RI Beekeepers' News Blog

February Meeting: "Beekeeping in Egypt & Africa"

Editor — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 19:14:05 GMT

Sunday, February 12th at 2:00 PM

Rocky Hill Grange

1340 South County Trail

East Greenwich, RI

Come learn about beekeeping in Egypt and Africa, from ancient to modern! Fellow member, beekeeper and anthropologist Richard Lobban will present a wide-ranging overview at our next meeting.

Did you know that honey and wax were used in ancient Egypt for food, medicine, even mummification? Bees were so important that one of the the Pharaoh's titles was "Bee King", and the hieroglyph for Upper Egypt was a honeybee.

He'll also present on beekeeping in modern Africa, where beekeeping is an important modest-investment source of income for many. Top-bar hives are used all over Africa, sometimes even hanging high from trees to avoid robbing predators … and just how do they keep elephants away from that tasty honey?

Richard just returned from a trip to Egypt, and he'll have several jars of Egyptian honey for tasting.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Refreshments will be served after the meeting. Members with last names beginning A-M please bring finger food and appetizers, N-Z please bring desserts. Beverages will be provided.

Directions:

Take I-95 North or South to Exit 8

Make a right onto Rt-2 (Quaker Lane)

Go through the traffic lights at Division St., keeping the Walgreens to your left

The Grange is located just past the Walgreens on Rt-2

View Larger Map

RIBA Group Package Run

Editor — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 20:42:55 GMT

RIBA is sponsoring a group package run for bees this spring!

We estimate each package will cost $70, saving as much as $20 per package!

We're taking deposits of $70 for each package ordered. The final package price will be the total cost of the order, plus travel and fuel expenses, shared across all of the orders.

The deadline for orders is March 15th. Packages are due to be delivered on April 14th.

Print and fill out the attached order form. Mail the form along with a check to Christine Dwyer before the March 15th deadline at the address list on the form.

Christine Dwyer

3 North Howard Ave., Unit 8

North Providence, RI 02911-1545

Here's to a good 2012 beekeeping and honey season!

2012 Bee Packages Order Form

Southside CLT and Farm Fresh RI host Urban Beekeeping workshop

Editor — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 18:50:22 GMT

Our friends at the Southside Community Land Trust and Farm Fresh RI are giving a workshop on Urban Beekeeping. If you or anyone you know is interested, contact SCLT.

Southside Community Land Trust and Farm Fresh RI invites the public to attend a free workshop on urban beekeeping, which will be held at the Wintertime Farmers Market greenhouse space on Wednesday January 25th 6-7pm. Want to learn what it takes to raise bees in the city? Learn more about it at the urban beekeeping primer workshop, which will be taught by Kelly Smith, Davis Park Community Garden coordinator. Kelly owns 5 beehives and has taken bee school classes with the RI Beekeepers Association and a week-long intensive advanced course by the Eastern Apicultural Society. Kelly will give a basic overview about what it means to keep bees in the city, going over topics such as materials required for urban beekeeping, resources and available education options for bee school.Register by emailing SCLT at amber@southsideclt.org or online at www.plantprovidence.org.

More information about Southside Community Land Trust is available at www.southsideclt.org

January Meeting: "Healing Wounds With Honey"

Editor — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 18:55:25 GMT

Sunday, January 8th at 2:00 PM

Rocky Hill Grange

1340 South County Trail

East Greenwich, RI

Happy New Year to Everyone!

We've winterized our hives, and we're already thinking about the upcoming beekeeping season. That includes thinking of all the positive uses for the honey that our bees will produce this year. To start us off on the right foot, Dr. Allen Dennison will present "Healing Wounds With Honey". Honey has numerous properties, biological and chemical, that make it uniquely suited for healing. Dr. Dennison has spent years working with honey in medicine, and he'll share his experiences with us.

Refreshments will be served after the meeting. Members with last names beginning A-M please bring desserts, N-Z please bring finger food and appetizers. Beverages will be provided.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Directions:

Take I-95 North or South to Exit 8

Make a right onto Rt-2 (Quaker Lane)

Go through the traffic lights at Division St., keeping the Walgreens to your left

The Grange is located just past the Walgreens on Rt-2

View Larger Map

Holiday Party

Editor — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 20:14:36 GMT

Come to RIBA's Holiday party! No controversy here, Christmas, Chanukah, or Kwanza, we'll be celebrating! Come, mingle, talk, exchange stories, celebrate or commiserate about the past year.

