If You Missed the Small Hive Beetle Workshop...
Presented by Atreya Manaswi - a 10th grade student at Orlando Science High School in Orlando, FL. He has been involved in university level laboratory academic research since the age of twelve and has won regional, national, and international awards for his extensive honey bee conservation research.
His presentation: Cost Effective Control of Small Hive Beetles is available online. Simply login to the VBA site and look for Past Workshop & Events Recordings (Login required) under the Calendar menu.
VBA 2023 Winter Meeting
Register Today!
Saturday, February 11, 2023 Via Zoom
The Vermont Beekeepers Association Board of Directors is pleased to announce the winter meeting to be conducted over the Zoom online platform. All VBA members are invited to participate by registering at the link below. Once you register you will receive an email confirming your registration and containing your Zoom meeting link which will allow you to join the meeting. The meeting is free for current VBA members and $15 for all others.
VBA Members who register will be automatically entered into a drawing to receive a pair of VBA logo beer glasses. (You must attend the meeting to win.)
The 2023 VBA winter meeting will feature two well-known speakers.
Dr. Scott McArt from the Cornell Dyce Lab will talk about pesticides affecting honey bees and his work on pesticide legislation in New York.
Randy Oliver, scientificbeekeeping.com, will talk about his work on oxalic acid extended release as well as some of his very recent research.
We'll also meet the new Director at the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets.
President Andrew Munkres will give an update on the work being done for Vermont beekeeping and beekeepers by the very busy VBA Board of Directors and working groups.
Extended-Release Oxalic Acid Now Legal in New York State
The latest issue of the Betterbee Newsletter reports that "As of November 28th, 2022, New York State beekeepers can legally use homemade extended-release oxalic acid pads to help manage varroa mites in their hives." Vermont was first in the nation to allow this practice thanks to the efforts of Vermont Beekeepers Association board member and past-president Jack Rath, the state bee inspector and Vermont's pesticide regulators.
It is important that the guidelines for New York and Vermont be followed as outlined. More information is available in the newsletter and Randy Oliver's website. (Randy will be the keynote speaker for the VBA's Winter Meeting in February - registration and details to be announced in the near future.)
Foulbrood Guide Update
The Honey Bee Health Coalition has released a new edition of its guide, "Identifying and Mitigating Foulbrood in Honey Bee Colonies and Reducing the Use of Antibiotics: Information for Beekeepers and Veterinarians."
The guide provides information on identifying, testing for, and mitigating American and European foulbrood.
In Memoriam:
Merril Tittemore
The Vermont Beekeepers Association is sad to report the passing of longtime beekeeper Merril Tittemore of St. Albans. He was a master beekeeper, earning the Vermont Beekeepers Association Beekeeper of the Year Award in 2017 and a "mentor to scores of people who had an interest or passion to learn from one of the best." Most recently he was recognized at the VBA Summer Meeting in September 2022 for his work as a mentor.
More information on his life is available here.
Recognizing Beekeepers
At the 2022 Summer meeting, the Vermont Beekeepers Association (VBA) recognized several people for their outstanding efforts supporting beekeeping, beekeepers, or honey bees
Mentor/mentee pair recipients Jeff Battaglini and Charlotte Neeves, left. Recognition Committee members, Fred Putnam and Anne Bowers, right, made the presentations.. The VBA also encourages participation in the Vermont Beekeeper Certification program.
There are two new Vermont Certified Beekeepers – Deb Pasho of Hartland and Eric Duncan of Corinth. Congrats to both of you for completing the steps needed to attain this distinction!
There were three other categories of recognition: Mentor/Mentee pair, Friend of the Bees, and Mission Superhero(s):
Mentor/Mentee Pairs: Jeff Battaglini and Charlotte Neeves and Merril Tittemore and Matt Callahan for their outstanding and successful efforts at teaching, learning, and helping each other. These are examples of great initiative on the part of the mentees and excellent guidance by the mentors.