be live on April 1st and close on April 30th. Please do not complete the survey more than once. Information about past Winter Loss and National Management Surveys and the annual reports can be found online at http://beeinformed.org/. The Colony Loss Survey has evolved from our winter loss survey because last year we found that commercial beekeepers lost 25% of their colonies over the summer, and so we are now starting to monitor and report annual, in addition to winter losses. The National Management Survey is conducted annually in conjunction with the Colony Loss Survey. Designed to take about 30 minutes, the 2 surveys are aimed at looking for relationships between colony loses and colony management (including disease treatment strategies, supplemental feeding, etc.) and/or other factors that may influence colony health (such as colony location, honey production, and forage type). Your participation in this research is voluntary and your responses will be kept confidential. In any publication or presentation resulting from this research, no personally identifiable information will be disclosed. If you have any questions or comments, please contact us at askbeeinformed@gmail.com. Once again thank you for your participation. Dr. Dennis vanEngelsdorp, Project Director, Bee Informed Partnership, University of Maryland The Bee Informed Partnership (BIP) is a USDA/NIFA funded project with the stated goal of reducing colony losses.

April 2015

Page 7

Bill to deregulate honey sales pending in Missouri legislature SB 500, HB 1093 find smooth road so far; time is a factor by Eugene Makovec After a couple of questions from Committee members, the Vice Legislation to relax Missouri’s stringent regulations on honey Chairman asked if anyone wished to speak in support of the bill. sales is currently pending in the legislature, and has garnered The five of us had coordinated our statements beforehand, each keeping to about three minutes with a minimum of redundancy. enthusiastic support in committee hearings. Senate Bill 500 was introduced February 24 by Senator After our remarks, the Vice Chairman asked whether anyone Jeanie Riddle (R - Mokane). SB 500 would eliminate the wished to speak against the bill. We had considered the possibility requirement that beekeepers selling honey through third party that someone from the Department of Health and Senior Services, retailers extract and bottle that honey in a full commercial the folks whose enforcement started all this, might show up in kitchen. It would also remove the required label statement, opposition. But to our surprise, a woman stepped forward to “This product has not been inspected by the Department of register opposition on behalf of two non-governmental health and environmental groups. “I should have worn Kevlar today,” she Health and Senior Services,” from home-bottled honey. An identical House bill, HB 1093, was introduced March 3 by began, to laughter. She then stated that, while everyone agrees that honey is a wonderful food, her objection to the bill was the Representative Jay Houghton (R - Martinsburg). removal of the “not inspected by” label disclaimer. It’s one thing, MSBA testifies in committee she argued, for someone to buy something at a farmers’ market On Tuesday, March 17, a team of five MSBA members traveled where they can ask questions of the seller and make judgements to Jefferson City from different parts of the state to testify before based on his/her appearance and cleanliness. But it was her the House Agriculture Policy Committee in support of HB 1093. position that, when purchasing a product in a store, people make The group consisted of: Eugene Makovec, MSBA Newsletter an assumption that it has been inspected by some government Editor and President of Three Rivers Beekeepers near St. Louis; agency, and they need to be aware if that is not the case. Mike McMillen, MSBA Program Director, Columbia; Charlotte Rep. Linda Black found it odd that honey is singled out for such Wiggins, MSBA Secretary and Founder of Rolla Bee Club; Cathy a label requirement when fresh fruits and vegetables are not. But Misko, President of Midwestern Beekeepers in Kansas City; and when the Vice Chairman asked Rep. Houghton why the label Bruce Snavely, MSBA Southwestern Director, near Springfield. requirement was being changed, he was unsure about that part On Wednesday the 18th, four of the five (all but Bruce) made it of the bill. Fortunately we were given an opportunity to follow back to Jeff City, on one day’s notice, for a rescheduled hearing up with “informational testimony”, and I explained all the reasons of SB 500 before the Senate Agriculture, Food Production and why beekeepers are opposed to that label disclaimer: that it is Outdoor Resources Committee. That hearing had been set for continued on page 9 the prior Wednesday but postponed due to Senator Riddle taking ill. Both hearings were notable for the complete one-sidedness of the committee members. In each case, no sooner was the bill introduced than members began asking questions like, “Isn’t honey, like, the perfect food?”, “Doesn’t local honey cure allergies?”, and “Isn’t it true that honey never spoils?” We felt very much like the home team on both days. In the House hearing, the Committee Chair, Jay Houghton, was the bill’s sponsor and introduced the bill to the Committee. Rep. Houghton had not met with any of us, and was not as well versed on the issue as Sen. Riddle. But his opening remarks were along the lines of, “Well, it looks like the Health Department is overstepping its bounds again and we need to rein them in. They’ve been picking on our small beekeepers with this commercial kitchen requirement, so The MSBA legislative team stands outside a hearing room following testimony before this bill will take that authority away from the House Agriculture Policy Committee on March 17. From left to right: Cathy Misko, them.” Charlotte Wiggins, Eugene Makovec, Mike McMillen and Bruce Snavely.

Local Beekeeping Associations in Missouri 1 Beekeepers Association of the Ozarks

4th Tuesday of each month, 6-9 p.m. CH Chub O’Reilly Cancer Center, 2055 South Fremont, Springfield MO 65804 Jeffrey Maddox, President maddox65804@yahoo.com www.ozarksbeekeepers.org

2 Boone Regional Beekeepers Association

3rd Sunday of month, 3:00 p.m., Columbia Insurance Group, 2102 Whitegate Dr. (back door), Columbia President Jim Duever, 573-254-3373 www.boonebees.org

3 Busy Bee Club

4th Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m., Cedar County Health Center, Owens Mill Road, Stockton Neal Lee 417-276-3090, Neil Brunner 314-276-4252

4 Eastern Missouri Beekeepers Association

2nd Wednesday of each month, 7:00 p.m., location changes. Bob Sears, President 314-479-9517 www.easternmobeekeepers.com

5 Golden Valley Beekeepers

2nd Monday of each month, 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. Golden Corral, Clinton MO. Tom McCormick, President tomm@goldenvalleybeekeepers.com www.goldenvalleybeekeepers.com

6 Jackson Area Beekeepers

4th Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m. First Presb. of Jackson, 206 E. Washington Contact Grant Gillard, gillard5@charter.net, 573-243-6568

7 Jefferson County Beekeepers Association

2nd Tuesday of each month, 7:30 p.m., Hwy B & 21 Jefferson County Extension Center, Hillsboro Contact Marvin Hook 636-274-1759

8 Joplin Area Beekeepers Association

Last Tue. of each month, 7 pm, SM Bank Community Building (7th and Duquesne Rd), Joplin Contact Dale Foley 417-850-0285

9 Mid Missouri Beekeepers

3rd Sunday, 2 pm, Old Train Depot, St. James. Contact Don Moore, dlmoore2@centurytel.net 573-265-8706

10 Midwestern Beekeepers Association

Most meetings: Fellowship Hall at Graceway, 5460 Blue Ridge Cutoff, Kansas City, MO 64133 Visit midwesternbeekeepers.org for calendar Pres. Cathy Misko, 660-656-3485 cathymisko@earthlink.net

11 Mississippi Valley Beekeepers Association

Last Tuesday of Month in Quincy, IL Contact Bernie Andrew 217-938-4975

12 Missouri Valley Beekeepers Association

3rd Monday, 7pm, Union, location varies President Calvin Brandt cvbrandt@landolakes.com

13 Parkland Beekeepers

3rd Tuesday of month, 7pm, North College Center, Mineral Area College, Park Hills. Pres. Gregg Hitchings PBA_President@mineralarea.edu 573-880-2899

14 Pomme de Terre Beekeepers

2nd Thursday 7 pm, Missouri Extension Office, Hermitage Contact Rebekah Huddleston Rebekah_421@yahoo.com

15 SEMO Honey Producers

2nd Thursday of month, Church of Christ, Poplar Bluff Contact Cory Stevens 573-225-6935 wells.ernie@gmail.com

16 South Central Missouri Beekeepers Association 1st Friday of month, Howell Electric Coop, West Plains Monty Wiens, President 417 257-3994

17 Southern MO Beekeepers of Monett “MOBees”) 3rd Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m. United Methodist Church, Hwy 37 NW of Monett Kevin Young, President 417-847-5464

18 Southwest Missouri Beekeepers Assn. of Neosho 1st Tuesday of month, Neosho High School FFA Bldg Contact Thelma Ross 417-472-3504 rtross@jscomm.net

19 Three Rivers Beekeepers

3rd Monday, 7pm, University of Missouri Extension, 260 Brown Rd, St. Peters, info@threeriversbeekepers.com President Eugene Makovec 314-703-7650

20 Northwest Missouri Bee Busters

2nd Monday of month, location varies nwmobeebusters.blogspot.com beebusters2012@gmail.com Gerald Auffert, President 660-944-2535

21 Lake of the Ozarks Beekeepers

3rd Saturday of month, 1:00 p.m. Square Deals Ice Cream Shop,Versailles Contact Garrett Blackwell 573-374-7402

22 Northeast Missouri Beekeepers Association

1st Friday of month, 7 pm, Clark County Courthouse, Lower level, Kahoka (location may vary) (3 miles south of Wayland) Contact Randy Ewart 573-248-5561 rewart@centurytel.net

23 Gasconade Region Beekeepers

2nd Tuesday 7:00, First State Comm. Bank, Owensville Pres. Chris Bilbrey 573-692-0698 twaace01@fidnet.com gasconaderegionbeekeepers@hotmail.com

24 St. Louis Beekeepers

4th Tuesday 6:30, Schlafly Bottleworks contact@saintlouisbeekeepers.com www.saintlouisbeekeepers.com

25 Western Missouri Beekeepers

2nd Tuesday 6:30, Moor-View Community Room, Nevada Caroline Phillips, President 417-321-3587 bcphillips81@gmail.com

26 Meramec Valley Beekeepers First Sunday 2 pm, Peace Lutheran Church in Sullivan Contact Sam Elia 573-732-5597 samnora1@gmail.com, or Laurie Rose at laurierose1219@yahoo.com

27 Quad County Beekeepers

1st Tuesday, 7:00 pm, Missouri Extension Office, Troy Contact Fred Meder (573) 760-2574 quadcountybeekeepers.com

28 North Central MO Beekeepers Association

1st Monday, Area Career Center, Macon, 7:00 pm Contact Bill George (660) 646-3354, www.ncmobees.org

29 Bees Alive (Springfield area) www.beesaliveclub.com 1st Thursday, 7pm, Empire Bank, Highlandville Dan Barton, dannyohboy@hotmail.com

30 Wright County Beekeepers

2nd Thursday, Laclede Electric building, Hartville, 7 pm Rick Bledsoe, Contact 417-741-7466 wrightcountybeekeepers@gmail.com

(continued next page)

Local Beekeeping Associations in Missouri (continued from previous page)

31 Rolla Bee Club

4th Sunday 2pm, Brownwood Estates Clubhouse, 1341 California, Rolla Contact David Draker (573) 578-0561 rollabees@gmail.com www.rollabeeclub.com

32 Swarm Chasers

% MO Dept. of Conservation, 701 McCarthy Dr., St. Joseph Contact Shannon Holcomb 816-261-8647 holcomb_shannon@yahoo.com

34 Mark Twain Beekeepers 3rd Monday, 6-8 p.m. No dues. February meeting at Gregg Tivnan’s workshop near Bunker; call for other months. Contacts: Terry Phelps 573-729-3333 Gregg Tivnan (573) 689-2254 or greggtivnan@yahoo.com

See our interactive club map on the website at: http://batchgeo.com/map/e64a9d35b439c5309794fbea8516f333

Honey Bill out of committee, heads for floor vote in Senate continued from page 7 Pass” and forwarded the bill to the House Select Committee unnecessary due to the inherently safe nature of honey; that it on Agriculture. The Senate Agriculture, Food Production and implies something possibly unsafe about our product; and that it Outdoor Resources Committee voted “Do Pass” on April 1, with places Missouri honey at a disadvantage on the store shelf next to the next step being the floor of the Senate. out-of-state or even foreign honey that is not required to carry It appears that the biggest remaining obstacle is time. The legislative the same warning. session ends May 15, and there are hundreds of bills awaiting This led to a discussion of Chinese honey, which gave me an action. It is our hope that, given the simplicity of this legislation opportunity to talk about that country’s record of adulteration and its overwhelming committee support, it can be brought to the and dangerous chemicals, and to suggest that perhaps the Health floor and passed with little or no debate. Department’s funds would be better spent on spot-checking The bills can be tracked on the Senate and House websites via the imported honey than on checking up on Missouri beekeepers following links: who have no such history. http://www.senate.mo.gov/15info/BTS_Web/Bill.aspx?SessionTyp The members seemed satisfied with these arguments, and there e=R&BillID=4498105 was no further testimony for or against the bill. http://www.house.mo.gov/billsummary.aspx?bill=HB1093&year=201 As we left the hearing room we were joined by Zach Monroe, 5&code=R Legislative Aide to Senator Riddle, who commended us on our testimony and informed us that the Senate Committee had just rescheduled us for the following day. He told us what he thought were the most important points we’d made and advised us to put them first the next day, as we might not have as much time at our disposal. We followed his advice, while making a point to hit on the labeling issue as well, as that had been the only point in contention in the House. In Wednesday’s hearing we had the benefit of Senator Riddle, who was better versed in our issues. We again felt like we were preaching to the choir, and the hearing went off without a hitch. No one stepped forward to speak against the bill, even though Zach told us afterward that there was someone from Health and Senior Services in the room, as well as a lobbyist from one of the organizations represented by the woman who had testified against us the previous day. Bills now out of committee State Senator Jeanie Riddle, at right, chats with (l to r) Mike McMillen, Eugene Makovec and On March 31 the House Agriculture Cathy Misko following a March 18 hearing of her bill, SB 500, before the Senate Agriculture, Food Policy Committee voted unanimously “Do Production and Outdoor Resources Committee.

Page 10

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

Renew instantly online! www.mostatebeekeepers.org Use your credit card or PayPal!

Mail to: P.O. Box 7514 Columbia, MO 65205

e You Sav New

Association Member Subscription

25%!

(Rates listed below are 25% below regular rates.)

U.S. 1 Yr. $21.00 2 Yr. $39.75 3 Yr. $56.25

Renewal

Prices good through Dec. 31, 2015 Return white copy to: American Bee Journal, 51 S. 2nd St., Hamilton, IL 62341 Retain yellow copy for your records.

Subscriber’s Name

Association

Address

Secretary’s Name

Address

City, State, Zip

Address

Phone

City, State, Zip

Phone

Canada 1 Yr. $37.75 2 Yr. $74.00

Foreign 1 Yr. $45.00 2 Yr. $85.75

WEAVER’S FAMOUS QUEENS And Package Bees

Buckfast & All-American BEEKEEPING SUPPLIES AND BEGINNER’S KITS THE R WEAVER APIARIES, INC. 16495 C.R. 319, NAVASOTA, TX 77868

Phone (936) 825-2333 FAX (936) 825-3642

EMAIL: rweaver@rweaver.com WEBSITE: www.rweaver.com

April 2015 Honey Queen report by Erin Mullins Hello everyone! How about this weather!! I have to say I, along with my bees, have been enjoying this beautiful spring weather. I do have to report that I am down to just one hive. But have ordered a nuc and will hopefully split my remaining hive to get my numbers back up. Since my last newsletter entry I have been to three different events. I got to attend the Eastern Missouri Beekeepers beginning beekeeping class in St. Louis. While there I got to listen to and meet Queen Erin one of my beekeeping inspirations Sarah Red-Laird, AKA Bee Girl. She along with the others did an amazing job that day. The next event I attended was the Beginning Beekeeping workshop in Kirksville, Mo. We packed the basement of the extension office which is always a good sight to have! This class was taught by Valerie and Jim Duever who have done a great job developing an outline for a beginning beekeeping class. Finally the last event I attended was just 10 miles from my house in Maryville, MO!! I got to sleep in and didn’t have a five hour drive home afterwards!! This was yet another beginning beekeeping class, ‘tis the season! :) This class was a joint effort between the Midwestern, NW Beebusters, and the Swarm Chasers clubs. It makes me so happy to hear of all the success, in numbers, the beginning beekeeping classes throughout the state bring in! I hope that we have given them that spark to join a club and hopefully the MSBA and get started in beekeeping! Thank you and good job to all the clubs and members for taking the time to set up these classes and getting these people interested! In signing off I hope you all have a great spring and your bees have a lot of pollen and nectar and produce an abundant amount of honey this year!!! Erin

Page 11

Directory of Officers President: Valerie Duever 314-402-4841 2362 County Road 185, Auxvasse MO 65231 president@mostatebeekeepers.org Vice President: Clayton Lee 573-864-5172 90 E. Pope Lane, Smithville, MO 64089 vicepresident@mostatebeekeepers.org Secretary: Charlotte Wiggins 573-364-1908 secretary@mostatebeekeepers.org 1001 Bluebird Ln, Rolla, MO 65401 Treasurer: Steve Moeller 573-886-0662 PO Box 7514, Columbia MO 65205 treasurer@mostatebeekeepers.org Membership Chair: Ron Vivian 816-690-7516 443 Fricke Road, Bates City MO 64011-8280 membership@mostatebeekeepers.org Past-President: John Timmons 636-940-8202 952 Greenleaf Drive, St. Charles MO 63303 pastpresident@mostatebeekeepers.org Northwestern Director: Roger Nichols cell 816-456-6983 northwestdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Northeastern Director: Dan Lake 636-724-5937 48 Sterling Pointe Dr., St. Charles MO 63301 northeastdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Southeastern Director: OPEN Southwestern Director: Bruce Snavely 417-732-5219 508 Casady, Republic, MO 65738 southwestdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Central Director: Bob Brammer 660-415-6480 31649 Lake St., Macon MO 63552 centraldir@mostatebeekeepers.org Program Chairperson: Mike McMillan 2005 Devonshire Dr., Columbia, MO 65203 program@mostatebeekeepers.org Vendor Liaison: Tim Hyde tim.hyde@yahoo.com Newsletter Editor: Eugene Makovec 135 Alex Dr., Foley MO 63347 editor@mostatebeekeepers.org

314-703-7650

Missouri State Beekeepers Association PO Box 7514 Columbia, Missouri 65205 www.mostatebeekeepers.org

In the spirit of Leo Sharashkin’s Page 5 story on Russian beekeeper Fedor Lazutin, this vintage postcard shows traditional Russian log hives common in the nineteenth century. Fedor spoke of these hives in his October 2014 lecture to MSBA members. - from the collection of Victor Imgarten

Business card size Quarter page

$15.00 $35.00

Half page Full page

$50.00 $100.00

Missouri State Beekeepers Association PO Box 7514 Columbia, Missouri 65205 www.mostatebeekeepers.org