Sunday, December 11th at 2:00 PM at the Rocky Hill Grange in East Greenwich.

Rocky Hill Grange

1340 South County Trail

East Greenwich, RI

We'll have a member-to-member sale. Bring bee-and-honey related products, candles, balms, bee-ware, knickknacks and hot pepper jelly to sell, and money to buy from your fellow beekeepers.

Also RIBA will be making a donation to the Food Bank, so please consider donating honey in plastic jars (no glass), canned goods, peanut butter, etc. to help those in need.

There will be several entrées to choose from. Members with last names beginning A-M please bring desserts, N-Z please bring finger food and appetizers. Beverages will be provided.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Directions:

Take I-95 North or South to Exit 8

Make a right onto Rt-2 (Quaker Lane)

Go through the traffic lights at Division St., keeping the Walgreens to your left

The Grange is located just past the Walgreens on Rt-2

View Larger Map

November Monthly Meeting

Editor — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 17:15:08 GMT

Sunday, November 13th at 2:00 PM

Rocky Hill Grange

1340 South County Trail

East Greenwich, RI

Our speaker will be Ed Karle, of the Bristol County Beekeepers. Early in

his career, Ed travelled the globe in the merchant marine. He still has

the travel bug, and he makes sure to visit local beekeepers wherever he

goes. He will be presenting "Working with and learning from beekeepers

in other countries: Canada, China, France, Haiti, Thailand and Taiwan".

Refreshments will be served after the meeting. Members with last names

beginning A-M please bring finger food and appetizers, N-Z please bring

desserts. Beverages will be provided.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Directions:

Take I-95 North or South to Exit 8

Make a right onto Rt-2 (Quaker Lane)

Go through the traffic lights at Division St., keeping the Walgreens to your left

The Grange is located just past the Walgreens on Rt-2

View Larger Map

Fall Harvest Dinner

Editor — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 15:15:22 GMT

The annual Fall Harvest Dinner and Honey Show will be held at The Pines Restaurant in North Smithfield on Sunday, Oct. 2 at 1 pm.

Our guest speaker this year will be Dr. Keith Delaplane, director of the honey bee research and education program at the University of Georgia. His topic will be "The Superorganism and Why it Matters", taking the colony as the focal point and how that influences management for hive health and productivity.

We must give The Pines a head count a week in advance in of the dinner, so members need to make reservations in advance. Please print, fill out and mail the linked form to Tony DiGiulio at the address listed in the form. Please indicate the number of people attending, so our head-count is accurate.

Please have your registrations in to Tony by Friday, September 23rd. We apologize for the short notice. Speaker availability and schedule determined the date of the dinner this year.

Hope to see you there!

RIBA Fall Harvest Dinner Announcement

The Pines Restaurant

1204 Pound Hill Road

North Smithfield, RI

Directions:

Reach RI-146N (via I-295, I-95, or more direct route)

Take the Pound Hill Road exit

Turn left onto Pound Hill Road

Travel approx. 1 1/2 mile

The Pines will be on the left

View Larger Map

September Monthly Meeting

Editor — Sun, 11 Sep 2011 14:30:27 GMT

Sunday, September 11 @ 2:00 PM

Blue Moon Farm Perennials

173 Saugatucket Rd.

Wakefield, RI

401-284-2369

September is the time to start preparing your hives for winter. We'll discuss preparation, assessing colony strength, and feeding and nutrition to get your bees through the winter.

Also, the Annual Honey Show is coming in early October. Everyone is encouraged to submit entries. At the meeting we will discuss honey judging, and how to best prepare jars for entry into the show.

Information about the Fall Dinner is coming soon, so stay tuned!

Please bring chairs.

Refreshments will be served after the meeting. Members with last names beginning A-M please bring desserts, N-Z please bring finger food and appetizers. Beverages will be provided.

