Subject: Queens…

Our next Meeting will be our regular 2nd Wednesday, May 8th, 2019 at the Kill Devil Hills Library. Arrive anytime after 6:30 pm to socialize – we’ll begin at 7:00 pm.  (If you arrive after the Library locks their front door at 7, follow the sidewalk around the left of the building to the back door. The Library requests no food or drinks be brought inside.)

Our guest speaker is NCSBA Past President, Rick Coor, who will bring us his wealth of queen wisdom. Last year he completed his fourth and final year as the President of the North Carolina State Beekeepers Association & was named NCSBA Beekeeper of the year!

“I have a presentation on determining the status of the queen, and how to determine whether or not the colony has a queen without actually seeing her…”

Rick helped hatch the Born & Bred Queen Rearing Program, even authoring the program’s text, and continues to serve as one of the program’s administrators and co-chairs. 

Be sure to bring any good questions you may have!

Just a reminder that there is a volunteer opportunity for the Coastal Garden Festival on Saturday, May 18th, 2019 from 9AM-2:30PM. The time can be applied as a credit when pursuing your Journeyman’s Certification. Please speak to Denise or me if interested/able!

Need Equipment?! Contact Etienne Nadeau, our local supplier of Dadant & Sons Beekeeping Supplies. Order from his website http://www.nadeaufarms.com, email him nadeaufarmsnc@gmail.com or give him a ring (252)-619-7308. 

Raffle Items (for “dollar donations”) Welcome – Any type of item allowed, whether it’s bee, garden, outdoor related, etc. All proceeds to the Guild.

I look forward to hearing how everyone’s Packages, Nuc’s, & Swarms are doing!

Questions or comments?  Contact me @ 919-260-3265 
– Dalton Hyde

Hope this finds you and your bees enjoying the lovely spring weather! While a swarm can be distressing (I’m losing my bees!), it is also how they reproduce, so consider that you are helping the world’s bee population as well. Of course, being a good neighbor, you surely don’t want them taking up residence in a neighbor’s shed or other structure, so being able to catch your swarm (or someone else’s) is a good thing.

This week, two somewhat unobtainable swarms were caught using this very cool method…

Have box & frames for the swarm’s new home ready to go. Remove a frame of capped brood from a hive (does not need to be the one the swarm came from) and place it gently within the swarm… holding in place if necessary, or propping securely. Within a few minutes, the queen usually goes onto that frame! Gentle remove the frame, check for queen, and if she is there, place the frame inside the box (be sure to have other empty or drawn frames in the box as well so that it is full of frames) and put the box somewhere close to where the rest of the swarm is… the bees with the queen will begin fanning at the box entrance to let the rest know where she is so that they can join the box!

Here are a couple of shots of Dorothy’s swarm capture – great job! Within about an hour the bees were all inside the hive box and at dusk it was transferred to it’s permanent location.

Want a Nuc (Nucleus Hive)? 

We received the following information from another nuc supplier, you can check out their website here:, http://ncvabeenucs.com/

“I, along with my business partner Sharon, have an overwintered bee nuc company. Our bees spend the winter months in South Carolina and then we disperse them along the East Coast per client requests. We are compliant with all state laws and our bees have the appropriate credentials. Please let me know if you have any interest in our bees. Thank You.  Ann Baker”

Nucs are 5 frame deeps. Price is $175.00, and pickup will be early/mid-April (no set date as yet) at Greenbrier Farms in Chesapeake (near the state line).  If you place an order with them and would offer to pick up for others, please let Denise Deacon know at 252.722.3118.

If You Ordered Bees from Dave Bradley at Sapony Creek… please check for your name below…

Here is Dave’s list for packaged bee orders for the OBX Bee Guild at present:  (Please note… this list does NOT INCLUDE those of you with additional packages arriving due to last year’s “Queen Problem Reimbursement”)

Kenny B., total 4
Heidi L., total 3
Hugh T., total 1
Julian L., total 3
Lenie T., total 1
Ted M., total 2
Matt H., total 2
Amy F., total 1
Addie B., total 2
Kim A., total 2
Gunther H., total 2
Drew O., total 2
Amy/Sophie J., total 1

If you previously placed an order with Dave and do NOT see your name on this list, please call/text Dave Bradley at (252) 904-4737 to ask him to put your bees on the “OBX Pickup List,” and then contact Guild member Kenny Brite at (252) 996-0432 to be on his list when they go get the bees.  

At this time, anticipated delivery date is still Monday, April 1, and an email will be sent to you in the near future with approximate time and OBX location for pickup 🙂

Questions?  Call Denise at 252.722.3118.

Here are a couple more sources for bees this spring that you can contact if you’d like…

Recommended by member Virgil Lanning (who purchased nucs from him last year), this source sells both deep and medium nucleus hives: Steve and Kacey Jones, “Hands On Beekeepers,” handsonbeekeepers.com, (757) 408-5201, located in SE Virginia.

Recommended by member from another group, Mark at Sourwood Branch Bee Farm (find them on Facebook), 252 532-6322, mdandrews5@gmail.com. He picks up bees from Roberts Bee Company in GA, (robertsbeecompany.com), and brings them back to SE Virginia. He apparently will also be producing and shipping many different breeds of queens… see his Facebook posts or call for more info.