June 2015 Eugene Makovec Editor editor@mostatebeekeepers.org

Missouri State Fair is just around the corner August 13-23 in Sedalia - booth help needed! With the slogan, “Show Offs Welcome”, the Missouri State Fair runs this year from August 13-23 in Sedalia. The 400-acre fairgrounds will present premier livestock shows and competitive exhibits, and first-class professional entertainment. Mark your calendar for the summer’s best family vacation experience! The fair will showcase the best of Missouri agriculture; competitions from bull riding to tractor pulls; professional entertainment from Alabama, The Fray, The Grass Roots and many others; rural lifestyle experiences; hands-on science, technology and innovation; family-friendly amenities for everyone from infants to mature adults; and other actionpacked activities. And did we mention corn dogs? The Missouri State Fair is the perfect blend of activities for a memorable family outing. The midway carnival includes games and rides for children and thrill seekers of all ages. The nightlife on the fairgrounds kicks up each evening with free music on the Budweiser Stage and music stars performing on the stage of the Pepsi Grandstand. continued on page 11

HONEY BILL PASSES LEGISLATURE Will remove commercial kitchen requirement, label warning by Eugene Makovec The MSBA scored a major regulatory victory in the Missouri legislature during the 2015 session that ended May 15. Senate Bill 500, which eliminates a commercial kitchen bottling requirement for third party honey sales, along with a “not inspected” label warning for direct sales, passed both the House and Senate by lopsided bipartisan margins. But it was not nearly as easy as it sounds. When Senator Jeanie Riddle introduced the bill on February 24th, we were told by some that it was already too late to get it passed during the 2015 session ending May 15. They were almost right, though not for the expected reasons. The bill was assigned to the Senate Agriculture, Food Production and Outdoor Resources Committee, but a scheduled March 11 hearing was cancelled due to Senator Riddle’s illness. A group of five MSBA members, including four on the Executive Board, had prepared testimony and planned to meet in Jefferson City on the morning of the Wednesday hearing, but were notified late Tuesday that it had been postponed. Meanwhile, a companion House bill, HB 1093, had been introduced March 3rd by Jay Houghton of Martinsburg, near Columbia. It was fortunate that our group was prepped and ready, because we learned on the evening of Friday, March 13, that it was scheduled for a hearing the following Tuesday, St. Patrick’s Day, in front of the House Agriculture Policy Committee. Rep. Houghton chairs that committee, which is why Senator Riddle’s office had suggested we ask him to sponsor the bill. He had not returned my messages initially, but introduced the bill after a request from my own representative, Randy Pietzman. Our group met outside the Capitol’s coffee shop for some lastminute review of our strategy, then proceeded down the hall to the hearing room. After hearing testimony on a “farm-to-table” bill, Rep. Houghton handed the gavel to Vice Chairman Tom Hurst, From the President ............ 2 Senate Bill 500 explained .... 9 then proceeded to the witness table to introduce HB 1093. Fall Conference scheduled 4 Kitchen, label regs relaxed Since Houghton had never met with any of us, his understanding of Local associations ............ 10 October 16-17 in Columbia the issues involved was limited. He began with a statement along the Conference registration .... 5 Is there a club near you? lines of, “Well, it appears the Health Department is overstepping A LEGO Apiary? ............... 6 Membership application ... 12 its bounds again, and we need to rein them in.” He mentioned Bee loss survey released ... 6 From the Honey Queen .... 13 the arduous commercial kitchen requirement, and then asked for Directory of Officers ........ 13 BIP results mixed for 2014 continued on page 7

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Page 2

Missouri State Beekeepers Association From the President by Valerie Duever

The Best Selling BEEKEEPING Magazine In AMERICA! • 12 Big Issues A Year

• The BEST Beekeeping Calendar • The ONLY Urban Beekeeping Section • The ONLY Kids & Bees Activity Page

• Information on Gardening and Also Chickens • Paper & Digital Editions

Keeping Bees Helping Beekeepers For Over

141 Years

$25

Save 40% Off The Newsstand Price! To Order Visit

www.Beeculture.com

Hello all. What a wonderful Spring it has been!! Our hives are doing fantastic. Seems like everything is in bloom and, for the most part, the weather is cooperating for a change. I know everyone is busy attending to their hives so I’ll make this letter short and sweet. Just want to mention some highlights so you are aware. First, just a reminder that National Pollinators Week is June 15 -21, 2015. Would be a great time to get together with your local area farmers market or garden center to talk bees and flowers to the general public. National Honeybee Day is August 15th, so that would be another good time to keep our momentum going. Second, the MO State Fair is August 13 thru August 23rd this year and if your local association hasn’t done so, have someone contact Wanda Johnston or Dean Sanders to volunteer for a four-hour shift to help out these hardworking folks. Their information is on the MSBA website. Third, you should be seeing flyers and information for our State Conference that will be held in Columbia on October 16 and 17 with Michael Bush as the keynote speaker. We are very excited to have Michael discuss his methods of natural beekeeping and this is sure to be a big draw for our newer beekeeper friends. Please sign up early to get an extra prize - details later on in our newsletter. Fourth, we are still trying out this “rotating” of meeting places for our Executive Board. The idea was to host these meetings in different neighborhoods so local associations could attend and participate. Our next Executive meeting will be June 13th on the Eastern side of the state. Watch the calendar on our MSBA website for other meeting dates and times. Fifth, things are starting to move along with the process of setting up a certification program. More on that at the Fall Conference. Sixth … and finally, the best news of all. If you were outside, working your hives I would assume, and didn’t realize it, the honey bill finally passed. WOO HOO!! The Governor should sign it in August … but it looks to be a go. This means no more requirements for a commercial kitchen to sell to your local grocery store. You still have to follow the rules and regulations of weights and measures for labeling your products and you will still need to keep track of your sales. But we won’t have the extra expense and hassle of setting up a separate bottling room or the frustration of being contacted by the health department for inspections. A huge, huge THANK YOU goes out to Mike McMillen, Charlotte Wiggins, Bruce Snavely, and Cathy Misko for taking the time to go to Jefferson City … twice … to testify on behalf of the MSBA. Thank you to everyone who emailed and called your local legislator to ask them to support either one of the two bills. And a tremendous Thank You and Excellent Job … well done, goes to Eugene Makovec for never saying never … hanging in there … pestering all those that needed pestering … and heading up this committee to the very, very, very end. Oh yeah, all while planning his wedding which happened last month. Eugene, I’ve met your new wife and she is officially up for sainthood in my book. Congratulations to you and your new bride. We are so very proud to have you as a Board member. Okay, enough said. Go take care of your bees and let us know if you have any questions. Thanks. See, I told you it was going to be short and sweet! Valerie

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

Page 4

Make plans now!

MSBA Fall Conference October 16-17 Hilton Garden Inn, Columbia Call 573-814-5464 to reserve your room. Mention MSBA for discounted rate. Register online at www.mostatebeekeepers.org to earn two extra door prize tickets. Register before October 1st to save on registration fee.

Master beekeeper Michael Bush is our headliner: Michael is a leading proponent of treatment-free beekeeping. He began his beekeeping career in the mid-1970s with just two hives, and now maintains over 200. State Senator Jeanie Riddle, sponsor of SB 500, is scheduled to speak at our Friday evening banquet. This year’s contests include: • Cooking with Honey (cookies, rolls and cakes) • Honeybee Needlework (crochet, knitting, embroidery etc.) Any questions? Contact Clayton Lee 573-864-3172 leeland55@gmail.com

Missouri State Beekeepers Association 2015 Fall Membership Conference October 16 - 17, 2015 Hilton Garden Inn, Columbia, Missouri Online conference registration at www.MOStateBeekeepers.org will earn you two (2) FREE tickets for prize drawings!!! Online is the place to pay dues, too. Thank you! Regular mail registration (Please print names as you prefer on name tag): First Name: ___________________________ Last Name: ________________________________________ Spouse/Partner/Children Attending: __________________________________________________________ Street Address: ____________________________________________________________________________ City: _______________________________________ State: ________ Zip Code: ______________________ Email: _____________________________________________ Telephone: (______) ____________________ Your Local Beekeeping Assn: ________________________________________________________________ Registrations submitted on-line or postmarked date – BEFORE OCTOBER 1, 2015 Individual (Member):..................................................................................$ 60.00 X Family (Member):.......................................................................................$ 100.00 X Non Member (sold by individual only): .....................................................$ 130.00 X

_____ = __________ _____ = __________ _____ = __________

Registrations submitted on-line or postmarked date – ON OR AFTER OCTOBER 1, 2015 Individual Membership:..............................................................................$ 75.00 X Family Membership:...................................................................................$ 130.00 X Non Member (sold by individual only): .....................................................$ 160.00 X

_____ = __________ _____ = __________ _____ = __________

Conference Meals (all meals include ample choices for vegetarians) Friday Luncheon - Deli Buffet & Salad Bar (per person): .........................$ 12.00 Friday Banquet - Deli Buffet & Salad Bar (per person): ............................$ 21.00 Saturday Luncheon - Deli Buffet & Salad Bar (per person):......................$ 12.00

X X X

_____ = __________ _____ = __________ _____ = __________

Optional Honey Queen/Ambassador Fund Donation ($10.00 Suggested): ..........................................................__________ TOTAL AMOUNT ENCLOSED: $ __________ If you cannot register online, please make checks payable to the Missouri State Beekeepers Association and send it along with this completed registration form to: Clayton Lee, 90 East Pope Lane, Smithville, Missouri 64089. If you provide an email, we’ll send you an acknowledgement of your registration. Please contact the Hilton Garden Inn at (573) 814-5464 and tell them you are with the MSBA. Remember the hotel discount cutoff date is September 15, 2015.

Page 6

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

A LEGO apiary? That’s right, an actual bee yard made of LEGOs! Okay, it’s not all that complex, but it contains three hives, a couple of beekeepers and some flowers. It’s in the “LEGO Ideas” design stage at this point, and dependent on public support to have a chance at development. LEGO Ideas is a process by which people submit ideas for new LEGO sets, and then elicit support from the public. If a project receives 10,000 votes, it goes to a LEGO Review board, where designers and marketers decide whether to proceed with the design. To find out more about the LEGO Apiary, go to https://ideas.lego.com/projects/92829

Bee Informed Partnership issues National Loss Survey Results Results are mixed, with winter losses down but summer losses up Note: This is a preliminary analysis. Sample sizes and estimates are likely to change. A more detailed final report is being prepared for publication in a peer-reviewed journal at a later date. The Bee Informed Partnership (http://beeinformed.org), in collaboration with the Apiary Inspectors of America (AIA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), is releasing preliminary results for the ninth annual national survey of honey bee colony losses. For the 2014/2015 winter season, a preliminary 6,128 beekeepers in the United States provided valid responses. Collectively, these beekeepers managed 398,247 colonies in October 2014, representing about 14.5% of the country’s estimated 2.74 million managed honey bee colonies. About two-thirds of the respondents (67.2%) experienced winter colony loss rates greater than the average self-reported acceptable winter mortality rate of 18.7%. Preliminary results estimate that a total of 23.1% of the colonies managed in the Unites States were lost over the 2014/2015 winter. This would represent a decrease in losses of 0.6% compared to the previous 2013/2014 winter, which had reported a total loss estimated at 23.7%. This is the second year in a row the reported colony loss rate was notably lower than the 9-year average total loss of 28.7%.* Beekeepers do not only lose colonies in the winter but also throughout the summer, sometimes at significant levels. To quantify this claim of non-winter colony mortality of surveyed beekeepers, we have included summer and annual colony losses since 2010/2011. In the summer of 2014 (April – October), colony losses surpassed winter losses at 27.4% (total summer loss). This compares to summer losses of 19.8% in 2013. Importantly, commercial beekeepers appear to consistently lose greater numbers of colonies over the summer months than over the winter months, whereas the opposite seems true for smaller-scale beekeepers. Responding beekeepers reported losing 42.1% of the total number of colonies managed over the last year (total annual loss, between April 2014 and April 2015). This represents the second highest annual loss recorded to date. As in previous years, colony losses were not consistent across the country, with annual losses exceeding 60% in several states, while Hawaii reported the lowest total annual colony loss of ~14%. This survey was conducted by the Bee Informed Partnership, which receives a majority of its funding from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, USDA (award number: 2011-67007-20017). * Previous survey results found a total colony loss in the winters of 24% in the winter of 2013/2014, 30% in 2012/2013, 22% in 2011/2012, 30% in 2010/2011, 32% in 2009/2010, 29% in 2008/2009, 36% in 2007/2008, and 32% in 2006/2007 (see reference list). •Nathalie Steinhauer1, Karen Rennich1, Kathleen Lee2, Jeffery Pettis3, David R. Tarpy4, Juliana Rangel5, Dewey Caron6, Ramesh Sagili6, John A. Skinner7, Michael E. Wilson7, James T. Wilkes8, Keith S. Delaplane9, Robyn Rose10, Dennis vanEngelsdorp1 1 Department of Entomology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742 2 Department of Entomology, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108 3 United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville, MD 4 Department of Entomology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh NC 27695 5 Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843 6 Department of Horticulture, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331 7 Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996 8 Department of Computer Science, Appalachian State University, Boone, NC 28608 9 Department of Entomology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602 10 United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Riverdale, MD Corresponding Author: dvane@umd.edu

June 2015

Page 7

Governor has until mid-July to sign Honey Bill continued from page 1 questions from his colleagues. We were all pleasantly surprised by the nature of the questions and comments that ensued. “Isn’t honey like, the perfect food?” asked one member. Another suggested that honey might be included in the aforementioned “farm-to-table” program, which would steer locally-grown foods to schools and other state institutions. Someone else commented that bees are in trouble enough these days and beekeepers need all the help they can get. Mr. Hurst then asked if anyone was there to speak in favor of the bill. I was the first to testify, and provided background. I told the story of my honey being pulled from store shelves due to a processed foods law that I didn’t even know existed, and how I learned of other beekeepers around the state suffering the same fate. This, I argued, was due to a law designed for jams and jellies - which, unlike honey, are in fact processed foods and subject to bacterial growth and spoilage if not properly handled. I finished by quoting from a letter from the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, who admitted that they have no record of food-borne illness ever being linked to honey in Missouri. Mike McMillen was next, and talked about the various trials and tribulations that bees and beekeepers face in this day and age, and how difficult it is to keep our heads above water as it is, without the government making things more difficult. Charlotte Wiggins told them about the enormous contribution that beekeepers make to Missouri’s Ag economy. Bruce Snavely gave a rundown of the regulations for a commercial kitchen and how it cost one beekeeper in his area over forty thousand dollars to comply. And Cathy Misko detailed the wide-ranging health benefits of honey – especially local honey – and what an important role it plays in our urban and suburban economy. The questions at that stage were few, and all supportive. But what we had neglected in our testimony was a defense of the labeling change in the bill. We’d been told to keep our comments brief, and we felt that the commercial kitchen was the big attention-getter. Plus, in my opinion, convincing them of the inherent safety of honey would obviate the need for any sort of label warning on un-inspected honey.

But to our surprise, along came a woman from a local health association speaking in opposition to the bill, and what was her concern? The label change! It’s one thing, she said, for someone to buy honey from the beekeeper in person, where they can ask him questions and judge him by his appearance. But, she added, someone buying food in a store makes an assumption that the product has been inspected by some government agency, and they need to be told if that’s not the case. Rep. Linda Black asked why honey should be singled out, when fresh fruits and vegetables do not require such a label. But when someone asked Mr. Houghton about the label language, he was at a complete loss to explain it! So I was sitting there like that nerdy kid in grade school, my hand half-raised, signaling, “Me, me, call on me!” And Mike was next to me, trying to point me out to Rep. Hurst. We finally got the attention of the Chairman’s secretary, who nudged Mr. Hurst, who in turn told me I’d have an opportunity for further “informational testimony”. Now I have to tell you, when I sat up there the first time, I was like a deer in the headlights. I was the first one to speak, and, well, there were a lot of people looking at me. I could feel my ears turning red, and that just made me more self-conscious. But when I got back up there, it was different. I was actually a little riled up, because this woman had basically parroted the line that I’d gotten from the Health Department last year. So I told them, look, I’ve gotten lots of questions about my honey over the years, both from direct buyers and via my retailers. But they’ve never been about where or how I bottle my product. It’s always things like: “Where are your bees located?” (i.e., “How local is this honey?”); “Why is this honey a different color than what I bought last fall?”; “Do you have this in a gallon size?”; or my personal favorite, “Why does this honey taste so much better than what I buy at the supermarket?” And while I was up there, I also stressed that the existing law put Missouri beekeepers at a disadvantage vis-a-vis out-of-state and even foreign beekeepers who could sell their honey in the same stores without having to follow those regulations. That really resonated with the legislators, and led to questions about foreign honey, especially the Chinese honey that ran into trouble due to chemical residues and adulteration issues. I talked about how banned Chinese honey now comes across the border by being transshipped from places like Vietnam, Myanmar and other countries that don’t produce those kinds of quantities. I told them that if someone wants to adulterate honey, they can do so just as easily in a commercial kitchen, and suggested that if THAT is the Health Department’s concern, perhaps their funds would be better spent on spot-checking imported honey than on pestering Missouri beekeepers who have no such history. Evidently the Committee members were convinced, as they would later vote unanimously “Do Pass” in sending the bill to the House floor. (A second House committee, the oversight Select Committee on Agriculture, would give its unanimous approval on April 8 and send it to the full House.) The next day we were back for the rescheduled Senate hearing, this time with the help of Senator Riddle. Bruce could not make it, so I touched on his testimony in my statement. We also covered the labeling issue. No one stood in opposition that day, even though we learned later that a health department representative was in the room. continued on page 8