Directions:

From the North:

I-95S to RI-4S (left exit)

RI-4S Merges onto US-1S (approx. 10 miles, after 2 lights)

Go past RI-138E (sign for Jamestown/Newport bridges)

US-1S to Saugatucket Rd (approx. 5 miles, through 5 lights)

Turn right on Saugatucket Rd

Travel approx. 1/4 mile

Farm will be on right

From the West:

I-95N or I-95S to RI-138E (Exit 3A)

RI-138E to RI-108S (approx. 10 miles, just past URI, 2nd light)

Turn right on RI-108S (no road to the left)

RI-108S to Saugatucket Rd (approx. 1.5 miles, first light)

Turn left on Saugatucket Rd

Travel approx. 2 miles

Farm will be on left

View Larger Map

August Monthly Meeting

Editor — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 00:31:30 GMT

Sunday, August 14th @ 2:00PM

Janet Colardo

2 Wagon Trail Dr

Johnston, RI 02919

Got mites? We'll review available mite treatments. Also, we'll hear reports from the EAS 2011 Conference in Warwick, Rhode Island. And, how are your bees? Did you get honey? Summer dearth got you down? Bring your questions to the meeting.

Please bring chairs.

Refreshments will be served after the meeting. Members with last names beginning A-M please bring finger food and appetizers, N-Z please bring desserts. Beverages will be provided.

Directions:

From the South: Take I-95N to I-295N. Take I-295N to exit 6, merge onto US-6E toward Providence. Take RI-5/Atwood Ave exit, turn left onto Atwood Ave (RI-5N). At T-intersection, turn left onto Greenville Ave (RI-5N). Right onto Pine Hill Ave, first right onto Belknap Farm Dr, second left onto Stagecoach Dr, take first left onto Wagon Trail Dr.

From the North: Take I-95S to I-295S. Take I-295S to exit 7B/U.S. 44 W/Putnam Pike toward Smithfield. Turn left onto Sanderson Rd (RI-5S). Sanderson Rd becomes Greenville Ave (RI-5S). Turn left onto Pine Hill Avenue, first right onto Belknap Farm Dr, second left onto Stagecoach Dr, take first left onto Wagon Trail Dr

View Larger Map

July Monthly Meeting

Editor — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 23:40:00 GMT

Sunday, July 10th @ 2:00 PM

Pat and Alyce Pedder

64 Pine Orchard Road

Chepachet, RI 02814

(401) 568-3345

How are your bees? Got honey? Have questions? Bring them to the meeting. Also, with EAS 2011 coming in a few short weeks, we'll discuss who and what you can see and hear at EAS RI. Top-notch speakers and hands-on workshops will be available right here in RI, and we'll talk about the program. (There's still time to sign up for either Short Course, the Conference or both.)

Please bring chairs.

Refreshments will be served after the meeting. Members with last names beginning A-M please bring desserts, N-Z please bring finger food and appetizers. Beverages will be provided.

Directions:

Travel 295 North or South. Take exit 7B (44 West, Smithfield).

You will go through 9 traffic lights in the next 3 miles on route 44.

Staying on route 44 you will travel 7 more miles before the next traffic light (Chepachet).

Turn left at that light, staying on route 44.

Pine Orchard Road is on the left approximately 2 miles from the traffic light.

We are the 7th house on the left.

Parking is limited in our driveway so we advise parking on Pine Orchard

Road.

View Larger Map

June Meeting & Lobster Bake

Editor — Mon, 23 May 2011 00:43:00 GMT

Sunday, June 12th @ 1:00 PM

Faella Farm

Chris & Martha Faella

1072 Saugatucket Rd.

Peace Dale, RI 02879

401-783-7437

The June meeting will be hosted by Chris and Martha Faella at their home in Peace Dale. After the meeting Chris and Martha will host a Lobster Bake at 3PM! So that we have time for the meeting, the bake and festivities, we will start early at 1PM.

There will be a business meeting followed by a hive inspection by Ed Lafferty. The hive inspection will include a demo of varroa mite sampling using the alcohol wash and powdered sugar methods. (As always, please bring your veil if you want to participate in the inspection.)

The Registration form and Directions to Faella Farm are linked below. The full Lobster Bake is $20/person; the bake without a lobster is $10/person; extra lobsters are $10 each. A charcoal grill will be provided if you want to bring hamburger, hot dogs or something to grill.

All RIBA members and their families are welcome to attend, whether you eat or not.

We need to give Chris & Martha a head count a week before the bake, and the bake is limited to the first 100 to register, so please mail your registration as soon as possible. We need to receive registrations by Wednesday, June 1st.

Please print, cut, fill out and mail the form along with payment to Tony DiGiulio.

Meeting Announcement & Lobster Bake Registration

Meeting & Lobster Bake Directions

__________________________________________________

It's (still) time to renew your membership!

