This months meeting was held at Faella Farm, Peace Dale, RI, and hosted by Martha and Chris Faella. Big thanks to them for allowing us to enjoy their garden on a Sunday afternoon.

Executive Board meeting

A few of us met Thursday 7/10 but most exec board members were absent so a formal meeting was not held.

How are the bees?

Reports this month of still a lot of swarms and not many losses. Ed Lafferty remains this years single-person swarm generator but has also nearly doubled his colonies as a result; fortunately he recaptured all swarms.

The nectar flow is still on in many parts of the state; people are reporting lots of liquid but not much capping though.

Events coming up

• Local 121, is hosting a free showing of the documentary Silence of the Bees on Wednesday, July 23rd at 7pm. More details here: Silence of The Bees
• Foster Old Home Days, Friday, July 25 to Sunday July 27. More details here: Foster Old Home Days
• Washington County Fair, August 13th - 17th, 2008. More details here
• A Taste of RI, Saturday, September 27 - Sunday, September 28, 2008. More details here.
• Cooking With Class. Chef Frank Terranova may join us for Harvest Dinner in October. More details here.

Upcoming RIBA meetings

August meeting will be held at Kate Malmborgs house in Chepachet. More details  here.

The September meeting will be at the Norman Bird Sanctuary. Details to follow.

RIBA equipment - extractors

The association owns three extractors. They are kept ready for use at the homes of:

• Bernie Bieder (401) 463-8654 or beeman604@verizon.net in the Warwick & South County areas.
• Ed Lafferty (401) 353-6644 or FruitHillApiary@Verizon.net for the North Providence and Woonsocket areas.
• Martha Faella (401) 783-7437 or marthafaella@yahoo.com for South County

The charge to members is $10 for three nights and two days. It was proposed and seconded that we do not allow non-members to rent RIBA equipment. The vote was unanimously in favor of the proposal.

BeeLearn

At the last meeting we presented the proposed BeeLearn bylaws for approval. The deadline for amendments was the date of this meeting, July 13 2008. No comments, adverse or favorable, were received by the executive board by this date so it was proposed and seconded that the BeeLearn bylaws be accepted. It was also proposed and seconded that the officers of BeeLearn be the current officers of RIBA. Both proposals were voted on and each vote was unanimously in favor of the relevant proposal. The meeting also suggested an additional website specifically for BeeLearn.

EAS

The meeting voted favorably on the proposal to make a commitment to hosting EAS (Eastern Apiculture Society) in Rhode Island in 2011. To date Mark Robar, Ed Lafferty (RIBA EAS Representative) and others have worked hard making contacts and establishing a global view of the tasks involved in this venture. Volunteers were asked for, and ten members answered the call and offered their services. A lot more volunteers are needed, many of them much closer to the event date in 2011, but one of the first things to do is to look at the breakdown EAS provides, listing what the host organizers will need to do and what EAS themselves can provide.

Having reaffirmed our commitment to a 2011 hosting, Everett will make contact with EAS' Mr Jim Bob and set up a meeting with him to discuss next steps.

Anybody who is willing to add their names to the list of volunteers please email me directly (mike.southern@cox.net).

There is a huge tourism aspect to hosting EAS, and it also makes it possible for RI beekeepers to attend this exciting conference where normally the cost of attending would be prohibitive. Its a great opportunity!

Treasurers report

Bill provided a breakdown of the past months transactions, showing more expenditure than income. Our account balances are in good shape. The Association benefits from the upcoming events by selling members' honey, however we do need to
be open to revenue-generating possibilities. A few people pointed out that we are able to sell by-products as well as honey at the shows. Beeswax products such as lip balm and candles are very popular. RIBA takes a percentage of all sales on behalf of members; 5% if the member is a volunteer at the event, and 15% if not a volunteer.

RIBA Website

The meeting agreed that it was an effective use of the website to allow members to advertise their products for purchase by other members. Several folk sell jars, woodenware, packages etc, and by allowing them to advertise we should benefit member buyers and sellers alike. Some members have already made contact and all others who wish to use this facility can email me at mike.southern@cox.net.



Jeff brought his observation hive


The meeting closed with inspection and discussion of Chris and Martha's hives. These photos by Jane Dennison