Page 8

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

Senate Honey Bill sponsor to speak at MSBA Fall Conference continued from page 7 to legislating for the year, and did not relent until Friday, when both sides agreed to reconvene, pass an emergency I emailed Jay This committee was as friendly as the previous day’s Medicare funding bill, and then adjourn for the year. had been, and they also gave the bill a unanimous Houghton’s office, “Do Pass”. The Senate quagmire left us with just one option. On asking if there was Tuesday night I sent an email to about 1500 Missouri The House passed HB 1093 on April 20, by any way he could bring beekeepers, a post to the MSBA Facebook page, a vote of 150-2. The Senate passed SB 500 this bill to the floor, strip and a request to our Regional Directors that a day later 31-2. Since the two bills were the amendments and pass it in they contact the local clubs in their regions. I identical, most of us thought that would be its original form. His aide’s suggested that people with Democratic Senators the end of it. response: Work on the call or email to ask them to break the filibuster. But Not so fast, said Mike McMillen, who’d spent Senate side to get more importantly, I asked everyone to contact their several years working as a lobbyist in Jefferson HB 1093 passed. Representatives and ask that they work to bring up SB City. (Mike was an invaluable source of information 500, strip the extraneous amendments and pass it in its and advice throughout this process.) These were original form. technically separate bills, so they’d only reached the halfway point. One of them would need to make it back through But things would get even worse. Wednesday morning’s paper broke a story about the House Speaker’s dalliance with a 19-year-old committee and be passed by the opposite house to become law. So on April 28, Mike and I were back at the Capitol to reiterate intern. The Speaker “went into hiding”, as one lawmaker put it, and our support of SB 500 to the House Ag Policy Committee. I also placed the House into recess. He emerged Thursday afternoon to thanked them for their expedited hearing, and stressed to them resign, and on Friday afternoon a newly-elected Speaker decided to the importance of passing the bill this year. Since Health and Senior get some things done. Services had only recently begun their crackdown on beekeepers, I Evidently the state’s beekeepers had come through with their calls and emails. With hundreds of bills jockeying for action, SB said, things would only get worse for us if we needed 500 was the 14th of just 32 passed during the session’s final to wait till the 2016 session to change the law. Again flurry. Even then, it was the subject of a lengthy debate, But with a the Committee’s comments were all positive. They though not on its merits. voted “Do Pass” the same day and sent it to the week to go in Select Committee. Rep. Houghton, who we later learned had himself the session, the been responsible for one of the Select Committee’s Mike returned the next day with Cathy Misko Senate shut down. The amendments, argued that their removal, and to support the House bill in the Senate Senate leader brought up subsequent passage of a clean bill, would be “the committee, which voted “Do Pass” on the his Right-to-Work bill, and right thing to do” for Missouri’s beekeepers. But same day to move it to the full Senate. Democrats announced there was grumbling by lawmakers with a stake Then things got interesting. It was a week before in other amendments, with Rep. Kevin Engler of an end to legislating the House Select Committee took up SB 500, Farmington complaining that the House was caving in for the year. and rather than simply sign off again, they loaded it and “passing the Senate’s agenda” over its own. with a package of unrelated agriculture amendments Wait a minute, replied Deb Lavender of Kirkwood. “Did – covering everything from ethanol to the processing we not hear it first in committee as a House bill?” She of meat from captive deer. What that meant was that, even if this new version of the bill were to pass on the floor, it would then have recalled that initial hearing, saying, “I believe it was the longest and to go back to the Senate for reconciliation, and with just 10 days to most entertaining testimony that we have had in committee this go in the session, that did not seem possible. I emailed Jay Houghton’s year. We were all excited, we all had questions, we had great people office the next day, asking if there was any way he could bring this bill testifying in favor of the bill.” to the floor, strip the amendments and pass it in its original form. His Tracy McCreery of Creve Coeur concurred. “We spent hours and aide’s response: Work on the Senate side to get HB 1093 passed. hours talking to beekeepers from around the state,” she said, adding, “For anyone who hasn’t been living under a rock the past But with a week to go in the session, the Senate shut few years ... we are dependent on honeybees to help feed down. The Republican majority’s top remaining But things would the world.” Further, she said, “I think people are not priority was Right-to-Work legislation, and get even worse. going to want to start a small business, even if it’s the Democrats’ top priority was stopping it. a home-based business, if they think they’re going Wednesday morning’s Democrats announced that they would filibuster to be burdened by over-regulations, and have the the bill, and threatened that if Republicans paper broke a story about threat of some government inspector breathing used Senate rules to cut off debate and pass the House Speaker’s dalliance down their neck.” it, they would filibuster any and all other with a 19-year-old intern. The bills for the remainder of the session. The final vote of 141-5 came with just three Speaker “went into hiding”, hours to go in the session. Governor Jay Nixon Unfortunately both parties were as good as as one lawmaker put it, received it on May 27, and is expected to sign it. It their word. The Senate leader brought up his and placed the House is scheduled to take effect August 28. Right-to-Work bill first thing Tuesday, Democrats into recess. filibustered for nine hours, and the Republicans Senator Jeanie Riddle has agreed to speak at the then forced a vote. Democrats announced an end MSBA’s Fall Conference, likely at Friday’s banquet.

June 2015

Page 9

Senate Bill 500 – Pertinent Facts The full text of Senate Bill 500 can be seen at http://www.senate. mo.gov/15info/pdf-bill/tat/SB500.pdf What follows is a summary of its changes to current law: Removes commercial kitchen requirement for indirect sales: • Under existing law, anyone selling honey through a third party needs to “process” or “manufacture” that honey in an “inspected kitchen”. As enforced, this meant that all steps from extraction to final bottling had to be conducted in a full commercial kitchen. Different counties enforced different versions of this kitchen, but it typically included four sinks, washable walls and a floor drain, as well as its own connected bathroom and separate plumbing/septic system separate from that of one’s living quarters. Third-party sales were defined to include any situation where the seller did not receive the product directly with the end user – including internet sales and even the taking of an order at a show for later shipment. • SB 500 removes the commercial kitchen requirement for anyone doing less than $50,000 in gross honey sales per year. Removes label warning for direct sales: • Existing law exempts from the commercial kitchen requirement any honey sold direct to consumer. However, to qualify for this exemption, the product label must include the statement, “This product has not been inspected by the Department of Health and Senior Services.” When selling at a farmers’ market, craft show or any similar venue, that statement must also appear on a prominently displayed placard. • SB 500 removes the warning label and placard requirements. Raises exemption limit • Under current law, anyone doing more than $30,000 in gross annual sales must use an inspected kitchen for both direct and indirect sales. • SB 500 raises that limit to $50,000. Changes definitions • Current law refers to the extraction and bottling of honey as “processing” and/or “manufacturing”. • SB 500 changes these references to “harvesting” and “bottling”. This change was made to remove the Health Department’s classification of honey as a “processed food”. It is classified elsewhere in Missouri law as an agricultural commodity.

Local Beekeeping Associations in Missouri 1 Beekeepers Association of the Ozarks

4th Tuesday of each month, 6-9 p.m. CH Chub O’Reilly Cancer Center, 2055 South Fremont, Springfield MO 65804 Jeffrey Maddox, President maddox65804@yahoo.com www.ozarksbeekeepers.org

2 Boone Regional Beekeepers Association

3rd Sunday of month, 3:00 p.m., Columbia Insurance Group, 2102 Whitegate Dr. (back door), Columbia President Jim Duever, 573-254-3373 www.boonebees.org

3 Busy Bee Club

4th Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m., Cedar County Health Center, Owens Mill Road, Stockton Neal Lee 417-276-3090, Neil Brunner 314-276-4252

4 Eastern Missouri Beekeepers Association

2nd Wednesday of each month, 7:00 p.m., location changes. Bob Sears, President 314-479-9517 www.easternmobeekeepers.com

5 Golden Valley Beekeepers

2nd Monday of each month, 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. Golden Corral, Clinton MO. Tom McCormick, President tomm@goldenvalleybeekeepers.com www.goldenvalleybeekeepers.com

6 Jackson Area Beekeepers

4th Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m. First Presb. of Jackson, 206 E. Washington Contact Grant Gillard, gillard5@charter.net, 573-243-6568

7 Jefferson County Beekeepers Association

2nd Tuesday of each month, 7:30 p.m., Hwy B & 21 Jefferson County Extension Center, Hillsboro Contact Marvin Hook 636-274-1759

8 Joplin Area Beekeepers Association

Last Tue. of each month, 7 pm, SM Bank Community Building (7th and Duquesne Rd), Joplin Contact Dale Foley 417-850-0285

9 Mid Missouri Beekeepers

3rd Sunday, 2 pm, Old Train Depot, St. James. Contact Don Moore, dlmoore2@centurytel.net 573-265-8706

10 Midwestern Beekeepers Association

Most meetings: Fellowship Hall at Graceway, 5460 Blue Ridge Cutoff, Kansas City, MO 64133 Visit midwesternbeekeepers.org for calendar Pres. Cathy Misko, 660-656-3485 cathymisko@earthlink.net

11 Mississippi Valley Beekeepers Association

Last Tuesday of Month in Quincy, IL Contact Bernie Andrew 217-938-4975

12 Missouri Valley Beekeepers Association

3rd Monday, 7pm, Union, location varies President Calvin Brandt cvbrandt@landolakes.com

13 Parkland Beekeepers

3rd Tuesday of month, 7pm, North College Center, Mineral Area College, Park Hills. Pres. Gregg Hitchings PBA_President@mineralarea.edu 573-880-2899

14 Pomme de Terre Beekeepers

2nd Thursday 7 pm, Missouri Extension Office, Hermitage Contact Rebekah Huddleston Rebekah_421@yahoo.com

15 SEMO Honey Producers

2nd Thursday of month, Church of Christ, Poplar Bluff Contact Cory Stevens 573-225-6935 wells.ernie@gmail.com

16 South Central Missouri Beekeepers Association 1st Friday of month, Howell Electric Coop, West Plains Monty Wiens, President 417 257-3994

17 Southern MO Beekeepers of Monett “MOBees”) 3rd Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m. United Methodist Church, Hwy 37 NW of Monett Kevin Young, President 417-847-5464

18 Southwest Missouri Beekeepers Assn. of Neosho 1st Tuesday of month, Neosho High School FFA Bldg Contact Thelma Ross 417-472-3504 rtross@jscomm.net

19 Three Rivers Beekeepers

3rd Monday, 7pm, University of Missouri Extension, 260 Brown Rd, St. Peters, info@threeriversbeekepers.com President Eugene Makovec 314-703-7650

20 Northwest Missouri Bee Busters

2nd Monday of month, location varies nwmobeebusters.blogspot.com beebusters2012@gmail.com Gerald Auffert, President 660-944-2535

21 Lake of the Ozarks Beekeepers

3rd Saturday of month, 1:00 p.m. Square Deals Ice Cream Shop,Versailles Contact Garrett Blackwell 573-374-7402

22 Northeast Missouri Beekeepers Association

1st Friday of month, 7 pm, Clark County Courthouse, Lower level, Kahoka (location may vary) (3 miles south of Wayland) Contact Randy Ewart 573-248-5561 rewart@centurytel.net

23 Gasconade Region Beekeepers

2nd Tuesday 7:00, First State Comm. Bank, Owensville Pres. Chris Bilbrey 573-692-0698 twaace01@fidnet.com gasconaderegionbeekeepers@hotmail.com

24 St. Louis Beekeepers

4th Tuesday 6:30, Schlafly Bottleworks contact@saintlouisbeekeepers.com www.saintlouisbeekeepers.com

25 Western Missouri Beekeepers

2nd Tuesday 6:30, Moor-View Community Room, Nevada Caroline Phillips, President 417-321-3587 bcphillips81@gmail.com

26 Meramec Valley Beekeepers First Sunday 2 pm, Peace Lutheran Church in Sullivan Contact Sam Elia 573-732-5597 samnora1@gmail.com, or Laurie Rose at laurierose1219@yahoo.com

27 Quad County Beekeepers

1st Tuesday, 7:00 pm, Missouri Extension Office, Troy Contact Fred Meder (573) 760-2574 quadcountybeekeepers.com

28 North Central MO Beekeepers Association

1st Monday, Area Career Center, Macon, 7:00 pm Contact Bill George (660) 646-3354, www.ncmobees.org

29 Bees Alive (Springfield area) www.beesaliveclub.com 1st Thursday, 7pm, Empire Bank, Highlandville Dan Barton, dannyohboy@hotmail.com

30 Wright County Beekeepers

2nd Thursday, Laclede Electric building, Hartville, 7 pm Rick Bledsoe, Contact 417-741-7466 wrightcountybeekeepers@gmail.com

(continued next page)

Local Beekeeping Associations in Missouri (continued from previous page)

31 Rolla Bee Club

4th Sunday 2pm, Brownwood Estates Clubhouse, 1341 California, Rolla Contact David Draker (573) 578-0561 rollabees@gmail.com www.rollabeeclub.com

32 Swarm Chasers

% MO Dept. of Conservation, 701 McCarthy Dr., St. Joseph Contact Shannon Holcomb 816-261-8647 holcomb_shannon@yahoo.com

See our interactive club map on the website at: http://batchgeo.com/map/e64a9d35b439c5309794fbea8516f333

We need you at the Fair! - August 13-23 in Sedalia continued from page 1

Admission at the gate: $10; age 60+, $7; ages 6-12, $2; 5 and under free. Tickets can be purchased in advance for a discount. See www.mostatefair.com for schedules and details. Booth volunteers needed: Please consider volunteering at our MSBA Booth this year. The booth is in the air-conditioned AG Building on the southeast side of the fairgrounds. (A fairgrounds map is available at http://www.mostatefair.com/plan/hours-map-directions/.) If you sign up to help (four hours minimum), your FREE admission ticket can be picked up at the information shed (formerly the red caboose) located on Hwy 65 (outside the fairgrounds), just North of Gate #11. Go onto the fairgrounds at this entrance and park your vehicle. We need five to six people in the booth each day - 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. As always, we encourage local clubs to sign up to run the booth for a day, sporting their own club logo apparel if desired. Call Dean Sanders (816-456-4683) or Wanda Johnston (816-392-4960) and sign up for as many hours/days as you can. Arrangement for overnight accommodations nearby is available for you to reserve dates of your choice. Jobs in the booth include answering questions at our observation hive, selling honey, ice cream, honey sticks and other honey related by-products, plus educating the public about honeybees. If you’ve never worked at or been to the Fair, try it for a day. You get to meet and work with other beekeepers, and Dean and Wanda or other experienced workers will be there to help answer any of your questions. See you at the Fair! Enter your honey and other products: Even if you are unable to help out at our booth, you can still participate in the Honey Competition. The list of products to enter includes cut comb, bulk comb, light and dark extracted honey, sealed honey frames, candied (creamed) honey, beeswax blocks, art and candles, and “the queen & her bees” (observation hive). Judging of honey entries will include degree of density, moisture content, free from crystals, clarity, cleanliness of containers, flavor & aroma, color, appearance of containers, and uniformity of volume. The Score Sheet for judging items and more specific guidelines plus an entry form can be found on the State Fair web site at http://www.mostatefair.com/competitions/how-to-enter-premium-guide/. Under “Agriculture and Home Economics” you will find “Agriculture Rules and Classes” (with Apiculture beginning on page 2) and the “Agriculture Entry Blank”. Start planning now and decide what to enter. Get your jars selected (preferably glass, but not a requirement) and get your creamed honey started by early July. Even if you are just beginning your beekeeping adventure, please consider entering your honey products for judging. You get a score sheet for each item you enter and it’s a great way to see how you’re doing in preparing your honey for sale or even to give to your friends and neighbors. If you are unable to deliver your entries to Sedalia yourself, maybe your local club can help find someone. Let’s fill up the showcase this year and let the public see our beautiful bounty from all over Missouri. Note: We will match your winnings if you are a member of the Missouri State Beekeepers Association.

Page 12

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

Renew instantly online! www.mostatebeekeepers.org Use your credit card or PayPal!

Mail to: P.O. Box 7514 Columbia, MO 65205

e You Sav New

Association Member Subscription

25%!

(Rates listed below are 25% below regular rates.)

U.S. 1 Yr. $21.00 2 Yr. $39.75 3 Yr. $56.25

Renewal

Prices good through Dec. 31, 2015 Return white copy to: American Bee Journal, 51 S. 2nd St., Hamilton, IL 62341 Retain yellow copy for your records.

Subscriber’s Name

Association

Address

Secretary’s Name

Address

City, State, Zip

Address

Phone

City, State, Zip

Phone

Canada 1 Yr. $37.75 2 Yr. $74.00

Foreign 1 Yr. $45.00 2 Yr. $85.75

WEAVER’S FAMOUS QUEENS And Package Bees

Buckfast & All-American BEEKEEPING SUPPLIES AND BEGINNER’S KITS THE R WEAVER APIARIES, INC. 16495 C.R. 319, NAVASOTA, TX 77868

Phone (936) 825-2333 FAX (936) 825-3642

EMAIL: rweaver@rweaver.com WEBSITE: www.rweaver.com

June 2015 Honey Queen report by Erin Mullins Happy June everyone!! I can’t believe it is June already! Most of April and May have been very rainy for us. We have had only a handful of sunny days. My one hive is so far doing great. I have a nuc on its way which I’m excited to add to my apiary. My honey queen events have slowed down since the beginning of the year. I was lucky enough to be in the role of a student at Cory Stevens’ Queen rearing program which was sponsored by the Midwestern Beekeepers Association. I Queen Erin didn’t know how exciting the world of queen rearing could be, but with Cory’s class I am all excited to try my hand at raising queens!! We were lucky enough to spend part of the day outside trying our hands at grafting larvae. Cory showed us the size we needed and we grabbed a tool and gave it our best try. I definitely encourage anyone who loves to learn and is willing to try something new in beekeeping to take a queen rearing course. For the month of June I have two events planned so far. First is the NEKBA FUNDAY in Lawrence Kansas on June 6th. I enjoyed it last year and look forward to hearing from this year’s presenters. I also hope I have another chance to dip my hand into a swarm like Lauren and I did last year! My second June event is at the Powell Gardens Pollinator event on June 20th outside of Kansas City. At both events I will be doing a cooking demonstration and at FUNDAY I will also get to do a children’s presentation. On July 30th I will be helping the NEKBA again at their booth at the Leavenworth County fair in Kansas. I hope to see some of you at these events! Don’t hesitate to say Hi! Erin

Page 13

Directory of Officers President: Valerie Duever 314-402-4841 2362 County Road 185, Auxvasse MO 65231 president@mostatebeekeepers.org Vice President: Clayton Lee 573-864-5172 90 E. Pope Lane, Smithville, MO 64089 vicepresident@mostatebeekeepers.org Secretary: Charlotte Wiggins 573-364-1908 secretary@mostatebeekeepers.org 1001 Bluebird Ln, Rolla, MO 65401 Treasurer: Steve Moeller 573-886-0662 PO Box 7514, Columbia MO 65205 treasurer@mostatebeekeepers.org Membership Chair: Ron Vivian 816-690-7516 443 Fricke Road, Bates City MO 64011-8280 membership@mostatebeekeepers.org Past-President: John Timmons 636-940-8202 952 Greenleaf Drive, St. Charles MO 63303 pastpresident@mostatebeekeepers.org Northwestern Director: Roger Nichols cell 816-456-6983 northwestdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Northeastern Director: Dan Lake 636-724-5937 48 Sterling Pointe Dr., St. Charles MO 63301 northeastdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Southeastern Director: OPEN Southwestern Director: Bruce Snavely 417-732-5219 508 Casady, Republic, MO 65738 southwestdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Central Director: Bob Brammer 660-415-6480 31649 Lake St., Macon MO 63552 centraldir@mostatebeekeepers.org Program Chairperson: Mike McMillan 2005 Devonshire Dr., Columbia, MO 65203 program@mostatebeekeepers.org Vendor Liaison: Tim Hyde tim.hyde@yahoo.com Newsletter Editor: Eugene Makovec 135 Alex Dr., Foley MO 63347 editor@mostatebeekeepers.org

314-703-7650

Missouri State Beekeepers Association PO Box 7514 Columbia, Missouri 65205 www.mostatebeekeepers.org

A penny for your thoughts: This quaint collectible illustrates for us two elements of a bygone era, the bee skep and the penny postcard. The message itself - a variation of “Why don’t you write?” - still resonates today. - from the collection of Victor Imgarten

Business card size Quarter page

$15.00 $35.00

Half page Full page

$50.00 $100.00

Missouri State Beekeepers Association PO Box 7514 Columbia, Missouri 65205 www.mostatebeekeepers.org

August 2015 Eugene Makovec Editor editor@mostatebeekeepers.org

Registration now open!