We need to receive dues by June 1st. If you haven't paid by then, you will receive one final notice and have until the end of the month to renew your membership. So, please, send in your renewal promptly!

Follow the link below to the Google Docs spreadsheet to check on your dues status. If your due date is April, 2012, your dues are paid up. If your due date is before April, 2012, membership dues are due. (Life members are noted.)

RIBA Dues Status

To renew your membership, please send a check for $15 made out to RIBA to our Treasurer Tony DiGiulio at the following address:

RIBA Treasurer

℅ Anthony DiGiulio

P.O. Box 114014

North Providence, RI

02911-0214

May Monthly Meeting

Editor — Wed, 04 May 2011 13:18:00 GMT

Sunday, May 15th @ 2:00 PM

Rocky Hill Grange

1340 South County Trail (Rte 2)

East Greenwich, RI

Our own Everett Zurlinden will be presenting "Hive Management: How to get your hives to survive the winter", tips and techniques for building strong, productive hives through the season with an eye to surviving next winter.

Directions:

Take I-95 North or South to Exit 8

Make a right onto Rt-2 (Quaker Lane)

Go through the traffic lights at Division St., keeping the Walgreens to your left

The Grange is located just past the Walgreens on Rt-2

It's time to renew your membership!

http://tinyurl.com/RIBA-Dues-20110502

To renew your membership, please send a check for $15 made out to RIBA to our Treasurer Tony DiGiulio at the address below. (NB: The $15 RIBA member dues apply to a family or an individual. You can renew your membership either way. The choice is yours.)

RIBA Treasurer

℅ Anthony DiGiulio

P.O. Box 114014

North Providence, RI

02911-0214

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2011 Annual Meeting & Election

Editor — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 02:40:00 GMT

The RI Beekeepers' Annual Meeting was held on April 10th at The Pines in North Smithfield.

Our speaker Elizabeth Capaldi-Evans gave a very interesting and engaging lecture about her research into honeybee biology and behavior, and the impact that the new diseases brought by varroa might have on behavior and longevity.

The evening also included the election of officers for the coming year. The officers for the 2011-12 term are as follows:

President: Jeff McGuire

Vice President: Ed Lafferty

Secretary: Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban

Treasurer: Tony DiGiulio

Member-at-Large: Kit Mayers

Congratulations to the officers, and thank-you to the outgoing officers for their service to the Association!

And, thanks to Elizabeth Capaldi-Evans for a delightful presentation!

2011 Annual Dinner

Editor — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 14:56:00 GMT

Sunday, April 10 @ 4 PM

The Pines Restaurant

1204 Pound Hill Road

North Smithfield, RI

Program

Guest Speaker: Elizabeth Capaldi Evans, Ph. D, author of “Why Do Bees Buzz”

President and Officer’s Reports

Election of Officers

Dinner (“Chicken Family Style”)

Raffle – Hive with Bees, and a Scholarship to EAS

Silent Auction

Our guest speaker this year will be Dr. Elizabeth Capaldi Evans from Bucknell University, on topics from her recent book "Why Do Bees Buzz? Fascinating Answers to Questions About Bees". A native of Warwick, RI, Dr. Evans studies invertebrate behavior, focusing on bees and how they learn.

Nominations are being accepted for officers of RIBA for the offices of President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary, and Member- at-Large for RIBA in 2011-12. If you are interested in running, please contact Bob Anson (401-683-4711; anson26c@cox.net) or Roger Robitaille (401-378-3578) to submit your name.

We must give The Pines a head count a week in advance in of the dinner, so members need to make reservations in advance. Please download, print, fill out and mail the registration form to our Treasurer Tony DiGiulio at the address listed in the form. Please indicate the number of people attending, so our head-count is accurate.

Please have your reservation in to Tony by Saturday, April 2nd.

Annual Dinner Registration

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March Monthly Meeting

Editor — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 16:48:00 GMT

Sunday, March 13th @ 2:00 PM

Rocky Hill Grange

1340 South County Trail (Rte 2)

East Greenwich, RI

Speaker: Thomas D. Seeley, Ph.D.

Subject: Swarming and How to Bait Swarm Traps

This month's speaker will be Dr. Tom Seeley from Cornell University. Entertaining and always enlightening, Dr. Seeley will be speaking about swarming (which is the subject of his latest book, “Honeybee Democracy”) and about how to bait traps to recapture your own swarms.