If you will be ordering and picking up from either of these suppliers and have room (and don’t mind!) to pick up for others, please contact Denise Deacon at (252) 722-3118 to spread the word!

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/organicsustainable-beekeeping-seminar-kim-flottum-dr-kirsten-traynor-tickets-50875111829

Exciting News! Two prominent beekeeping experts will be speaking at a one-day seminar on March 30, 2019, just south of Raleigh at Campbell University. Tickets are limited to 200 and are refundable up to 7 days prior… follow the above link for more information.

Several OBX beeks are considering attending, possibly heading that way Friday to stay over and be there at the 8:00 am start … anyone else interested in sharing a ride and/or accommodations? If so, contact Denise Deacon at 252.722.3118.

First, this link is VERY useful from the NC Dept. of Ag regarding all things apiary in our state: http://www.ncagr.gov/plantindustry/Plant/apiary/index.htm On that page you will also find a “List of Dealers Authorized to Sell Bees in NC,” and you are welcome to contact any of those suppliers to order and pick up your own bees. Out-of-state suppliers are shown at the bottom of that list.

Below is info regarding some of the different suppliers members have used in the past, and if there is currently someone from the OBX planning to drive to each to pick up. Please remember… At pickup time, a donation toward the driver’s gas & time is always welcome! (If you have plans yourself and can pick up orders for others, please let Denise or Dalton know as soon as possible so to spread the word.)
NOTE! DIFFERENT SUPPLIERS HAVE THEIR OWN DIFFERENT LOCATIONS & PICKUP DATES!  Also, please remember suppliers pre-order a limited number of packages, so if you plan to get bees, the sooner you order, the better, lest they run out.

PACKAGED BEES: First, Rick Coor, a supplier we have used in previous years, will NOT be doing packaged bees this year. Our closest supplier, and one who many members have had a good experience with in the past, is Dave Bradley:

Dave Bradley, Sapony Creek Apiaries, in Rocky Mount, NC, 252.904.1446
Two pickup dates, April 1 and May 4, both subject to change if supplier deems necessary.
$118 unmarked/$125 marked queen, also extra queens for $35 each, all Italian. To order, call and pay Dave directly. Guild member Kenny Brite has offered to drive out to pick up on the April 1(ish) date. So… If you call Dave to place order, be sure to let him know you are with the “Outer Banks/OBX Order,” then also call Kenny at 252.996.0432 to let him know you are on the pickup list. Also, Dave has a store there with bee supplies at the ready: http://www.saponycreekapiaries.com
(I have not confirmed with Kenny yet, but am assuming that rendezvous spot where you would collect your package would be the Whalebone Junction area, as Kenny then heads south to head home from there. To be determined as time draws closer.).

Back Forty Bees, Don Cole, 757.903.7816, delivers to upper Moyock, NC, April 12(ish)
$135 unmarked/$141 marked- having a Super Bowl Sunday sale where if you order that day, the price is $120.

NUCLEUS (NUC) HIVES:

Dalton Hyde will be picking up his nuc of Russian Bees in northern Virginia, anticipated time around Memorial Day. $200 each… to order: https://www.yourbeestore.com/bees/
More info about Russians: https://www.yourbeestore.com/the-russians-are-coming/

Bailey Bee Supply, Hillsborough, NC, 919.241.4236
Will have packaged bees from Georgia in addition to nucs at $185 – call to be put on the list.

Silver Spoon Apiaries in Wilmington, 910.352.7869 or 7868 (Barry), will have nucs available in March. $200 each, they put frames in your equipment that you bring with you. One Guild member got nucs there last year and they appeared to be of high quality.

The Beekeepers Guild of Southeastern Virginia lists several suppliers of nucs on their website, have not called any yet to check availability:
https://beekeepersguild.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=89&Itemid=131

Questions or concerns, contact President Dalton Hyde, 919.260.3265 or Denise Deacon, 252.722.3118.

Greetings everyone – Happy New Year!  Welcome to 2019, let’s hope for a fabulous year of keeping bees!

Our next meeting will be held next Wednesday, January 9, 2019, at the Kill Devil Hills Library meeting room.  Arrive at 6:30 pm to socialize prior, and the meeting begins at 7:00 pm.  If you arrive after 7:00 when the Library has locked their front door, follow the sidewalk around the left of the building to the back door. (Please remember, the Library requests no food or drinks!).

We will be introducing our new Officers for 2019 and discussing 2019 plans… then our speaker will be Past President Denise Deacon, with information regarding package bee suppliers, pricing, delivery dates.  If you have utilized a different supplier/method in the past that you had a good experience with, feel free to bring that information with you as well!

REMINDER:  January is dues month… Membership with the NCSBA is $15 (which you can accomplish separately online on the NCSBA website if you so choose), and OBX Bee Guild is $15, making the total annual dues $30.  You can bring check or cash to the meeting with you!  If you are new to the beekeeping experience (learning, deciding about it, etc.) and not yet ready to commit, please feel to attend meetings until such time as you are ready or not!

RAFFLE items are always welcome!  Does not have to be bee-related (regift holiday items!), or bring dollar “donation” for a ticket!

We hope to see you there!  Questions or concerns… contact President Dalton Hyde at (919) 260-3265.