Fall Conference to be in Columbia October 16-17 The Missouri State Beekeepers Association will hold its annual Fall Conference in Columbia on Friday and Saturday, October 16-17 at: Hilton Garden Inn 3300 Vandiver Drive, Columbia, Missouri 65202 Telephone: 573-814-5464 Mention the MSBA to get our $99 group rate (guaranteed through September 15). To register, see page 5 or http://mostatebeekeepers.org/registration/ Featured speakers will include Michael Bush, a leading proponent of natural beekeeping; University of Missouri research entomologist Dr. Moneen Jones, MU Research Entomologist; and others to be named later. (See pages 6-7 for our tentative schedule.) Our Friday evening banquet will be a busy affair: We will announce our 2015 Beekeeper of the Year, who will for the first time be chosen with the help of our membership. (See page 8 for information on how

you can nominate someone for this award.) We will also say goodbye to 2015 Honey Queen Erin Mullins. And we will honor and hear from Senator Jeanie Riddle, sponsor of the newly-enacted Senate Bill 500 to relax honey sales regulations for our state’s beekeepers. We will again host cooking and artwork contests (details on page 9), a silent auction, and our popular “Beehive Café” Michael Bush hospitality area. The latter will again be conveniently located adjacent to our vendor area. (See page 8 for a list of vendors.)

Join us at the Missouri State Fair August 13-23 in Sedalia - booth help still needed! With the slogan, “Show Offs Welcome”, the Missouri State Fair runs this year from August 13-23 in Sedalia. The 400-acre fairgrounds will present premier livestock shows and competitive exhibits, and first-class professional entertainment. Mark your calendar for the summer’s best family vacation experience! The fair will showcase the best of Missouri agriculture; competitions from bull riding to tractor pulls; professional entertainment from Alabama, The Fray, The Grass Roots and many others; rural lifestyle experiences; hands-on science, technology and innovation; family-friendly amenities for everyone from infants to mature adults; and other actionpacked activities. And did we mention corn dogs? The Missouri State Fair is the perfect blend of activities for a memorable family outing. The midway carnival includes games and rides for children and thrill seekers of all ages. The nightlife on the fairgrounds kicks up each evening with free music on the Budweiser Stage and music stars performing on the stage of the Pepsi Grandstand. Admission at the gate: $10; age 60+, $7; ages 6-12, $2; 5 and under free. Tickets can be purchased in advance for a discount. See www.mostatefair.com for schedules and details. continued on page 11

INSIDE THIS ISSUE From the President ............ 2 MO Driftwatch program ... 4 Conference registration .... 5 Conference agenda ......... 6-7 Conference vendors ........... 8 Help wanted ....................... 8 MSBA Editor, Webmaster

Beekeeper of the year .... 8 Now seeking nominations Cooking and art contests ... 9 Local associations ............ 10 Membership application ... 12 From the Honey Queen .... 13 Directory of Officers ........ 13

Page 2

Missouri State Beekeepers Association From the President by Valerie Duever

The Best Selling BEEKEEPING Magazine In AMERICA! • 12 Big Issues A Year

• The BEST Beekeeping Calendar • The ONLY Urban Beekeeping Section • The ONLY Kids & Bees Activity Page

• Information on Gardening and Also Chickens • Paper & Digital Editions

Keeping Bees Helping Beekeepers For Over

141 Years

$25

Save 40% Off The Newsstand Price! To Order Visit

www.Beeculture.com

Hello Everyone! For me, it has been a very busy couple of months in the beekeeping world. Hopefully, it has for you as well. The weather is not only driving us a little batty, but our girls are not happy when they cannot fly to collect nectar, pollen and water. This causes all types of strange issues inside the hive, many of which are new to even seasoned beekeepers. Some of us are busy adding boxes and collecting honey. Many others are busy trying to get their hives to accept a queen … any queen, at this point … but with little success. It has just been a very interesting Spring. Me? I’ve been attending a number of meetings over the past few months. Not the local association meetings as I had originally planned to attend, but meetings with our Executive Board, with UM-Extension offices and with various horticultural associations. At first, this was very frustrating because I really believe that our MSBA representatives need to participate more with our local associations, especially the President. Don’t get me wrong, we have an exceptional Executive Board and many of our members strongly support their local beekeeping clubs. I just wanted to make sure we are doing all we can to help support and strengthen local efforts and personally attending a local meeting is usually the best way to find out what folks are saying and thinking. Over the past six months, we have been trying to encourage more feedback and communication by opening up the last couple of hours of our Quarterly Executive Board Meetings to all local associations. The idea behind this is that we move our meetings around the state so local representatives can attend and ask questions and give feedback to our efforts. We have held these meetings in Springfield, Park Hills, Clinton and Columbia. We are not sure if this wasn’t advertised enough or if time constraints were an issue, but we only had a handful of local folks that were able to attend. The local association representatives that did attend did a fantastic job of providing feedback and ideas to help us focus on what we, the MO State Beekeepers Association, should be doing in the future. Husband Jim and I attended the AmericanHort international conference, Cultivate’15. This annual event is held in Columbus, OH and attracts individuals involved in the greenhouse, landscape, garden center and horticultural studies from around the world. We try to attend every year or two, so we can stay on top of the latest trends in this area. We were both shocked, and pleasantly surprised, to see that bees and pollinators were represented at this year’s show. This is the first time there were folks advertising the fact that nectar-rich flowers and information concerning chemicals and pollinators are hot topics of discussion. I attended five break-out sessions concerning the chemical aspects … very interesting. In fact, we are working on having a breakout session of our own at our 2015 MSBA Fall Conference that will feature a couple of folks to answer questions on chemicals that might affect your bees … and it isn’t exactly what you think. Registration is now open at www.MoStateBeekeepers.org and you can either register online or do a “print and mail” form. Early online registration gets you a couple of extra chances at one of our drawings, too. We, as beekeepers, get to see all types of changes in nature by just observing our hives. There are some recently published reports on the waggle dance and how bees can interpret the quality of the nectar/ pollen source by the “dancers’” dance. Very interesting and I encourage you to look up the articles when you get a few moments … in between rain showers. Those honeybees are truly amazing creatures. One last thing - if you haven’t done so, please contact Dean Sanders to help out with a 4-hour shift at the MO State Fair, August 13th thru the 23rd. It is just a blast and you learn so much by talking with other folks. Thanks and try to stay cool and dry. Valerie

Page 4

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

new program developed by University of Missouri (MU) research entomologist Moneen Jones offers beekeepers an opportunity to protect hives from pesticide drift. The Missouri Pollinator Conservancy Program (MPCP) (mopollinatorconservancy.com) gives spatial and visual tools to alert pesticide applicators to nearby beehives. Missouri has more than 400 species of bees, and they are responsible for pollinating cucumbers, pumpkins, fruit trees, berries and tomatoes. One estimate suggests that bees increase the annual value of U.S. crop production by $15 billion. Honeybees in particular pollinate fruits, nuts, vegetables and crops, and provide honey, according to Jones. Honeybee colonies have faced increasing stresses in recent years, with the USDA estimating that 33 percent of the country’s hives were lost each year during the winters of 2006 to 2011. In light of this, representatives of Missouri’s agricultural producers and beekeepers have developed a set of standard practices that will encourage cooperation and communication among producers, pesticide applicators and beekeepers.

apiary. Jones encourages beekeepers to register their hives (https://fieldwatch.com/). Participation is voluntary, and beekeepers can limit what information (i.e. map coordinates of beehives) is available through public viewing. Beehive locations are kept confidential by a license agreement between pesticide applicators and users of DriftWatch. Beekeepers do not need to worry about their personal information being sold or distributed without consent. BeeCheck Flags

Following beehive registration at DriftWatch, beekeepers are encouraged to purchase large, visible The MPCP is a collaborative effort between the University of Missouri, Missouri Department of yellow-and-black BeeCheck flags through links on the Agriculture (MDA), and non-profit organization, website that will alert applicators to nearby hives. FieldWatch, Inc. The latter operates DriftWatch Fiberglass poles are available (first 200 free) from MU Specialty Crop Site Registry, an online mapping tool Extension when the beekeeper shows proof of created by researchers at Purdue UniversityÊs registration. These flags will serve as a visible Agriculture and Biological Engineering Department reminder to farmers and pesticide applicators that to facilitate communication among specialty crop honeybees and other pollinators are present in the area. producers and applicators. The benefits of the program (i.e. reduced accidental Anastasia Becker, IPM program manager for the bee kills) will outweigh any initial costs. MDA, is responsible for managing hive registration, “We want to help reduce economic losses for and FieldWatch, hosts the DriftWatch infrastructure. farmers and beekeepers by managing row-crop pests Jones is responsible for bridging the communication and lessening the effect of pesticides on honeybee among all benefactors of the project. The programÊs colonies,” Jones says. We would also like to reduce the partners hope to open communication among farmers, likelihood of government mandated registration by consultants, pesticide applicators and beekeepers to demonstrating that Missouri can manage pesticide protect more than 400 species of bees in Missouri. drift. Registry For Apiary Locations Partners in the program are Missouri Agricultural Missouri beekeepers are not required to register the Aviation Association, Missouri Department of location of apiaries with the state, but using Agriculture, Missouri Farm Bureau, Fisher Delta DriftWatch is a good way to let applicators know the Research Center and MU Extension. locations of beehives and how to contact hive owners. For more information on this program, please attend In addition, a placard listing the hive owner’s name the annual field day at the Delta Research Center in and emergency contact information should be placed Portageville, MO. Contact Tina Clark at (573) 379in a highly visible and prominent location in the 5431 to reserve your place.

Missouri State Beekeepers Association 2015 Fall Membership Conference October 16 - 17, 2015 Hilton Garden Inn, Columbia, Missouri Online conference registration at www.MOStateBeekeepers.org will earn you two (2) FREE tickets for prize drawings!!! Online is the place to pay dues, too. Thank you! Regular mail registration (Please print names as you prefer on name tag): First Name: ___________________________ Last Name: ________________________________________ Spouse/Partner/Children Attending: __________________________________________________________ Street Address: ____________________________________________________________________________ City: _______________________________________ State: ________ Zip Code: ______________________ Email: _____________________________________________ Telephone: (______) ____________________ Your Local Beekeeping Assn: ________________________________________________________________ Registrations submitted on-line or postmarked date – BEFORE OCTOBER 1, 2015 Individual (Member): ..................................................................................$ 60.00 X Family (Member): .......................................................................................$ 100.00 X Non Member (sold by individual only): .....................................................$ 130.00 X

_____ = __________ _____ = __________ _____ = __________

Registrations submitted on-line or postmarked date – ON OR AFTER OCTOBER 1, 2015 Individual Membership: ..............................................................................$ 75.00 X Family Membership: ...................................................................................$ 130.00 X Non Member (sold by individual only): .....................................................$ 160.00 X

_____ = __________ _____ = __________ _____ = __________

Conference Meals (all meals include ample choices for vegetarians) Friday Luncheon - Deli Buffet & Salad Bar (per person): .........................$ 12.00 Friday Banquet - Buffet (per person): .........................................................$ 21.00 Saturday Luncheon - Deli Buffet & Salad Bar (per person):......................$ 12.00

X X X

_____ = __________ _____ = __________ _____ = __________

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

Page 6

Missouri State Beekeepers Association Fall Conference Draft Agenda(subject to change) Thursday – October 15, 2015 2:00 PM

Vendor Setup Begins (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

6:00 PM

Executive Committee Meeting (Magnolia Room)

8:00 PM

Vendor Setup Closes (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

Friday – October 16, 2015 6:00 AM

Vendor Setup Continues (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

7:00 AM

Registration Opens (Foyer next to Cypress Rooms)

8:00 AM

Vendor Hall Opens (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2) Beehive Café Opens (Foyer next to Cypress Rooms)

8:30 AM

Contest Room Opens for Entry Setup (Foyer next to Cypress Rooms) x

Cooking: Cut out cookies, dinner rolls and best use of honey with a box cake mix.

Bee oriented hand crafted project: crochet, knit, and embroidery.

9:00 AM

Welcome, Announcements & Door Prizes (Sycamore Room)

9:20 AM

Invocation (Sycamore Room)

9:30 AM

Michael Bush - Four Simple Steps to Healthier Bees (Sycamore Room)

10:40 AM

Break – Visit with Vendors (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

10:40 AM

Cooking, Beeswax Art & Hand Crafted Project Contest Professional Judging Begins (Foyer next to Cypress Rooms)

11:00 AM

Queen/Ambassador Silent Auction Begins (Cypress Room)

11:10 AM

Master Pollinator Program – Moneen Jones (Hawthorne Room #1) OR New Beekeepers – Starting Connections – Charlotte Wiggins (Hawthorne Room #2) x

12:00 PM

Are you getting ready to place your first order, looking for a local club basic beekeeping class and want to meet with local club members?

Lunch (On Your Own or Sandwich buffet at Hilton) Cooking, Beeswax Art & Hand Crafted Project Contest People’s Choice Judging Begins (Foyer next to Cypress Rooms)

1:00 PM

Michael Bush – Lazy Beekeeping (Sycamore Room)

August 2015

Page 7

Missouri State Beekeepers Association Fall Conference (contintued from previous page) 2:15 PM

Break – Visit Vendors (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

2:45 PM

Driftwatch Program – TBD (Hawthorne Room #1) OR Sentinel Hive – Bee Informed Group – TBD (Hawthorne Room #2)

3:30 PM

Break – Visit Vendors (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

4:00 PM

3 minutes on the microphone - Bring in your unique/favorite hive/tool (or photos) for show & tell (Sycamore Room)

6:00 PM

Queen Banquet (ticket required) – Special presentation to Senator Jeanie Riddle, Auction, Contest Awards, and Introduction of adding an Ambassador Program. (Sycamore Room)

8:00 PM

Queen Reception (Sycamore Room)

Saturday – October 17, 2015 8:00 AM

Vendor Hall Opens (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

8:30 AM

Beehive Hospitality Café Opens (Foyer next to Cypress Rooms)

9:00 AM

Welcome, Announcements, and Door Prizes (Sycamore Room)

9:30 AM

Michael Bush – Observation Hives (Sycamore Room)

10:45 AM

Break – Visit Vendors (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

11:00 AM

The What and Why of the most common Horticulture Chemicals – Jim Duever (Hawthorne Room #1) OR Cost of Keeping Bees – Marty Comstock (Hawthorne Room #2)

12:00 PM

Lunch (ticket required & Sycamore Room)

1:00 PM

Setting up an Apiary at College – TBD (Hawthorne Room #1) OR Commercial Beekeeping – TBD (Hawthorne Room #2)

2:00 PM

Break – Visit Vendors (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2) Silent Auction Bidding Ends (Cypress Room)

2:30 PM

Michael Bush – Beekeeping Fallacies (Sycamore Room)

3:30 PM

Business Meeting and Drawings (Sycamore Room)

Page 8

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

Help wanted: Newsletter Editor, Missouri State Beekeepers Association The end of 2015 will mark 10 years, and 60 issues, since I took over as Editor of this newsletter. It’s been a most enjoyable and fulfilling gig, but it’s time to step down. I simply do not have time for all the projects I’ve taken on in recent years, and since my boss still expects me to show up most days at my real job, I have to give up some things. Description and duties:

• Produce six issues per year, about 12-16 pages • Coordinate advertising • Coordinate articles • Attend Executive Board meetings as a voting member • Attend and document annual Membership Conferences • Create PDF for electronic posting/emailing • Print and mail hard copies (currently about 50) via USPS

Support our conference vendors and advertisers As of this time, the following vendors have confirmed plans to attend the Fall Conference. You may be able to save on shipping costs by placing orders ahead of time to be picked up during the meeting.

Dadant & Sons*

Candidate should possess:

• Attention to detail • Basic computer, design and photography skills • Competent spelling, grammar and proofreading skills • Passion for and knowledge of beekeeping a plus! I designed the current format from scratch when I started. You can follow it or use your own. I use InDesign, but that is also your choice. I will be happy to work with you during the changeover. For information call Eugene Makovec at 314-703-7650, or email editor@mostatebeekeepers.org

“Beekeeper of the Year” nominations wanted This year, for the first time, the MSBA Executive Board is asking for Beekeeper of the Year nominations from the membership at large. This award traditionally is given to a person deemed to have made a significant contribution to the organization in the past year, or over a number of years. The award will be presented at our Fall Conference in October. Please submit your nominations for “Beekeeper of the Year” to Mike McMillen at: buckcreek@centurylink.net Please include a brief statement why he/she should receive this award.

All beekeeping supplies Gabe Dadant 888-922-1293 www.dadant.com

Mann Lake

All beekeeping supplies Pat Montague patm@mannlakeltd.com 800-880-7694 www.mannlakeltd.com

Isabees

Authorized Walter T. Kelley Dealer All beekeeping supplies Jane Sueme 314-504-4424 jane@isabees.com

Andrew Honey Farm

Used beekeeping equipment Bernie Andrew 217-938-4975 magic@adams.net

Leo Sharashkin

lsharashkin@yahoo.com Beekeeping books and miscellaneous *See ad in this issue

The MSBA is Seeking a New Webmaster! The current MSBA webmaster will be resigning from that position later this year to pursue other adventures. We are seeking an interested member that either has the necessary skills, or would be interested in advancing their current skills. If you have some basic web skills and would be interested in discussing the new MSBA webmaster position, please send an email with your contact information to webmaster@mostatebeekeepers.org. Although maintaining the MSBA website doesn’t require a degree in rocket science, here are some skills that you will need: A basic understanding of the Wordpress web platform, including adding and editing pages, manipulating images and formatting text. Some basic image manipulation skills, including the use of Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, or similar applications. An understanding of Wordpress plugins, widgets, forms and menus. If you have some basic web skills, this is a great opportunity to take them to the next level, working with an established website and a great organization.