Dr. Seeley, a professor in the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior at Cornell, is a regular and highly sought-after speaker on the subject of honeybee behavior. He's authored “The Wisdom of the Hive”, about how honeybee colonies make decisions, and most recently “Honeybee Democracy”, which describes how swarms choose a new location. Dr. Seeley and his research into swarming behavior was the subject of a long and engaging feature story last September in the New York Times.

Thomas D. Seeley

http://www.nbb.cornell.edu/seeley.shtml

NYT: Reports From the Hive, Where the Swarm Concurs

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/28/science/28scibks.html

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Mark Robar featured in Providence Journal

Editor — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 21:06:00 GMT

RIBA President Mark Robar was featured in a front page article in the Monday Providence Journal. The article discussed Mark, Trail's End Farm, Lucy Rennick, the 103-year old owner of Trail's End, and bees, of course.

Congratulations, Mark!

No winter hibernation for honey bees of Trail’s End Farm in Richmond, R.I.

Providence Journal, 2/21/11

February Monthly Meeting

Editor — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 17:47:00 GMT

Sunday, Feb 13 at 2:00 PM

Rocky Hill Grange

1340 South County Trail (Rte 2)

East Greenwich, RI

The speaker at the February meeting will be Jim Parr, a long-time and highly-respected Rhode Island beekeeper, whose topic will be "Feeding Honey Bees." His main focus will be on winter feeding, and among the things he will address will be the advantages and disadvantages of different types of feeders; the problems of using liquid feeders in winter; the benefits of candy feeding; the relative merits of using protein in candy versus pollen patties for early brood rearing; how to make and use pollen patties; and problems with early colony buildup.

Jim Parr began keeping bees when he was twelve years old (as a teenager he had sixteen hives) and in the 1980s kept up to 250 hives in 25 different bee yards in Newport County, Washington County and in Bristol County, Massachusetts. For five years he provided up to 170 colonies a year to a 90-acre cranberry bog in Coventry. He also traveled to New Zealand in 1984 and worked for two commercial beekeepers, one of them a 3,000-colony operation in the central highlands of South Island, where he was in charge of the extracting operation. For many years he produced approximately 100 nucs annually. He he also has taught hands-on beekeeping courses in conjunction with the Rhode Island Audubon Society.

Directions:

Take I-95 North or South to Exit 8

Make a right onto Rt-2 (Quaker Lane)

Go through the traffic lights at Division St., keeping the Walgreens to your left

The Grange is located just past the Walgreens on Rt-2

View Larger Map

Dec. Newsletter - Betty Mencucci Interview

Editor — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 03:21:00 GMT

In the December newsletter there was a production problem with the interview of Betty Mencucci. This made the article hard to read, so we've re-produced the article in full.

Please, download the article and enjoy. Sorry for the confusion.

First-Year Beekeepers Discussion

Editor — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 21:03:00 GMT

From Shelly & Frank Arena:

My husband and I are first year beekeepers and we would like to continue to learn as much as we can, this has been such an interesting experience for us. Attending Bee School at Shartner Farm was so informative and fun we couldn't wait for our equipment and Bees to arrive. We survived the first season and hope that our Bees will too. We realize we have so much more to learn hence:

I'm looking to invite other first year beekeepers over to our house to discuss our first year beekeeping experience. This could be a way of sharing good and bad experiences in an attempt to walk away with learning what worked best. In addition we could discuss plans to get our bees ready for Spring.

When: Feb. 27th at 2:00pm

Where: 14 Rosewood Dr, North Scituate RI

RSVP to Frank & Shelly Arena via email BeeInHarmoney@cox.net

January Monthly Meeting

Editor — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 18:59:00 GMT

Sunday, January 9th at 2:00 PM

Arnold Mills Community House

75 Hillside Road

Cumberland, RI

Speaker: Betty Menucci, “the Eastern Apicultural Society (EAS)” based on her experiences and education attending meetings (see interview with Betty in this issue), including a video she made on the 2002 conference at Cornell University

Directions:

Take 295 north to Exit 11 (Rt 114/Diamond Hill Road)

Turn left onto Diamond Hill and go 1.2 miles to Hillside Road (just after Abbott Valley View Drive)

The Arnold Mills Community House 75 Hillside Road, is on the right at the bottom of the hill.

Turn into parking lot just before stop sign at Abbott Valley Run Road.

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