Meeting Minutes
March 23, 2022
Meeting held via zoom and at the extension office
11 members in attendance
This was an informal meeting as we do not have a president. We are asking for volunteers for the
president position and will continue having informal meetings until a new president is elected.
Dues are not being collected for 2022.
Scheduled meetings-
April 20 th at 6 pm- This meeting will be held in the extension office and via zoom.
July 16 th - David Houck will be hosting a meeting at Northern Comfort Farm. Details and
directions will be announced in June.
Please let us know if you would like to host a meeting. It can be at your apiary, at the extension
office, zoom meeting, or at another location of your choosing.
Other Announcements- Joel expects to have 4 healthy hives to sell this spring. It will be at least 3 weeks
before he sells them as they will need to be laying well, the hives are healthy and they are inspected. He
is asking $250 for each hive, 2 deeps and another 2 supers. $100 deposit is required to hold until
inspected. Please email if interested.
General discussion topics covered-
Survival rate of each member’s hives over the winter months.
Some members are noticing pollen being brought into the hive on warm days. (Maple
and Aspen)
Swarms
o Increased swarming last summer?
o Ways to prevent swarming
o traps, placement, and trap design
o The use of products such as swarm commander
Planting native vegetation for bees
o Discussed several plants that bees seem to really like, buckwheat, apple trees,
raspberries, Sumac.
Protecting hives from the cold in winter
o Bubble wrap
o Polystyrene hives
Allows the bees control the temperature inside the hive
Lighter in weight
The downside is that they are not as rugged.
o Bee Smart insulated inner cover
Wayne brought one so everyone could see it.
Replaces the inner cover
Made from Styrofoam and plastic
Can be used with 8 or 10 frame boxes
Treating for mites in spring?
o Members agreed that if they treat then it is usually in July and before the first
frost.
o Some members do not treat for mites instead they disrupt the mite’s life cycle
in different ways.
Everyone seemed to enjoy the meeting and it was decided that we will continue to meet as long as we
have volunteers to host.
March 23, 2022
Meeting held via zoom and at the extension office
11 members in attendance
This was an informal meeting as we do not have a president. We are asking for volunteers for the
president position and will continue having informal meetings until a new president is elected.
Dues are not being collected for 2022.
Scheduled meetings-
April 20 th at 6 pm- This meeting will be held in the extension office and via zoom.
July 16 th - David Houck will be hosting a meeting at Northern Comfort Farm. Details and
directions will be announced in June.
Please let us know if you would like to host a meeting. It can be at your apiary, at the extension
office, zoom meeting, or at another location of your choosing.
Other Announcements- Joel expects to have 4 healthy hives to sell this spring. It will be at least 3 weeks
before he sells them as they will need to be laying well, the hives are healthy and they are inspected. He
is asking $250 for each hive, 2 deeps and another 2 supers. $100 deposit is required to hold until
inspected. Please email if interested.
General discussion topics covered-
Survival rate of each member’s hives over the winter months.
Some members are noticing pollen being brought into the hive on warm days. (Maple
and Aspen)
Swarms
o Increased swarming last summer?
o Ways to prevent swarming
o traps, placement, and trap design
o The use of products such as swarm commander
Planting native vegetation for bees
o Discussed several plants that bees seem to really like, buckwheat, apple trees,
raspberries, Sumac.
Protecting hives from the cold in winter
o Bubble wrap
o Polystyrene hives
Allows the bees control the temperature inside the hive
Lighter in weight
The downside is that they are not as rugged.
o Bee Smart insulated inner cover
Wayne brought one so everyone could see it.
Replaces the inner cover
Made from Styrofoam and plastic
Can be used with 8 or 10 frame boxes
Treating for mites in spring?
o Members agreed that if they treat then it is usually in July and before the first
frost.
o Some members do not treat for mites instead they disrupt the mite’s life cycle
in different ways.
Everyone seemed to enjoy the meeting and it was decided that we will continue to meet as long as we
have volunteers to host.