• • •

August 2015

Page 9

Cooking and artwork contest is back at Fall Conference The MSBA will host the 7th Cooking With Honey and Beekeeping Art Contest at the 2015 Fall Conference in Columbia. If you are a member of the MSBA, please show off your unique cooking and needlework talents and represent your local club with pride. All entries MUST reflect honey/bee/beekeeper related theme. Category 1: Cooking With Honey The classes in this civision are: 1) Cut out cookies (no icing) 2) Dinner rolls (base dough can be from scratch or bread machine 3) Box cake mix 4) From scratch cake Category 2: Honeybee Needlework This class is for hand needlework which includes but is not limited to crochet, knit and embroidery (no computer or machine made entries). Rules for Entries: 1) Judging begins at 10:40 AM Friday in the Cooking and Artwork Contest Room and entries must be delivered and display prepared by this time. 2) Honey should be the principal sweetener in recipes and subject for needlework project. (Box cake mix not applicable but honey must be used.) 3) Food items must not require refrigeration. 4) Mark your container with your name unless it is disposable. 5) Type or print your recipe entry or needlework entry on any size card stock with your name, address and phone number on the back of the card. Share any creative experience you may desire. 6) The “People’s Choice Contest” follows the professional judging so please bring a generous amount of your food item. New this year - President’s Achievement Award Anyone entering all food Division Classes and taking first place in all current Classes will not only receive a blue ribbon for each Class but will receive a special “Certificate of Achievement” suitable for framing and displaying in your home or office. For more information, email Linda Roberts at: luretlnm@yahoo.com

Local Beekeeping Associations in Missouri 1 Beekeepers Association of the Ozarks

4th Tuesday of each month, 6-9 p.m. CH Chub O’Reilly Cancer Center, 2055 South Fremont, Springfield MO 65804 Jeffrey Maddox, President maddox65804@yahoo.com www.ozarksbeekeepers.org

2 Boone Regional Beekeepers Association

3rd Sunday of month, 3:00 p.m., Columbia Insurance Group, 2102 Whitegate Dr. (back door), Columbia President Jim Duever, 573-254-3373 www.boonebees.org

3 Busy Bee Club

4th Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m., Cedar County Health Center, Owens Mill Road, Stockton Neal Lee 417-276-3090, Neil Brunner 314-276-4252

4 Eastern Missouri Beekeepers Association

2nd Wednesday of each month, 7:00 p.m., location changes. Bob Sears, President 314-479-9517 www.easternmobeekeepers.com

5 Golden Valley Beekeepers

2nd Monday of each month, 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. Golden Corral, Clinton MO. Tom McCormick, President tomm@goldenvalleybeekeepers.com www.goldenvalleybeekeepers.com

6 Jackson Area Beekeepers

4th Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m. First Presb. of Jackson, 206 E. Washington Contact Grant Gillard, gillard5@charter.net, 573-243-6568

7 Jefferson County Beekeepers Association

2nd Tuesday of each month, 7:30 p.m., Hwy B & 21 Jefferson County Extension Center, Hillsboro Contact Marvin Hook 636-274-1759

8 Joplin Area Beekeepers Association

Last Tue. of each month, 7 pm, SM Bank Community Building (7th and Duquesne Rd), Joplin Contact Dale Foley 417-850-0285

9 Mid Missouri Beekeepers

3rd Sunday, 2 pm, Old Train Depot, St. James. Contact Don Moore, dlmoore2@centurytel.net 573-265-8706

10 Midwestern Beekeepers Association

Most meetings: Fellowship Hall at Graceway, 5460 Blue Ridge Cutoff, Kansas City, MO 64133 Visit midwesternbeekeepers.org for calendar Pres. Cathy Misko, 660-656-3485 cathymisko@earthlink.net

11 Mississippi Valley Beekeepers Association

Last Tuesday of Month in Quincy, IL Contact Bernie Andrew 217-938-4975

12 Missouri Valley Beekeepers Association

3rd Monday, 7pm, Union, location varies President Calvin Brandt cvbrandt@landolakes.com

13 Parkland Beekeepers

3rd Tuesday of month, 7pm, North College Center, Mineral Area College, Park Hills. Pres. Gregg Hitchings PBA_President@mineralarea.edu 573-880-2899

14 Pomme de Terre Beekeepers

2nd Thursday 7 pm, Missouri Extension Office, Hermitage Contact Rebekah Huddleston Rebekah_421@yahoo.com

15 SEMO Honey Producers

2nd Thursday of month, Church of Christ, Poplar Bluff Contact Cory Stevens 573-225-6935 wells.ernie@gmail.com

16 South Central Missouri Beekeepers Association 1st Friday of month, Howell Electric Coop, West Plains Monty Wiens, President 417 257-3994

17 Southern MO Beekeepers of Monett “MOBees”) 3rd Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m. United Methodist Church, Hwy 37 NW of Monett Kevin Young, President 417-847-5464

18 Southwest Missouri Beekeepers Assn. of Neosho 1st Tuesday of month, Neosho High School FFA Bldg Contact Thelma Ross 417-472-3504 rtross@jscomm.net

19 Three Rivers Beekeepers

3rd Monday, 7pm, University of Missouri Extension, 260 Brown Rd, St. Peters, info@threeriversbeekepers.com President Eugene Makovec 314-703-7650

20 Northwest Missouri Bee Busters

2nd Monday of month, location varies nwmobeebusters.blogspot.com beebusters2012@gmail.com Gerald Auffert, President 660-944-2535

21 Lake of the Ozarks Beekeepers

3rd Saturday of month, 1:00 p.m. Square Deals Ice Cream Shop,Versailles Contact Garrett Blackwell 573-374-7402

22 Northeast Missouri Beekeepers Association

1st Friday of month, 7 pm, Clark County Courthouse, Lower level, Kahoka (location may vary) (3 miles south of Wayland) Contact Randy Ewart 573-248-5561 rewart@centurytel.net

23 Gasconade Region Beekeepers

2nd Tuesday 7:00, First State Comm. Bank, Owensville Pres. Chris Bilbrey 573-692-0698 twaace01@fidnet.com gasconaderegionbeekeepers@hotmail.com

24 St. Louis Beekeepers

4th Tuesday 6:30, Schlafly Bottleworks contact@saintlouisbeekeepers.com www.saintlouisbeekeepers.com

25 Western Missouri Beekeepers

2nd Tuesday 6:30, Moor-View Community Room, Nevada Caroline Phillips, President 417-321-3587 bcphillips81@gmail.com

26 Meramec Valley Beekeepers First Sunday 2 pm, Peace Lutheran Church in Sullivan Contact Sam Elia 573-732-5597 samnora1@gmail.com, or Laurie Rose at laurierose1219@yahoo.com

27 Quad County Beekeepers

1st Tuesday, 7:00 pm, Missouri Extension Office, Troy Contact Fred Meder (573) 760-2574 quadcountybeekeepers.com

28 North Central MO Beekeepers Association

1st Monday, Area Career Center, Macon, 7:00 pm Contact Bill George (660) 646-3354, www.ncmobees.org

29 Bees Alive (Springfield area) www.beesaliveclub.com 1st Thursday, 7pm, Empire Bank, Highlandville Dan Barton, dannyohboy@hotmail.com

30 Wright County Beekeepers

2nd Thursday, Laclede Electric building, Hartville, 7 pm Rick Bledsoe, Contact 417-741-7466 wrightcountybeekeepers@gmail.com

(continued next page)

Local Beekeeping Associations in Missouri (continued from previous page)

31 Rolla Bee Club

4th Sunday 2pm, Brownwood Estates Clubhouse, 1341 California, Rolla Contact David Draker (573) 578-0561 rollabees@gmail.com www.rollabeeclub.com

32 Swarm Chasers

% MO Dept. of Conservation, 701 McCarthy Dr., St. Joseph Contact Shannon Holcomb 816-261-8647 holcomb_shannon@yahoo.com

See our interactive club map on the website at: http://batchgeo.com/map/e64a9d35b439c5309794fbea8516f333

We need you at the Fair! - August 13-23 in Sedalia continued from page 1

Booth volunteers needed: Please consider volunteering at our MSBA Booth this year. The booth is in the air-conditioned AG Building on the southeast side of the fairgrounds. (A fairgrounds map is available at http://www.mostatefair.com/plan/hours-map-directions/.) If you sign up to help (four hours minimum), your FREE admission ticket can be picked up at the information shed (formerly the red caboose) located on Hwy 65 (outside the fairgrounds), just North of Gate #11. Go onto the fairgrounds at this entrance and park your vehicle. We need five to six people in the booth each day - 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. As always, we encourage local clubs to sign up to run the booth for a day, sporting their own club logo apparel if desired. Call Dean Sanders (816-456-4683) or Wanda Johnston (816-392-4960) and sign up for as many hours/days as you can. Arrangement for overnight accommodations nearby is available for you to reserve dates of your choice. Jobs in the booth include answering questions at our observation hive, selling honey, ice cream, honey sticks and other honey related by-products, plus educating the public about honeybees. If you’ve never worked at or been to the Fair, try it for a day. You get to meet and work with other beekeepers, and Dean and Wanda or other experienced workers will be there to help answer any of your questions. See you at the Fair! Enter your honey and other products: Even if you are unable to help out at our booth, you can still participate in the Honey Competition. The list of products to enter includes cut comb, bulk comb, light and dark extracted honey, sealed honey frames, candied (creamed) honey, beeswax blocks, art and candles, and “the queen & her bees” (observation hive). Judging of honey entries will include degree of density, moisture content, free from crystals, clarity, cleanliness of containers, flavor & aroma, color, appearance of containers, and uniformity of volume. The Score Sheet for judging items and more specific guidelines plus an entry form can be found on the State Fair web site at http://www.mostatefair.com/competitions/how-to-enter-premium-guide/. Under “Agriculture and Home Economics” you will find “Agriculture Rules and Classes” (with Apiculture beginning on page 2) and the “Agriculture Entry Blank”. Start planning now and decide what to enter. Get your jars selected (preferably glass, but not a requirement) and get your creamed honey started by early July. Even if you are just beginning your beekeeping adventure, please consider entering your honey products for judging. You get a score sheet for each item you enter and it’s a great way to see how you’re doing in preparing your honey for sale or even to give to your friends and neighbors. If you are unable to deliver your entries to Sedalia yourself, maybe your local club can help find someone. Let’s fill up the showcase this year and let the public see our beautiful bounty from all over Missouri. Note: We will match your winnings if you are a member of the Missouri State Beekeepers Association.

Page 12

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

Renew instantly online! www.mostatebeekeepers.org Use your credit card or PayPal!

Mail to: P.O. Box 7514 Columbia, MO 65205

e You Sav New

Association Member Subscription

25%!

(Rates listed below are 25% below regular rates.)

U.S. 1 Yr. $21.00 2 Yr. $39.75 3 Yr. $56.25

Renewal

Prices good through Dec. 31, 2015 Return white copy to: American Bee Journal, 51 S. 2nd St., Hamilton, IL 62341 Retain yellow copy for your records.

Subscriber’s Name

Association

Address

Secretary’s Name

Address

City, State, Zip

Address

Phone

City, State, Zip

Phone

Canada 1 Yr. $37.75 2 Yr. $74.00

Foreign 1 Yr. $45.00 2 Yr. $85.75

WEAVER’S FAMOUS QUEENS And Package Bees

Buckfast & All-American BEEKEEPING SUPPLIES AND BEGINNER’S KITS THE R WEAVER APIARIES, INC. 16495 C.R. 319, NAVASOTA, TX 77868

Phone (936) 825-2333 FAX (936) 825-3642

EMAIL: rweaver@rweaver.com WEBSITE: www.rweaver.com

August 2015 Honey Queen report by Erin Mullins Hello Missouri Beekeepers! I hope your summer is going well! I have seen many pictures of people harvesting honey. I hope you all are having great success with your honey this season. I had a slight setback with my honey production this year. A little over a month ago my dad and I went to add another super to our hive when we discovered the hive was not producing any brood! The hive was full of bees and they had already filled one super and we were excited to see that they were Queen Erin Q E working so hard. But finding no brood really caused some panic! I called a fellow beekeeper and he gave me some brood frames, some of which had queen cells on them. I put a frame that had a really nice looking queen cell into the hive and the waiting began! I took the remaining frames of brood and put into a nuc to see if it would develop. We went back to check on the hive and were happy to find several frames with brood!!! The nuc hive we started also took off and just a couple of days ago we put it into a 10 frame hive!! On top of all that success we had a swarm move into an empty hive we had in our bee yard. So we went from one iffy hive we were trying to save to three hives!!! During the month of June I had two Honey Queen events, both involving cooking demonstrations. On June 6th I attended the North East Kansas Beekeepers Association’s FUNDAY in Lawrence Kansas. At this event I got to do a children’s presentation as well as the cooking demonstration. Both went really well. I also got to listen to Marla Spivak speak which is always a treat. Then we finished the day with some homemade Honey Ice Cream which was delicious and perfect for the hot day. Then on June 20th I got to do a cooking demonstration at the Powell Gardens pollinator event. If you haven’t been to Powell gardens I strongly encourage it. It is beautiful!! Midwestern Beekeepers had an observation hive and a booth set up which was great for the kids to see some real bees. My next events will be the Leavenworth County fair on July 30th and the Missouri State Fair!!! I wish you all the best of luck during harvest season!

Page 13

Directory of Officers President: Valerie Duever 314-402-4841 2362 County Road 185, Auxvasse MO 65231 president@mostatebeekeepers.org Vice President: Clayton Lee 573-864-5172 90 E. Pope Lane, Smithville, MO 64089 vicepresident@mostatebeekeepers.org Secretary: Charlotte Wiggins 573-426-3510 secretary@mostatebeekeepers.org 1001 Bluebird Ln, Rolla, MO 65401 Treasurer: Steve Moeller 573-886-0662 PO Box 7514, Columbia MO 65205 treasurer@mostatebeekeepers.org Membership Chair: Ron Vivian 816-690-7516 443 Fricke Road, Bates City MO 64011-8280 membership@mostatebeekeepers.org Past-President: John Timmons 636-940-8202 952 Greenleaf Drive, St. Charles MO 63303 pastpresident@mostatebeekeepers.org Northwestern Director: Roger Nichols cell 816-456-6983 northwestdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Northeastern Director: Dan Lake 636-724-5937 48 Sterling Pointe Dr., St. Charles MO 63301 northeastdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Southeastern Director: Gregg Hitchings southeastdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Southwestern Director: Bruce Snavely 417-732-5219 508 Casady, Republic, MO 65738 southwestdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Central Director: Bob Brammer 660-415-6480 31649 Lake St., Macon MO 63552 centraldir@mostatebeekeepers.org Program Chairperson: Mike McMillan 2005 Devonshire Dr., Columbia, MO 65203 program@mostatebeekeepers.org Vendor Liaison: Tim Hyde tim.hyde@yahoo.com Newsletter Editor: Eugene Makovec 135 Alex Dr., Foley MO 63347 editor@mostatebeekeepers.org

314-703-7650

Queen Chairperson: Wanda Johnston 816-392-4960 queenchair@mostatebeekeepers.org State Fair Chairman: Dean Sanders 816-456-4683 cell 37804 Old Pink Hill Road, Oak Grove MO 64075

Queen Erin teaches about honeybees at a recent event.

Missouri State Beekeepers Association PO Box 7514 Columbia, Missouri 65205 www.mostatebeekeepers.org p g

Splitsville: Beekeepers attending Three Rivers Beekeepers’ July 25 Nuc Workshop look on as Tim Scheer (inset, at left) and Tim Fredricks split new colonies from club hives in St. Peters. The nucs were supplied with queen cells and will overwinter in two-story nuc boxes. photos by Valerie Mertz

Business card size Quarter page

$15.00 $35.00

Half page Full page

$50.00 $100.00

Missouri State Beekeepers Association PO Box 7514 Columbia, Missouri 65205 www.mostatebeekeepers.org

October 2015 Eugene Makovec Editor editor@mostatebeekeepers.org

Registration now open!

Fall Conference to be in Columbia October 16-17 The Missouri State Beekeepers Association will hold its annual Fall Conference in Columbia on Friday and Saturday, October 1617. Book your room now at: Hilton Garden Inn 3300 Vandiver Drive, Columbia, Missouri 65202 Telephone: 573-814-5464 Mention the MSBA to get our $99 group rate (subject to availability after October 1). Register online at http://mostatebeekeepers.org/registration/ From the President ............ 2 State Fair judging results ... 10 Or mail in form on page 5. Fall Conference promo ... 4 Yvonne Von Der Ahe, EMBA champs Featured speakers will include Michael Bush, a leading Conference registration .... 5 Local associations ....... 12-13 proponent of natural beekeeping; University of Missouri Conference agenda ......... 6-7 Conference vendors ......... 13 research entomologist Dr. Moneen Jones, MU Research Help wanted ....................... 8 Membership application ... 14 Entomologist; and many others. (See pages 6-7 for our From the Honey Queen .... 15 MSBA Editor, Webmaster tentative schedule.)

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

continued on page 15

Contests, Hospitality Room 9

Directory of Officers ........ 15

Page 2

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

From the President by Valerie Duever MSBA Fall Conference Time - October 16 and 17, 2015 For the past 15 or so years, I have always looked forward to the MSBA Annual Fall Conference. The speakers and subjects discussed have been entertaining and informative, something new is always learned. If you haven’t made plans to attend, please do so today! This year is the same, and yet different. Same, because of the quality of speakers we have scheduled to appear. Michael Bush will be talking about his methods for Healthier Bees, Lazy Beekeeping, Observation Hives, and Myths in Beekeeping. Dr. Moneen Jones, an entomologist with the Fisher Delta Research Facility, will be discussing the DriftWatch program and how pollinators and honey bees are the same, yet different. The Rolla Bee club will be discussing how to locate or set up a local bee club. Gregg Hitchings is going to discuss managing varroa mites. Becky Erickson will discuss how to incorporate native Missouri plants in Planting for your Hives. Jim Duever and Andy Seckinger will be talking about horticultural pesticides, and will present how some “organic” options are actually harmful to honey bees. Marty Comstock has developed a very informative presentation on how to calculate the Cost of Keeping Bees. We have two more speakers to firm up, but needless to say, we try to include as many avenues of beekeeping as possible. There are also drawings and door prizes. Cooking contests and some 25 vendors from around the state. The Queen Banquet on Friday night will be exciting and bittersweet. We are celebrating the new Honey Bill, and Jeanie Riddle is scheduled to join us. There are a number of volunteer leaders that we are acknowledging and Erin Mullins, our current Honey Queen will be stepping down. She is just a phenomenal woman, beekeeper and ambassador. We are looking forward to her presentation. This year’s conference is different because of some administrative things. Our Membership has asked the MSBA to be considerate of family obligations so we will avoid having conference events on Sundays or the Halloween weekend. Many members stated that they wanted more time to visit vendors and just socialize, so we are having two full days of Conference. We try to keep the location centralized, so we selected the Hilton Garden Inn in Columbia to host our event this year. Because of football season, we decided to move the date up a couple of weeks so we wouldn’t compete with a home college game. Lots of changes needed to take place so we could provide a good conference this year. But those do not touch the challenges and changes coming up. I have been trying to create a weekly email to keep folks updated on interesting beekeeping tidbits. Writing the Waggle Dance Data sounds simple, but it is a change…and we do know how difficult change can be. Our Membership has asked for more and better communication, so this is one way the MSBA is trying to improve. Eugene, our newsletter editor and John, our webmaster are both stepping down from these positions. Both have just done excellent jobs developing and performing these duties. Many, many, many volunteer hours have been spent brainstorming and tweaking, planning and implementing. Filling these duties is really going to be a challenge, but your Executive Committee is actively seeking individuals to do just that. Again, we have made a commitment to provide stronger communication to our membership. Ron and Dolores Vivian will be stepping down after the end of the year. Their wisdom and leadership over the past 10,000 years has been invaluable! For those that haven’t yet taken the opportunity to volunteer with our organization, remember this. Having strong mentors, like Ron and Delores, to provide advice, direction and history of past experiences keeps the newer committee members from repeating the mistakes they made. We learn from history as we plan the needed change for the future. T Vivians aren’t the only ones that provide this advice. Many, many, The many beekeepers that attend our Fall Conference have experiences and advice they are willing to share. All you have to do is ask. Come to the conference and ask. A when you get a chance, send a couple of “get-well” emails out And, to some of our Executive Committee members. Mike McMillen, our Program Director, broke his heel when he stepped on a metal post. Charlotte Wiggins, our secretary, broke her arm in two places and is recovering from surgery. We wish both of them a speedy recovery. Happy Fall and thank you for being a member of the Missouri State Beekeepers Association. V Valerie

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

Page 4

Make plans now!

