Massachusetts Beekeepers Association Field Day

This year the MBA and county hosts, the Franklin County Beekeepers Association, are pleased to once again invite all beekeepers to our annual Field Day. We thank the staff at the UMass Agronomy Farm for their continued support of our event, getting the farm ready and assisting us with the setup. This year continues our tradition of focusing on useful skills that help new and experienced beekeepers keep their bees healthy and productive.

Do you want to know about the different beehives? We will have experts talking about the Top-bar hive, the Warre Hive and the Slovenian hive. Are you still struggling to understand how to control Varroa mites and other honeybee diseases? We will have four presenters covering topics pertaining to colony health. We will also have a demonstration on using oxalic acid (now approved for mite control by the FDA in 2015), and a review of other treatments currently available from your bee supplier. Swarming, making increases to your apiary, and a discussion about pollinator plants, or products you can make from wax, propolis, and honey will be repeated during the day.

Who are the 2015 presenters:

• Dick Connor (Sideliner; Red Barn Honey) –Feeders & Feeding
• Daniel Berry – Making Increases in the Bee yard
• Ken Warchol (Mass Bee Inspector) – Reading the Hive
• Anita Deeley (Mass Bee Inspector) – Swarms & Swarming
• Roland Sevigny – Using the Double Screen, or Snellgrove Board
• Kristy Hemenway (Gold Star Bees) – Managing Top Bar Hives
• Jared Fowler PhD – Plants and Pollinators
• Mary Dwayne (EAS Master Beekeeper) – What the new beekeeper needs to look for in their hive
• Ed Karle – Diagnosing Diseases in the Hive
• Tony Lulec – Making Soap and other Products of the Hive
• Leslie Huston (EAS Master Beekeeper) – What to do after your hive swarms
• Richard Romanych – The Warre Hive
• Rick Reault (MBA President) – Using Mite Treatments safely & effectively
• Greg Ker – Mite control using Oxalic Acid
• Roger Reid – How to safely move you beehive
• Dan Conlon – Basics of Queen Rearing for the small Apiary.

We will likely add a few more presenters for June 20^th. But this represents a great core of regional experts.

Remember to thank the presenters. Everyone donates their time and expertise allowing us to keep this a free event, and continue to include all beekeepers. If you are not currently a member of your county or state association, please consider joining and supporting thier efforts to provide educational programs and encourage beekeeping in Massachusetts and New England.

Coffee and pastries will be on sale in the morning during registration, a BBQ lunch can be purchased on-line by downloading the form at www.Massbee.org and returning it to FCBA President Chris Wayne. A few extra tickets may be available for lunch, but pre-orders are encouraged. Following lunch the ice cream trailer arrives. So no one should be hungry.

We ask that everyone sign in at the registration tent. The event is free of charge, but we want to keep track of how many participants attend. Bring water to drink as it can get hot out in the open field. Wear a hat, and bring a chair. The Ag farm is a beautiful location but does not have many comforts so bring what you might need. Porta-Jons will be on site.

The Field Day event is free, but we do have a few expenses. To cover those expenses we sell raffle tickets for door prizes, and Nucs. The drawing is at 1:30PM at the end of lunch – you need to be present to win. See Dave Thayer to purchase tickets – remember the money goes to cover those expenses paid for by MBA and the Franklin County Bee Association.

MBA and Field Day T-shirts and merchandise will also be on sale. We have Betterbee, Brushy Mt. and Mann Lake selling equipment – preorder to save shipping costs. Several local vendors will also be setting up to sell a variety of items. Bring your wallets and spend a little to keep this going as an annual event.

SCHEDULE: A complete schedule will be posted on the www.Massbee.org 

9 AM Registration: (continues throughout the day).

9:30AM Welcome: Rick Reault – President of the Massachusetts Bee Association.

9:45-10:45 Session #1 – Please wear protective clothing for live bee demonstrations.

11:00 – 12:00 Session #2

LUNCH 12-1:30PM – You will need a ticket for lunch. There are several Subways nearby if you did not bring lunch.

• Smoker Contest 12:30 – See Ken Warchol to participate.
• MBA Business Meeting 1:00PM @ Beehives #3 – All County Presidents and Board of Directors should attend.

1:30 – 2:30PM Session #3

2:45 – 3:45PM Session #4

CLEANUP 4:00 – 5:00PM – Please assist the cleanup crew by picking up trash, stacking chairs, and tables.