Wilson County Beekeepers

The Wilson County Beekeepers Association will meet on Monday, 3 February 2014 at 7:00 PM in the West Building at the James E. Ward Agricultural Center in Lebanon, Tennessee.

The program will be:

Raising Queens w/ Mike Haney of Ridgetop Apiaries

From the Ridgetop Apiaries website ( ridgetopapiaries.com ):

“RidgeTop Apiaries is located in middle Tennessee in the hills of the Cumberland Plateau. We are a small family run business that takes pride in quality. I had been raising queens for my own use, but before I began to offer queens for sale, I felt that I needed to be certain of offering a high quality queen. My desire to do this lead me to travel to Michigan, where I was taught the art of queen rearing by Dr. Lawrence (Larry) Conner. While there, we discussed the importance of combining varroa resistant genetics with genes from locally adapted populations of bees in order to introduce the resistant genetic trait and still maintain productivity in any given region. After returning from the school in Michigan I began to implement this type of breeding program which has produced excellent queens. Also, because of our location in the mountains, we are away from large row crops and our bees are as pesticide free as possible. All of our queens are allowed to lay for four weeks in order that only those with the best qualities are offered to our customers.”

Note: After you enter the fairgrounds through the main gate, we are in the West Building (2nd building on your left). Look for all the cars.

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Common crop pesticides kill honeybee larvae in the hive

27 January 2014 by Greg

Four pesticides commonly used on crops to kill insects and fungi also kill honeybee larvae within their hives, according to new research. Scientists also found that N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone — an inert, or inactive, chemical commonly used as a pesticide additive — is highly toxic to honeybee larvae.

“We found that four of the pesticides most commonly found in beehives kill bee larvae,” said Jim Frazier, professor of entomology, Penn State. “We also found that the negative effects of these pesticides are sometimes greater when the pesticides occur in combinations within the hive. Since pesticide safety is judged almost entirely on adult honeybee sensitivity to individual pesticides and also does not consider mixtures of pesticides, the risk assessment process that the Environmental Protection Agency uses should be changed.”

According to Frazier, the team’s previous research demonstrated that forager bees bring back to the hive an average of six different pesticides on the pollen they collect. Nurse bees use this pollen to make beebread, which they then feed to honeybee larvae.

To examine the effects of four common pesticides — fluvalinate, coumaphos, chlorothalonil and chlorpyrifos — on bee larvae, the researchers reared honeybee larvae in their laboratory. They then applied the pesticides alone and in all combinations to the beebread to determine whether these insecticides and fungicides act alone or in concert to create a toxic environment for honeybee growth and development. [ … continue reading ]

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140127122825.htm

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Male Honey Bees More Susceptible Than Females to Nosema ceranae

21 January 2014 by Greg

Jan. 18, 2014 — Gender differences in nature are common, including in humans. A research team from Bern, Switzerland has found that male European honey bees, or drones, are much more susceptible than female European honey bees, known as workers, to a fungal intestinal parasite called Nosema ceranae. Originally from Asia, Nosema ceranae has rapidly spread throughout the world in recent years, and may contribute to the high number of colony deaths now observed in many regions of the northern hemisphere. These findings demonstrate the delicate nature of male honey bees, which are important to honey bee colony reproduction, to a well-distributed parasite. [ … continue reading ]

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140118122503.htm

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WCBA Turns Out for Winter Workshop

19 January 2014 by Greg

The Nashville Area Beekeepers Association held their annual winter workshop on Saturday, 18 January 2014, and the house was packed. Over 150 beekeepers gathered in Jones Auditorium at the Ellington Agricultural Center in Nashville, and a good number of them were WCBA members. Thanks to Jessica Dodds for the WCBA group photo.

WCBA at NABA’s Winter Workshop – Saturday, 18 January 2014

Back Row: Jason Goodrich, Joe Riddle, Mark Goodrich, Mike Conley, Mark Manning, Sterling Earhart, Ron Ledford, Debbie Bobbitt, Josh Davis, Charlie Grogan, Tricia Wells, Kenny Birdwell, Arlis Swafford, Sharon Nuss, Dean Nuss

Front Row: Carey Mitchell, Leonard Walker, Jessica Dodds, Petra Mitchell, Denise Grogan, Karla Clark, Brian Ferguson,

Not pictured: Greg Tomerlin, Steve Buckner, Tim Scott, Helen Vose, Ray Turner

Thanks again, Jessica!

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