MSBA Fall Conference October 16-17 Hilton Garden Inn, Columbia Call 573-814-5464 to reserve your room. Mention MSBA - discounted rate may still be available. Register online at www.mostatebeekeepers.org to earn two extra door prize tickets. Register before October 1st to save on registration fee.

Master beekeeper Michael Bush is our headliner: Michael is a leading proponent of treatment-free beekeeping. He began his beekeeping career in the mid-1970s with just two hives, and now maintains over 200. State Senator Jeanie Riddle, sponsor of Senate Bill 500, is scheduled to speak at our Friday evening banquet. This year’s contests include: • Cooking with Honey (cookies, rolls and cakes) • Honeybee Needlework (crochet, knitting, embroidery etc.) Any questions? Contact Clayton Lee 573-864-5172 leeland55@gmail.com

Missouri State Beekeepers Association 2015 Fall Membership Conference October 16 - 17, 2015 Hilton Garden Inn, Columbia, Missouri Online Conference registration at www.MOStateBeekeepers.org will earn you two (2) FREE tickets for prize drawing!!! Online is the place to pay dues, too. Thank you! Regular mail registration (Please print names as you prefer on name tag): First Name: ___________________________ Last Name: ________________________________________ Spouse/Partner/Children Attending: __________________________________________________________ Street Address: ____________________________________________________________________________ City: _______________________________________ State: ________ Zip Code: ______________________ Email: _____________________________________________ Telephone: (_____) _____________________ Your Local Beekeeping Assn: ________________________________________________________________ Registrations submitted on-line or postmarked date – Before October 1, 2015 Individual Membership: ..............................................................................$ 60.00 X Family Membership: ...................................................................................$ 100.00 X Non Member (sold by individual only): .....................................................$ 130.00 X

_____ = __________ _____ = __________ _____ = __________

Registrations submitted on-line or postmarked date – On or After October 1, 2015 Individual Membership: ..............................................................................$ 75.00 X Family Membership: ...................................................................................$ 130.00 X Non Member (sold by individual only): .....................................................$ 160.00 X

_____ = __________ _____ = __________ _____ = __________

Conference Meals (All meals listed below, will have ample choices for Vegetarians) Friday Luncheon – Deli Buffet: 3 meats, cheeses& 2 salads (per person): $ 12.00 Friday Banquet – Glazed Pit Ham & Chicken Cordon Bleu (per person): .$ 21.00 Saturday Luncheon - Buffet: BBQ Brisket & 2 salads (per person): .........$ 12.00

X X X

_____ = __________ _____ = __________ _____ = __________

Optional Honey Queen/Ambassador Fund Donation ($10.00 Suggested): ..........................................................__________ TOTAL AMOUNT ENCLOSED: $ __________

If you cannot register online, please make checks payable to the Missouri State Beekeepers Association and send it along with your completed registration form to: Clayton Lee, 90 East Pope Lane, Smithville, Missouri 64089. If you provide an email, we will send you an acknowledgement of your registration. Please contact the Hilton Garden Inn at (573) 814-5464 and tell them you are with the MSBA. (Group discount is subject to availability after October 1.)

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

Page 6

Missouri State Beekeepers Association Fall Conference Agenda (subject to change) Thursday – October 15, 2015 2:00 PM

Vendor Setup Begins (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

6:00 PM

Executive Committee Meeting (Iris Room)

8:00 PM

Vendor Setup Closes (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

Friday – October 16, 2015 6:00 AM

Vendor Setup Continues (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

7:00 AM

Registration Opens (Foyer next to Cypress Rooms)

8:00 AM

Vendor Hall Opens (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2) Beehive Café Opens (Foyer next to Cypress Rooms)

8:30 AM

Contest Room Opens for Entry Setup (Conference Center Lobby) x

Cooking: Cut out cookies, dinner rolls and best use of honey with a box cake mix.

Bee oriented hand crafted project: crochet, knit, and embroidery.

9:00 AM

Welcome, Announcements & Door Prizes - Valerie Duever (Sycamore Room)

9:20 AM

Invocation (Sycamore Room)

9:30 AM

Michael Bush - Four Simple Steps to Healthier Bees (Sycamore Room)

10:40 AM

Break – Visit with Vendors (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

10:40 AM

Cooking & Hand Crafted Project Contest Professional Judging Begins (Conference Center Lobby)

11:00 AM

Queen/Ambassador Silent Auction Begins (Cypress Room)

11:10 AM

Comparison & Contrast between Pollinators & Honey Bees – Moneen Jones, PhD (Hawthorne Room #1) OR New Beekeepers – Starting Connections – Charlotte Ekker Wiggins & Rolla Bee Club (Hawthorne Room #2) x

12:00 PM

Are you getting ready to place your first order, looking for a local club basic beekeeping class and want to meet with local club members?

Lunch (On Your Own or Deli Buffet at Hilton) Cooking & Hand Crafted Project Contest People’s Choice Judging Begins

October 2015

Page 7

Missouri State Beekeepers Association Fall Conference (contintued from previous page) (Conference Center Lobby) 1:00 PM

Michael Bush – Lazy Beekeeping (Sycamore Room)

2:15 PM

Break – Visit Vendors (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

2:45 PM

Feeding and attracting bees all season – Becky Erickson (Hawthorne Room #1 & #2)

3:30 PM

Break – Visit Vendors (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

4:00 PM

Sugar Shake and Alcohol Wash: Two methods of monitoring varroa mite levels in a bee colony. – Gregg Hitchings (Hawthorne Room #1 & #2)

5:00 PM

Break – Get Ready for Banquet

6:00 PM

Queen Banquet (ticket required) – Special presentation to Senator Jeanie Riddle, Auction, Contest Awards, and Introduction of adding an Ambassador Program. (Sycamore Room)

8:00 PM

Queen Reception (Sycamore Room)

Saturday – October 17, 2015 8:00 AM

Vendor Hall Opens (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

8:30 AM

Beehive Hospitality Café Opens (Foyer next to Cypress Rooms)

9:00 AM

Welcome, Announcements, and Door Prizes (Sycamore Room)

9:30 AM

Michael Bush – Observation Hives (Sycamore Room)

10:45 AM

Break – Visit Vendors (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2)

11:00 AM

What are you using on your bees? – Jim Duever and Andy Seckinger (Hawthorne Room #1) OR Cost of Keeping Bees – Marty Comstock (Hawthorne Room #2)

12:00 PM

Lunch (On your own OR BBQ Brisket Buffet - ticket required – Sycamore Room)

1:00 PM

Setting up an Apiary at College – Nathan Fox (Hawthorne Room #1) OR Sentinel Hive – Bee Informed Group – Scott Jackson (Hawthorne Room #2)

2:00 PM

Break – Visit Vendors (Cypress Rooms 1 & 2), Silent Auction Bidding Ends (Cypress Room)

2:30 PM

Michael Bush – Beekeeping Fallacies (Sycamore Room)

3:30 PM

Business Meeting and Drawings (Sycamore Room)

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

Page 8 Help wanted:

Newsletter Editor, Missouri State Beekeepers Association The end of 2015 will mark 10 years, and 60 issues, since I took over as Editor of this newsletter. It’s been a most enjoyable and fulfilling gig, but it’s time to step down. I simply do not have time for all the projects I’ve taken on in recent years, and since my boss still expects me to show up most days at my real job, I have to give up some things. Description and duties: • Produce six issues per year, about 12-16 pages • Coordinate advertising • Coordinate articles • Attend Executive Board meetings as a voting member • Attend and document annual Membership Conferences • Create PDF for electronic posting/emailing • Print and mail hard copies (currently about 50) via USPS Candidate should possess: • Attention to detail • Basic computer, design and photography skills • Competent spelling, grammar and proofreading skills • Passion for and knowledge of beekeeping a plus! I designed the current format from scratch when I started. You can follow it or use your own. I use InDesign, but that is also your choice. I will be happy to work with you during the changeover. For information call Eugene Makovec at 314-703-7650, or email editor@mostatebeekeepers.org

The MSBA is Seeking a New Webmaster! The current MSBA webmaster will be resigning from that position later this year to pursue other adventures. We are seeking an interested member that either has the necessary skills, or would be interested in advancing their current skills. If you have some basic web skills and would be interested in discussing the new MSBA webmaster position, please send an email with your contact information to webmaster@mostatebeekeepers.org. Although maintaining the MSBA website doesn’t require a degree in rocket science, here are some skills that you will need: • A basic understanding of the Wordpress web platform, including adding and editing pages, manipulating images and formatting text. • Some basic image manipulation skills, including the use of Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, or similar applications. • An understanding of Wordpress plugins, widgets, forms and menus. If you have some basic web skills, this is a great opportunity to take them to the next level, working with an established website and a great organization.

October 2015

Page 9

Cooking and artwork contest is back this Conference The MSBA will host the 7th Cooking With Honey and Beekeeping Art Contest at the 2015 Fall Conference in Columbia. If you are a member of the MSBA, please show off your unique cooking and needlework talents and represent your local club with pride. All entries MUST reflect honey/bee/beekeeper related theme. Category 1: Cooking With Honey The classes in this civision are: 1) Cut out cookies (no icing) 2) Dinner rolls (base dough can be from scratch or bread machine 3) Box cake mix 4) From scratch cake Category 2: Honeybee Needlework This class is for hand needlework which includes but is not limited to crochet, knit and embroidery (no computer or machine made entries). Rules for Entries: 1) Judging begins at 10:40 AM Friday in the Cooking and Artwork Contest Room and entries must be delivered and display prepared by this time. 2) Honey should be the principal sweetener in recipes and subject for needlework project. (Box cake mix not applicable but honey must be used.) 3) Food items must not require refrigeration. 4) Mark your container with your name unless it is disposable. 5) Type or print your recipe entry or needlework entry on any size card stock with your name, address and phone number on the back of the card. Share any creative experience you may desire. 6) The “People’s Choice Contest” follows the professional judging so please bring a generous amount of your food item. New this year - President’s Achievement Award Anyone entering all food Division Classes and taking first place in all current Classes will not only receive a blue ribbon for each Class but will receive a special “Certificate of Achievement” suitable for framing and displaying in your home or office. For more information, contact Valerie Duever at 314-4024841 or president@mostatebeekeepers.org

Fall Conference Beehive Cafe Silent Auction Items Needed The fall conference is rapidly approaching so it is time to search for silent auction items to benefit the MSBA Honey Queen/Ambassador Program. Please bring all donations to the Beehive Cafe hospitality area (adjacent to vendor area) when you come to the fall conference in Columbia. We will be honoring our outgoing Queen Erin Mullins for a job well done. A reception will follow the banquet in the Beehive Cafe. We welcome and appreciate all varieties of snacks for the break times during the conference. Thank you, in advance, for all your generous silent auction donations, and your Hospitality Room contributions!

MISSOURI STATE FAIR APICULTURE ENTRIES FOR 2015 First Second Third Fourth Fifth Sixth Seventh Eighth Second Third FIrst Second FIrst Second FIrst Second Third Fourth FIrst Second

FIrst Second

First Second Third Fourth Fifth Sixth Seventh Eighth First Third FIrst Second

DIVISION A: HONEY (INDIVIDUAL CLASS) Light Amber Extracted Honey $28 Melanie Avery Independence $20 Anne Schmitt St. Louis $16 Steve DeCaigney Independence $10 Bob Finck Fenton $8 Corinne Collins Chesterfield $6 Yvonne Von Der Ahe Foristell $6 Kenneth Heitkemp St.Louis $5 Kathie Jantz Columbia Dark Extracted Honey $12 Scott Hitchcock Warrenton $10 Kathie Jantz Columbia Sealed Honey, White, Shallow Depth Honey Frame (5 3/8" or 6 1/4" X 17") $12 Michael Godfrey Valley Park $9 Kenneth Heitkamp St. Louis Candied Honey $12 Steve DeCaigney Independence $9 Yvonne Von Der Ahe Foristell Yellow Beeswax, approximately 3 lbs $12 Bob Finck Fenton $9 Yvonne Von Der Ahe Foristell $8 Beth Avery Independence $7 Kenneth Heitkamp St. Louis Queen and Her Bees $12 Cathy Misko Centerview $9 Michael Godfrey Valley Park DIVISION B: APICULTURAL PRODUCTS (INDIVIDUAL CLASS) Art Designs in Beewax $12 Corinne Collina Chesterfield $9 Yvonne Von Der Ahe Foristell DIVISION C: HONEY (GROUP COMPETITION) Light Amber Extracted Honey $28 Eastern Kenneth Heitkamp St. Louis $20 Midwestern Steve DeCaigney Independence $16 Eastern Bob Finck Fenton $10 Eastern Anne Schmitt Univ. City $8 Three Rivers Corinne Collins Chesterfield $6 Three Rivers Yvonne Von Der Ahe Foristell $6 Midwestern Cathy Misko Centerview $5 Eastern Lavn'e Metz St. Louis Dark Extracted Honey $16 Midwestern Steve DeCaigney Independence $10 Three Rivers Scott Hitcock Warrenton Yellow Beeswax, approximately 3 lbs $12 Eastern Bob Finck Fenton $9 Eastern Kenneth Heitkamp St. Louis

2016 Grand Champion (Individual): Yvonne Von Der Ahe 2016 Grand Champion (Group): Eastern

October 2015

Page 11

The Best Selling BEEKEEPING Magazine In AMERICA! • 12 Big Issues A Year

• The BEST Beekeeping Calendar • The ONLY Urban Beekeeping Section • The ONLY Kids & Bees Activity Page

• Information on Gardening and Also Chickens • Paper & Digital Editions

Keeping Bees Helping Beekeepers For Over

141 Years

$25

“I have about 20 more at home,” says John Pashia of Affton as he shows off his historical collection of bee smokers at BeeSpeakSTL’s Honey Festival September 26. The smoker in his hand was designed to hold tobacco and be smoked by the beekeeper while working the bees. The Honey Festival featured lectures on mead making and the history of honey’s use in alcoholic beverages. It also included honey tastings (see photo on page 16) and a sampling of meads and honey beers. photo by Eugene Makovec

Save 40% Off The Newsstand Price! To Order Visit

www.Beeculture.com

Local Beekeeping Associations in Missouri 1 Beekeepers Association of the Ozarks

4th Tuesday of each month, 6-9 p.m. CH Chub O’Reilly Cancer Center, 2055 South Fremont, Springfield MO 65804 Jeffrey Maddox, President maddox65804@yahoo.com www.ozarksbeekeepers.org

2 Boone Regional Beekeepers Association

3rd Sunday of month, 3:00 p.m., Columbia Insurance Group, 2102 Whitegate Dr. (back door), Columbia President Jim Duever, 573-254-3373 www.boonebees.org

3 Busy Bee Club

4th Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m., Cedar County Health Center, Owens Mill Road, Stockton Neal Lee 417-276-3090, Neil Brunner 314-276-4252

4 Eastern Missouri Beekeepers Association

2nd Wednesday of each month, 7:00 p.m., location changes. Bob Sears, President 314-479-9517 www.easternmobeekeepers.com

5 Golden Valley Beekeepers

2nd Monday of each month, 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. Golden Corral, Clinton MO. Tom McCormick, President tomm@goldenvalleybeekeepers.com www.goldenvalleybeekeepers.com

6 Jackson Area Beekeepers

4th Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m. First Presb. of Jackson, 206 E. Washington Contact Grant Gillard, gillard5@charter.net, 573-243-6568

7 Jefferson County Beekeepers Association

2nd Tuesday of each month, 7:30 p.m., Hwy B & 21 Jefferson County Extension Center, Hillsboro Contact Marvin Hook 636-274-1759

8 Joplin Area Beekeepers Association

Last Tue. of each month, 7 pm, SM Bank Community Building (7th and Duquesne Rd), Joplin Contact Dale Foley 417-850-0285

9 Mid Missouri Beekeepers

3rd Sunday, 2 pm, Old Train Depot, St. James. Contact Don Moore, dlmoore2@centurytel.net 573-265-8706

10 Midwestern Beekeepers Association

Most meetings: Fellowship Hall at Graceway, 5460 Blue Ridge Cutoff, Kansas City, MO 64133 Visit midwesternbeekeepers.org for calendar Pres. Cathy Misko, 660-656-3485 cathymisko@earthlink.net

11 Mississippi Valley Beekeepers Association

Last Tuesday of Month in Quincy, IL Contact Bernie Andrew 217-938-4975

12 Missouri Valley Beekeepers Association

3rd Monday, 7pm, Union, location varies President Calvin Brandt cvbrandt@landolakes.com

13 Parkland Beekeepers

3rd Tuesday of month, 7pm, North College Center, Mineral Area College, Park Hills. Pres. Gregg Hitchings PBA_President@mineralarea.edu 573-880-2899

14 Pomme de Terre Beekeepers

2nd Thursday 7 pm, Missouri Extension Office, Hermitage Contact Rebekah Huddleston Rebekah_421@yahoo.com

15 SEMO Honey Producers

2nd Thursday of month, Church of Christ, Poplar Bluff Contact Cory Stevens 573-225-6935 wells.ernie@gmail.com

16 South Central Missouri Beekeepers Association 1st Friday of month, Howell Electric Coop, West Plains Monty Wiens, President 417 257-3994

17 Southern MO Beekeepers of Monett “MOBees”) 3rd Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m. United Methodist Church, Hwy 37 NW of Monett Kevin Young, President 417-847-5464

18 Southwest Missouri Beekeepers Assn. of Neosho 1st Tuesday of month, Neosho High School FFA Bldg Contact Thelma Ross 417-472-3504 rtross@jscomm.net

19 Three Rivers Beekeepers

3rd Monday, 7pm, University of Missouri Extension, 260 Brown Rd, St. Peters, info@threeriversbeekepers.com President Eugene Makovec 314-703-7650

20 Northwest Missouri Bee Busters

2nd Monday of month, location varies nwmobeebusters.blogspot.com beebusters2012@gmail.com Gerald Auffert, President 660-944-2535

21 Lake of the Ozarks Beekeepers

3rd Saturday of month, 1:00 p.m. Square Deals Ice Cream Shop,Versailles Contact Garrett Blackwell 573-374-7402

22 Northeast Missouri Beekeepers Association

1st Friday of month, 7 pm, Clark County Courthouse, Lower level, Kahoka (location may vary) (3 miles south of Wayland) Contact Randy Ewart 573-248-5561 rewart@centurytel.net

23 Gasconade Region Beekeepers

2nd Tuesday 7:00, First State Comm. Bank, Owensville Pres. Chris Bilbrey 573-692-0698 twaace01@fidnet.com gasconaderegionbeekeepers@hotmail.com

24 St. Louis Beekeepers

4th Tuesday 6:30, Schlafly Bottleworks contact@saintlouisbeekeepers.com www.saintlouisbeekeepers.com

25 Western Missouri Beekeepers

2nd Tuesday 6:30, Moor-View Community Room, Nevada Caroline Phillips, President 417-321-3587 bcphillips81@gmail.com

26 Meramec Valley Beekeepers First Sunday 2 pm, Peace Lutheran Church in Sullivan Contact Sam Elia 573-732-5597 samnora1@gmail.com, or Laurie Rose at laurierose1219@yahoo.com

27 Quad County Beekeepers

1st Tuesday, 7:00 pm, Missouri Extension Office, Troy President Eric Reid quadcountybeekeepers.com

28 North Central MO Beekeepers Association

1st Monday, Area Career Center, Macon, 7:00 pm Contact Bill George (660) 646-3354, www.ncmobees.org

29 Bees Alive (Springfield area) www.beesaliveclub.com 1st Thursday, 7pm, Empire Bank, Highlandville Dan Barton, dannyohboy@hotmail.com

30 Wright County Beekeepers

2nd Thursday, Laclede Electric building, Hartville, 7 pm Rick Bledsoe, Contact 417-741-7466 wrightcountybeekeepers@gmail.com

(continued next page)

Local Beekeeping Associations in Missouri (continued from previous page)

31 Rolla Bee Club

4th Sunday 2pm, Brownwood Estates Clubhouse, 1341 California, Rolla Contact David Draker (573) 578-0561 rollabees@gmail.com www.rollabeeclub.com

32 Swarm Chasers

% MO Dept. of Conservation, 701 McCarthy Dr., St. Joseph Contact Jason Seetin swarmchasers@gmail.com

No dues, focus on Horizontal Hives. Contact Jim Roe 636-357-7658 or email jim.roe@asemonline.org. This group has an open group on Yahoo to exchange information. (Yahoo account needed.)

34 Mark Twain Beekeepers 3rd Monday, 6-8 p.m. No dues. February meeting at Gregg Tivnanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s workshop near Bunker; call for other months. Contacts: Terry Phelps 573-729-3333 Gregg Tivnan (573) 689-2254 or greggtivnan@yahoo.com

35 New Bee Club (as yet unnamed)

October 7, November 4, 6:30 pm State Fair Community College, Sedalia Contact Mike Conroy (573) 301-1394 33 EZ Beekeeping conroythegeek@gmail.com 3rd Sunday, 2 pm, Peace Lutheran Church in Sullivan See our interactive club map on the website at: http://batchgeo.com/map/e64a9d35b439c5309794fbea8516f333

Coastal Science Labs Honey analysis Jim Gawenis 801-478-6827

Dadant & Sons (see ad page 3)

Crooked Hill Beekeeping

Ozark Cedar Hives

Von Der Rosa

Missouri Wildflowers Nursery

Phil Ebert

Mann Lake

Missouri Dept. of Agriculture

All beekeeping supplies Gabe Dadant 888-922-1293 www.dadant.com

Beekeeping equipment Bob Owen 417-538-0337 bkowen1976@gmail.com Native plants and seeds 573-496-3492

All beekeeping supplies Pat Montague patm@mannlakeltd.com 800-880-7694 www.mannlakeltd.com

Isabees

Bees and equipment Bill and Tammy George 660-214-0132 www.chbeekeeping.com Hive products Yvonne Von Der Ahe 636-744-1312 vonderrosa@yahoo.com Package bees, queens, woodenware and honey. Buying beeswax. ehoney37@netins.net Anastasia Becker

Leo Sharashkin

lsharashkin@yahoo.com Beekeeping books and miscellaneous

Authorized Walter T. Kelley Dealer All beekeeping supplies Jane Sueme 314-504-4424 jane@isabees.com

B L Plastic Containers

Andrew Honey Farm

Hive products Corinne Collins corinneshoneyfarm@gmail.com 636-627-7515 corinneshoneyfarmllc.com

Used beekeeping equipment Bernie Andrew 217-938-4975 magic@adams.net

Nixa Hardware

Beekeeping equipment Dan Barton 800-648-7379

Garry Wilaby sales@blplasticiowa.com

Corinneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Honey Farm

Stops the Sting

Steve Moreland 877-322-4950, 325-370-9201 cell www.stopsthesting.com

BeekeepingBiz.com (see ad page 9) Beekeeping Marketing Blog John Timmons info@beekeepingbiz.com

Page 14

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

Renew instantly online! www.mostatebeekeepers.org Use your credit card or PayPal!

Mail to: P.O. Box 7514 Columbia, MO 65205

e You Sav New

Association Member Subscription

25%!

(Rates listed below are 25% below regular rates.)

U.S. 1 Yr. $21.00 2 Yr. $39.75 3 Yr. $56.25

Renewal

Prices good through Dec. 31, 2015 Return white copy to: American Bee Journal, 51 S. 2nd St., Hamilton, IL 62341 Retain yellow copy for your records.

Subscriber’s Name

Association

Address

Secretary’s Name

Address

City, State, Zip

Address

Phone

City, State, Zip

Phone

Canada 1 Yr. $37.75 2 Yr. $74.00

Foreign 1 Yr. $45.00 2 Yr. $85.75

WEAVER’S FAMOUS QUEENS And Package Bees

Buckfast & All-American BEEKEEPING SUPPLIES AND BEGINNER’S KITS THE R WEAVER APIARIES, INC. 16495 C.R. 319, NAVASOTA, TX 77868

Phone (936) 825-2333 FAX (936) 825-3642

EMAIL: rweaver@rweaver.com WEBSITE: www.rweaver.com

October 2015 Honey Queen report by Erin Mullins Hello fellow beekeepers!! If I’m not mistaken I believe this is my last newsletter entry as the 2015 Missouri Honey Queen. It has been an absolute pleasure being able to serve you all! Honey bees have become a true passion of mine and having the opportunity to help advocate for them and to visit with other beekeepers who are equally as passionate has truly been an amazing experience for me. I thank you all for supporting me throughout the year! A couple of events that I’ve gotten Queen Erin Q E to attend in the past couple months include the Leavenworth County Fair in Tonganoxie Kansas, and the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia. The Leavenworth County Fair event was sponsored by the NEKBA. They had a booth setup selling honey and had honey extracting demonstrations. It was a very neat event that I was glad I was able to attend! This year at The Missouri State Fair I attended all 11 days!! Crazy as it sounds it is always tons of fun! I got to do four different demonstrations in the Home Economics building, a couple of radio interviews, and talk with hundreds of fair goers as they stopped by the booth! I have a few more events coming up, including my county’s conservation day where we speak to all the 4th graders in my county. I’ll attend a farmers market in Maryville with a local beekeeper I know, and then Meadfest at 7Cs winery in Walnut grove. I hope to see you all at the fall conference as well, as I will be saying my farewell as the Queen! Again I can’t thank you all enough for your continued support and encouragement. It has been a great honor getting to know all of you! Erin Mullins

Fall Conference continued from page 1

Our Friday evening banquet will be a busy affair: We will announce our 2015 Beekeeper of the Year, who will for the first time be chosen with the help of our membership. We will also say goodbye to 2015 Honey Queen Erin Mullins. And we will honor and hear from Senator Jeanie Riddle, sponsor of the newly-enacted Senate Bill 500 to relax honey sales regulations for our state’s beekeepers. We will again host cooking and artwork contests (details on page 9), a silent auction, and our popular “Beehive Café” hospitality area. The latter will again be conveniently located adjacent to our vendor area. (See page 13 for a list of vendors.)

Page 15

Directory of Officers President: Valerie Duever 314-402-4841 2362 County Road 185, Auxvasse MO 65231 president@mostatebeekeepers.org Vice President: Clayton Lee 573-864-5172 90 E. Pope Lane, Smithville, MO 64089 vicepresident@mostatebeekeepers.org Secretary: Charlotte Wiggins 573-426-3510 secretary@mostatebeekeepers.org 1001 Bluebird Ln, Rolla, MO 65401 Treasurer: Steve Moeller 573-886-0662 PO Box 7514, Columbia MO 65205 treasurer@mostatebeekeepers.org Membership Chair: Ron Vivian 816-690-7516 443 Fricke Road, Bates City MO 64011-8280 membership@mostatebeekeepers.org Past-President: John Timmons 636-940-8202 952 Greenleaf Drive, St. Charles MO 63303 pastpresident@mostatebeekeepers.org Northwestern Director: Roger Nichols cell 816-456-6983 northwestdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Northeastern Director: Dan Lake 636-724-5937 48 Sterling Pointe Dr., St. Charles MO 63301 northeastdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Southeastern Director: Gregg Hitchings southeastdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Southwestern Director: Bruce Snavely 417-732-5219 508 Casady, Republic, MO 65738 southwestdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Central Director: Bob Brammer 660-415-6480 31649 Lake St., Macon MO 63552 centraldir@mostatebeekeepers.org Program Chairperson: Mike McMillan 2005 Devonshire Dr., Columbia, MO 65203 program@mostatebeekeepers.org Vendor Liaison: Tim Hyde tim.hyde@yahoo.com Newsletter Editor: Eugene Makovec 135 Alex Dr., Foley MO 63347 editor@mostatebeekeepers.org

314-703-7650

Queen Chairperson: Wanda Johnston 816-392-4960 queenchair@mostatebeekeepers.org State Fair Chairman: Dean Sanders 816-456-4683 cell 37804 Old Pink Hill Road, Oak Grove MO 64075

Missouri State Beekeepers Association PO Box 7514 Columbia, Missouri 65205 www.mostatebeekeepers.org

J d Ivery Judy I off Festus F attends d a ddisplay l off honey h tasting samples, l decoratively d l showcased h d in wine glasses l as part off the September 26 Honey Festival hosted by BeeSpeakSTL. One collection of glasses contained varietal honeys for comparison tasting, while another group comprised a “People’s Choice” honey tasting competition. Mary Tevlin of Vinita Park was awarded the $100 First Prize. photo by Eugene Makovec

Business card size Quarter page

$15.00 $35.00

Half page Full page

$50.00 $100.00

Missouri State Beekeepers Association PO Box 7514 Columbia, Missouri 65205 www.mostatebeekeepers.org

December 2015 Eugene Makovec Editor editor@mostatebeekeepers.org

Fall Conference brings 200+ to Columbia Michael Bush lectures, entertains

The Missouri State Beekeepers Association drew about 225 members to its annual Fall Conference in Columbia on Friday and Saturday, October 16-17. Held at the Hilton Garden Inn, the meeting featured Michael Bush, a leading proponent of natural beekeeping. Mr. Bush not only gave several lectures over the course of two days, but entertained us by playing guitar and singing folk tunes during our Friday evening banquet and in the hotel lobby afterwards. Our Friday banquet also honored Senator Jeanie Riddle, who gave a short speech and accepted a plaque thanking her for sponsoring Senate Bill 500, which deregulated honey sales in our state this year. President Valerie Duever also presented awards to numerous other attendees, including: • A beautiful framed copy of SB 500, signed by Senator Riddle and Governor Jay Nixon, given to Eugene Makovec for initiating and spearheading the effort to pass this legislation. • “Beekeeper of the Year” plaques to the five members of our Legislative Committee Eugene Makovec, Mike From the President ............ 2 Honey Festival delights ..... 9 McMillen, Charlotte Conference award photos 5 Local associations ....... 10-11 Wiggins, Cathy Misko Legislative Committee members Is there a club near you? named Beekeepers of the Year and Bruce Snavely - all of MSBA Editor sought ....... 11 More Conference photos 6-7 Membership application ... 12 whom testified at Senate and House agriculture committee MSBA Webmaster needed ... 8 Directory of Officers ........ 13 hearings on the bill.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Michael Bush

continued on page 4

Page 2

Missouri State Beekeepers Association From the President by Valerie Duever

The Best Selling BEEKEEPING Magazine In AMERICA! • 12 Big Issues A Year

• The BEST Beekeeping Calendar • The ONLY Urban Beekeeping Section • The ONLY Kids & Bees Activity Page

• Information on Gardening and Also Chickens • Paper & Digital Editions

Keeping Bees Helping Beekeepers For Over

141 Years

$25

Save 40% Off The Newsstand Price! To Order Visit

www.Beeculture.com

November 17, 2015 As I am sitting here, at 3:26 am, listening to the cold rain pound against the windows of my office, I start thinking about how much things have changed over the past 12 months. This time last year, I became the MSBA President. Me! Someone that is just a fairly well-educated, side-liner beekeeper with an extremely curious mind and the gift of gab. To say I was excited is an understatement. I am following in the footsteps of a number of beekeepers that have helped me in my education so I still feel extremely honored to volunteer in this capacity. Being very tired and a little overwhelmed, I decided to read over some archived newsletters to see what subjects our other Presidents noted in their December letters. In the December 2010 edition, then-President, Scott Moser, talked about wrapping up his two-year service and how he would like to see more local associations to help beekeepers…locally. At that printing, we had 19 local clubs. Today, we have over 35. There you go, Scott. Many of our other Presidents discussed the Fall Conference and I am compelled to do the same. I was very nervous with this conference because we have trimmed our get-togethers down to once a year so it had to be wonderful. Based on the exit surveys and the feedback I received talking with our 200+ attendees, it was pretty wonderful. So, okay, the temperature was an issue and the food is always too expensive (we’re working on that for next year), but the speakers were very good. As always, I thoroughly enjoy talking with beekeepers from around the state. I cannot say “Thank You” enough to everyone that volunteered to help make this such a success. I have tried to personally thank each and every one of you, but if I missed someone…here is a public THANK YOU! Our Executive Committee meets face-to-face, four times a year. With discussions on serving our members, which events should we attend, what should we do for the next annual conference, how are we going to fill the vacancies on the Committee, etc., we tend to just touch base and put out fires. Sometimes, new ideas are presented for review and discussion. As an example, during our meeting in October 2015, we had debated the merits and voted to provide a letter of support for a Missouri pollinator program. There is a need for public outreach to folks that are interested in bees but don’t want to become beekeepers, so you will be seeing more information on this program, as it becomes available. In January, our Executive Committee is convening to discuss how we can be of better service to our members. With so many local associations and the internet offering basic information for budding beekeepers, the lines of “this is what the MSBA can provide” become very blurry. For example, we are doing research on non-profit/not-for-profit business classifications. There are a number of ways to start a local club and many considerations to discuss, especially when there is money involved. Keep an eye on our newsletters and webpage for more other projects in the works. I, personally, think we need to provide more focus on educational opportunities for beekeepers that have been doing this for a couple of years. We do a great job showing folks how to get into beekeeping but staying with it after a few years…not so much. It sure would be interesting to find out why folks get out of beekeeping so those challenges can be addressed. We need long-term beekeepers. The other thing I tend to do, when I can’t sleep, is to research stuff. This morning, it was “who does research on honeybees and what are they studying”. Amazing what folks are trying to answer. Even more amazing are the articles on issues I thought were new, but the research is now 5 years old. I plan on sharing some of the more interesting information in the Waggle Data Dance, so watch for that as well. See, that is the really cool thing about beekeeping; you will never learn everything there is to know about honeybees. Stay warm and Happy Holidays to everyone. Thank you for being a member of the MO State Beekeepers Association. Valerie

Page 4

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

MSBA doles out a bevy of awards at Fall Conference continued from page 1

• “Lifetime Service” awards - to Dolores Vivian, for her many years as Auxiliary Chairperson; and Ron Vivian, for decades of service as Treasurer and then Membership Chair. • “Volunteer Extraordinaire” awards - to John Timmons for building and maintaining our MSBA website over the past several years, and serving as Vice President, President and now Past President; and Eugene Makovec for 10 years as Newsletter Editor. • A “Honey Queen” award to outgoing 2015 Missouri Honey Queen Erin Mullins. • A “Queen Chairperson” award to Wanda Johnston, who is leaving that position this year. • “Dedicated Volunteer” awards to Dean Sanders, Wanda Johnston and Wes Johnston for their stellar work on the State Fair booth over the past several years. Mr. Bush gave several Scott Jackson presentations on his natural beekeeping methods. Here are some of the points he shared: • Mite treatments kill much more than varroa. There are many kinds of mites in a hive, many of them good, and “treatment” kills them all. • Such treatments also breed weak bees, along with strong parasites. • Chemical treatments interfere with the natural communication of the hive, thus compromising the colony’s ability to take care of itself. • The common IPM practice of removing drone comb with varroa is “a great way to breed for varroa that prefer workers”. • Honey is a healthier food than sugar syrup. Honey has a pH of 3.2-4.5, compared Valerie Duever and Gregg Hitehings explain mite with 6 for sugar syrup. (In response to a question, Michael could not say what the testing procedures. pH is in nectar, or in sugar syrup that has reduced in moisture content and capped for storage.) • Too much ventilation interferes with the colony’s ability to manage hive temperature in summer or winter. • Pollen substitute patties get bees out of sync with their environment. “They really should relabel them as ‘small hive beetle food.’” • Annual requeening just keeps bees from selecting for good queens on their own. We also heard from numerous other speakers, on a variety of topics: Gregg Hitchings gave an entertaining demonstration and comparison of the “sugar shake” and “alcohol wash” methods of sampling for varroa. Marty Comstock detailed the true costs of keeping bees. M Becky Erickson discussed methods of providing diverse food B ssources for bees. “Honeybees that encounter a high diversity of wild flowers and other insects will be healthier than those kept w iin a ‘clean’ bubble.” Nathan Fox talked about how to set up an apiary on a college N ccampus. S Scott Jackson told us about the “Sentinel Hive” project uundertaken this year by Eastern Missouri Beekeepers, in cconjunction with the Bee Informed Partnership. That program ttracks a group of eight colonies, and monitors varroa and nosema llevels, hive weight, pollen variety and overall health. Recent upgrades for next year will provide real-time remote R B k E ik Becky Erickson

continued on page 13

Eugene Makovec

2015 Beekeepers of the Year: This yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s award went to the MSBA Legislative Committee, who testified to House and Senate Agriculture Committees on behalf of Senate Bill 500. From left: Eugene Makovec, Charlotte Ekker Wiggins, Bruce Snavely and Cathy Misko. Not pictured: Mike McMillen.

Arts and Crafts Contest winners: From left, Bonnie Potter, Rosaline Baumann, Corinne Collins, Julie Evans, Kathleen Hartman and Stormie Burr.

State Senator Jeanie Riddle (below left) poses for a photo with outgoing 2015 Missouri Honey Queen Erin Mullins. Senator Riddle was on hand at Friday eveningâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s banquet to accept a plaque in honor of her sponsorship of Senate Bill 500 deregulating honey sales in our state.

Bonnie Potter (center photo) holds down the registration table throughout the conference, along with husband Dennis Potter (not shown). Corinne Collins (above), of Corinneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Honey Farm, talks about her honey and other products.

Anastasia Becker (below right), of the Missouri Department of Agriculture, talks to a conference attendee about Driftwatch, a multi-state program that helps beekeepers to alert pesticide applicators to the locations of their beehives so as to avoid spray drift.

MSBA Northeastern Director Danny Lake (above right), along with his wife Karen Lake, sell official Missouri State Beekeepers hats, shirts and umbrellas. At left, Dadant representative Gabe Dadant talks with an attendee.

Meeting of Merchants: Vendors representing five different companies (upper center) gather on and around the surprisingly comfortable beehive furniture made by Isabees. They are, from left: Bill George, Crooked Hill Beekeeping; Gabe Dadant, Dadant & Sons; Bernie Andrew, Andrew Honey Farm; Scott Klein, Isabees; and Phil Ebert, Ebert Honey Company. (See back page for another view of this furniture.) All photos these two pages by Eugene Makovec

Package Bees for 2016, Free Delivery 1 to 9 packages

$115.00

10 to 24 packages

$113.00

25 to 99 packages

$111.00

100 + Packages

$109.00

Why buy package bees and queens from us: * Bees & Queens not from Georgia or Texas. * Non Africanized bees and queens. * Only mated queens that lay for 15 plus days. * Same great genetics as always. * You are supporting local. * Free delivery in 11 states.

60 lbs Missouri honey delivered on our routes for free in April / May $185

Honey Hive Farms Saving the world one bee at a time! www.HoneyHiveFarms.com

We are selling Package Bees & Queens for 2016. Always sell out quick, so place your order now.

Honey Hive Farms 70 Bluebird Lane Winfield, Mo 63389 Cell Phone 602~330~8468 www.HoneyHiveFarms.com Follow us on:

Honey can be picked up at farm or shipped.

HoneyHiveFarms.com 602~330~8468

The MSBA is Seeking a New Webmaster! The current MSBA webmaster will be resigning from that position later this year to pursue other adventures. We are seeking an interested member that either has the necessary skills, or would be interested in advancing their current skills. If you have some basic web skills and would be interested in discussing the new MSBA webmaster position, please send an email with your contact information to webmaster@ mostatebeekeepers.org. Although maintaining the MSBA website doesn’t require a degree in rocket science, here are some skills that you will need: • A basic understanding of the Wordpress web platform, including adding and editing pages, manipulating images and formatting text. • Some basic image manipulation skills, including the use of Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, or similar applications. • An understanding of Wordpress plugins, widgets, forms and menus. If you have some basic web skills, this is a great opportunity to take them to the next level, working with an established website and a great organization.

December 2015

Page 9

Honey Festival delights with mead events, honey tasting BeeSpeakSTL and St. Louis Beekeepers plan annual event by Scott Klein St. Louis hosted the first annual Honey Festival this past September 26th along with Missouri’s first mead judging competition. This inaugural event, held along with BeeSpeakSTL and the Saint Louis Beekeepers Club, welcomed Dr. Patrick McGovern, author of “Uncorking the Past”, who is credited with finding evidence of the oldest fermented beverage made with honey and rice, 9000 years ago. Also presenting was Ken Schramm, author of “The Compleat Meadmaker”, regarded as the most comprehensive book on the art and practice of making alcoholic beverages with honey. Ken served as head judge for the BJPC sanctioned Honey Festival & Design2Brew mead competition which consisted of 13 small-batch (non-commercial ) entries in four categories, Traditional Mead, Fruit Mead (cyser, melomel), Spiced Mead (methgylin) and Specialty Mead (historical mead, braggot). Competition results are posted at HoneyFestival.org. The distinquished speakers presented at Maritz in Fenton on Saturday, along with the Saint Louis Beekeepers honey tasting and People's Choice award for the most popular local honey from the year’s harvest. Mary Tevlin won the $100.00 cash prize for her Vinita Park honey. There were local vendors, a beekeeping booth with an observation hive and John Pashia’s extensive historical smoker display. Additional vendors included Dave Lakebrink’s flavored creamed honey, Bee Naturals, Von Der Ahe Honey Farm, Shapfield Farms and Corinne's Honey Farm, among others. A festive evening reception was held at the Thomas Sappington House Museum park in Crestwood. Attendees were able to meet and speak directly with the day’s presenters, and sample a selection of Ken's own nationally awarded Schramm’s Meads, along with Chateau Jiahu, a recreation of the 9,000 year old honey beverage. The festival was open to the public, and many non-beekeepers were able to sample the local and single source honeys compliments of Saint Louis Beekeepers, enjoy blues music, food, and a local honey beverage creation by Earthbound Beer.

Ken Schramm, left, and Dr. Patrick McGovern pose for a photo at the Honey Festival. Mr. Schramm discussed his experiences running a family mead business. Dr. McGovern, known as the “Indiana Jones of Ancient Ales, Wines and Extreme Bevarages”, talked about discoveries of historic brews.

Local Beekeeping Associations in Missouri 1 Beekeepers Association of the Ozarks

4th Tuesday of each month, 6-9 p.m. CH Chub O’Reilly Cancer Center, 2055 South Fremont, Springfield MO 65804 Jeffrey Maddox, President maddox65804@yahoo.com www.ozarksbeekeepers.org

2 Boone Regional Beekeepers Association

3rd Sunday of month, 3:00 p.m., Columbia Insurance Group, 2102 Whitegate Dr. (back door), Columbia President Jim Duever, 573-254-3373 www.boonebees.org

3 Busy Bee Club

4th Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m., Cedar County Health Center, Owens Mill Road, Stockton Neal Lee 417-276-3090, Neil Brunner 314-276-4252

4 Eastern Missouri Beekeepers Association

2nd Wednesday of each month, 7:00 p.m., location changes. Bob Sears, President 314-479-9517 www.easternmobeekeepers.com

5 Golden Valley Beekeepers

2nd Monday of each month, 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. Golden Corral, Clinton MO. Tom McCormick, President tomm@goldenvalleybeekeepers.com www.goldenvalleybeekeepers.com

6 Jackson Area Beekeepers

4th Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m. First Presb. of Jackson, 206 E. Washington Contact Grant Gillard, gillard5@charter.net, 573-243-6568

7 Jefferson County Beekeepers Association

2nd Tuesday of each month, 7:30 p.m., Hwy B & 21 Jefferson County Extension Center, Hillsboro Contact Marvin Hook 636-274-1759

8 Joplin Area Beekeepers Association

Last Tue. of each month, 7 pm, SM Bank Community Building (7th and Duquesne Rd), Joplin Contact Dale Foley 417-850-0285

9 Mid Missouri Beekeepers

3rd Sunday, 2 pm, Old Train Depot, St. James. Contact Don Moore, dlmoore2@centurytel.net 573-265-8706

10 Midwestern Beekeepers Association

Most meetings: Fellowship Hall at Graceway, 5460 Blue Ridge Cutoff, Kansas City, MO 64133 Visit midwesternbeekeepers.org for calendar Pres. Cathy Misko, 660-656-3485 cathymisko@earthlink.net

11 Mississippi Valley Beekeepers Association

Last Tuesday of Month in Quincy, IL Contact Bernie Andrew 217-938-4975

12 Missouri Valley Beekeepers Association

3rd Monday, 7pm, Union, location varies President Calvin Brandt cvbrandt@landolakes.com

13 Parkland Beekeepers

3rd Tuesday of month, 7pm, North College Center, Mineral Area College, Park Hills. Pres. Gregg Hitchings PBA_President@mineralarea.edu 573-880-2899

14 Pomme de Terre Beekeepers

2nd Thursday 7 pm, Missouri Extension Office, Hermitage Contact Rebekah Huddleston Rebekah_421@yahoo.com

15 SEMO Honey Producers

2nd Thursday of month, Church of Christ, Poplar Bluff Contact Cory Stevens 573-225-6935 wells.ernie@gmail.com

16 South Central Missouri Beekeepers Association 1st Friday of month, Howell Electric Coop, West Plains Monty Wiens, President 417 257-3994

17 Southern MO Beekeepers of Monett “MOBees”) 3rd Tuesday of each month, 7:00 p.m. United Methodist Church, Hwy 37 NW of Monett Kevin Young, President 417-847-5464

18 Southwest Missouri Beekeepers Assn. of Neosho 1st Tuesday of month, Neosho High School FFA Bldg Contact Thelma Ross 417-472-3504 rtross@jscomm.net

19 Three Rivers Beekeepers

3rd Monday, 7pm, University of Missouri Extension, 260 Brown Rd, St. Peters, info@threeriversbeekepers.com President Eugene Makovec 314-703-7650

20 Northwest Missouri Bee Busters

2nd Monday of month, location varies nwmobeebusters.blogspot.com beebusters2012@gmail.com Gerald Auffert, President 660-944-2535

21 Lake of the Ozarks Beekeepers

3rd Saturday of month, 1:00 p.m. Square Deals Ice Cream Shop,Versailles Contact Garrett Blackwell 573-374-7402

22 Northeast Missouri Beekeepers Association

1st Friday of month, 7 pm, Clark County Courthouse, Lower level, Kahoka (location may vary) (3 miles south of Wayland) Contact Randy Ewart 573-248-5561 rewart@centurytel.net

23 Gasconade Region Beekeepers

2nd Tuesday 7:00, First State Comm. Bank, Owensville Pres. Chris Bilbrey 573-692-0698 twaace01@fidnet.com gasconaderegionbeekeepers@hotmail.com

24 St. Louis Beekeepers

4th Tuesday 6:30, Schlafly Bottleworks contact@saintlouisbeekeepers.com www.saintlouisbeekeepers.com

25 Western Missouri Beekeepers

2nd Tuesday 6:30, Moor-View Community Room, Nevada Caroline Phillips, President 417-321-3587 bcphillips81@gmail.com

26 Meramec Valley Beekeepers First Sunday 2 pm, Peace Lutheran Church in Sullivan Contact Sam Elia 573-732-5597 samnora1@gmail.com, or Laurie Rose at laurierose1219@yahoo.com

27 Quad County Beekeepers

1st Tuesday, 7:00 pm, Missouri Extension Office, Troy President Eric Reid quadcountybeekeepers.com

28 North Central MO Beekeepers Association

1st Monday, Area Career Center, Macon, 7:00 pm Contact Bill George (660) 646-3354, www.ncmobees.org

29 Bees Alive (Springfield area) www.beesaliveclub.com 1st Thursday, 7pm, Empire Bank, Highlandville Dan Barton, dannyohboy@hotmail.com

30 Wright County Beekeepers

2nd Thursday, Laclede Electric building, Hartville, 7 pm Rick Bledsoe, Contact 417-741-7466 wrightcountybeekeepers@gmail.com

(continued next page)

Local Beekeeping Associations in Missouri (continued from previous page)

31 Rolla Bee Club

4th Sunday 2pm, Brownwood Estates Clubhouse, 1341 California, Rolla Contact David Draker (573) 578-0561 rollabees@gmail.com www.rollabeeclub.com

32 Swarm Chasers

% MO Dept. of Conservation, 701 McCarthy Dr., St. Joseph Contact Jason Seetin swarmchasers@gmail.com

35 West Central Beekeeping Association

Second Wednesday, 6:30 pm State Fair Community College, Potter-Ewing Ag Ctr, Sedalia Contact Mike Conroy (573) 301-1394 conroythegeek@gmail.com

36 West Plains Bee Group 3rd Thursday, 6:00 pm Hirsch Feed & Farm Supply, 789 Worley Dr., West Plains Call Carl Fry 417-247-0708 or Dan Cropper 417-372-2602

37 Caldwell County Beekeepers 4th Monday, 7pm, American Legion Hall in Braymer J.R. Hess. 660-233-9577 or jrhess11@gmail.com

38 Dexter Bee Club 1st Tuesday, 7pm, Scott Laden’s house in Dexter Contact Dorothy at djhooten@yahoo.com, or Cory Stevens at corystevens00@yahoo.com

See our interactive club map on the website at: http://batchgeo.com/ map/e64a9d35b439c5309794fbea8516f333

Help wanted:

Page 12

Missouri State Beekeepers Association

Renew instantly online! www.mostatebeekeepers.org Use your credit card or PayPal!

Mail to: P.O. Box 7514 Columbia, MO 65205

e You Sav New

Association Member Subscription

25%!

(Rates listed below are 25% below regular rates.)

U.S. 1 Yr. $21.00 2 Yr. $39.75 3 Yr. $56.25

Renewal

Prices good through Dec. 31, 2015 Return white copy to: American Bee Journal, 51 S. 2nd St., Hamilton, IL 62341 Retain yellow copy for your records.

Subscriber’s Name

Association

Address

Secretary’s Name

Address

City, State, Zip

Address

Phone

City, State, Zip

Phone

Canada 1 Yr. $37.75 2 Yr. $74.00

Foreign 1 Yr. $45.00 2 Yr. $85.75

WEAVER’S FAMOUS QUEENS And Package Bees

Buckfast & All-American BEEKEEPING SUPPLIES AND BEGINNER’S KITS THE R WEAVER APIARIES, INC. 16495 C.R. 319, NAVASOTA, TX 77868

Phone (936) 825-2333 FAX (936) 825-3642

EMAIL: rweaver@rweaver.com WEBSITE: www.rweaver.com

December 2015 Fall Conference wrap-up continued from page 4

readings (at 15-minute intervals) of hive weight and internal temperature, for tracking of honey storage and brood-rearing periods. Jim Duever and Andy Seckinger gave a run-down on common pesticide classes used by homeowners and in agriculture. Among the points made: • All pesticides work by disrupting the electrical channels of the pest. Different types operate via different methods, which is why we Andy A d Seckinger S k should rotate products to keep target insects from building resistance. • You should not buy a product just because your pest is shown on the label, or because it says “organic”. (Organic does not mean safe.) Always read the label! • Pesticide modes of action include: Contact, Systemic (moving within plant tissue), Insect Growth Regulators, and Feeding Inhibitors (repellents). • Neonicitinoids come in Systemic and Contact forms, with contact types used primarily for emergency rescue. Systemic “neonics” were developed to replace numerous contact insecticides, which tend to be more dangerous to non-target species. • While systemics may eventually transfer to flower parts, the concentrations there are insignificant. (Thrips that feed on flower parts are not affected by systemic neonics.)

Page 13

Directory of Officers President: Valerie Duever 314-402-4841 2362 County Road 185, Auxvasse MO 65231 president@mostatebeekeepers.org Vice President: Clayton Lee 573-864-5172 90 E. Pope Lane, Smithville, MO 64089 vicepresident@mostatebeekeepers.org Secretary: Charlotte Wiggins 573-426-3510 secretary@mostatebeekeepers.org 1001 Bluebird Ln, Rolla, MO 65401 Treasurer: Steve Moeller 573-886-0662 PO Box 7514, Columbia MO 65205 treasurer@mostatebeekeepers.org Membership Chair: Ron Vivian 816-690-7516 443 Fricke Road, Bates City MO 64011-8280 membership@mostatebeekeepers.org Past-President: John Timmons 636-940-8202 952 Greenleaf Drive, St. Charles MO 63303 pastpresident@mostatebeekeepers.org Northwestern Director: Roger Nichols cell 816-456-6983 northwestdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Northeastern Director: Dan Lake 636-724-5937 48 Sterling Pointe Dr., St. Charles MO 63301 northeastdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Southeastern Director: Gregg Hitchings southeastdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Southwestern Director: Bruce Snavely 417-732-5219 508 Casady, Republic, MO 65738 southwestdir@mostatebeekeepers.org Central Director: Bob Brammer 660-415-6480 31649 Lake St., Macon MO 63552 centraldir@mostatebeekeepers.org Program Chairperson: Mike McMillan 2005 Devonshire Dr., Columbia, MO 65203 program@mostatebeekeepers.org Vendor Liaison: Tim Hyde tim.hyde@yahoo.com Newsletter Editor: Eugene Makovec 135 Alex Dr., Foley MO 63347 editor@mostatebeekeepers.org

314-703-7650

Queen Chairperson: Wanda Johnston 816-392-4960 queenchair@mostatebeekeepers.org State Fair Chairman: Dean Sanders 816-456-4683 cell 37804 Old Pink Hill Road, Oak Grove MO 64075 Cooking Contest winners: From left, Mary Bemboom, Yvonne Von Der Ahe, Corinne Collins and Rosaline Baumann.

Missouri State Beekeepers Association PO Box 7514 Columbia, Missouri 65205 www.mostatebeekeepers.org

Beehive-based furniture made by Scott Klein of Isabees was a popular resting spot for visitors and vendors alike. Here Scott has a chance to chat with Danny Lake (foreground) while the conference is in session. The chairs, desks and coffee tables have made appearances at other recent events, but as of this writing they have not been offered for sale. photo by Eugene Makovec

This newsletter is published six times per year, in even months. Submissions are due by the 15th of the month prior to publication. The email edition is in color, and contains hyperlinks and bonus back-page material, while the print version is in black-and-white. If you are a member currently receiving the printed newsletter and you wish to upgrade, just send an email to editor@mostatebeekeepers.org with â&#x20AC;&#x153;email newsletterâ&#x20AC;? in the subject line. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll reply with confirmation, and add you to my list. Advertising rates are as follows:

Business card size Quarter page

$15.00 $35.00

Half page Full page

$50.00 $100.00