December 2016 Update

T’is December 2016 as I draft this briefing, normally a season offering a less hectic schedule for the non-migratory beekeeper. Not so this year. Oh, we are still keeping our colonies in permanent bee yards in Southeast PA, yet the workload decreased not. This bee an observation, not a complaint, for this season’s projects are rejuvenating.

Our State Winters Meeting was moved to State College, PA and the program, speakers and Buzz in the air rivaled last years meeting, resuming with offerings motivating change. The theme in 2016 was

"Audacious Ideas for the Future of Beekeeping".

Click Here for 2015 PSBA Winter Program

Click Here for 2016 PSBA Winter Program

Mark Winston counsels “Today’s growing environmental ethic exists because our impact on the globe is finally fouling our own nest,” Commercial Pollinating Beekeepers are the backbone of Agriculture, tirelessly accommodating the needs of crop farmers, as they rent tractor-trailer loads of bees for their monoculture crops. Go back in history as far as you care to unscroll and Beekeepers have always played a vital, revered role in the community. Winston challenges us when he argued for a new paradigm "that recognizes beekeepers as stewards of both managed and wild bees, promoters of healthy environments, managers of economically sustainable apiaries and paragons of collaboration and cooperation. It’s time for some audacious thinking about the future of beekeeping."  Winston dissected all components of Apiary Management and illustrated the impact of the xplosive interest in beekeeping. Beekeeping Clubs boast of membership tallies, oft times with a roster 10 or 20 times more than a mere 20 years ago.

I propose that all keepers of bees, (Hobbyist, Commercial, Queen Rearer, Nuc Producer and participants in the Factory Farm Package Industry), analyze ALL THAT WE DO and WHY! If not satisfied with the analysis, CHANGE!

A Must Read - The State of Honey Bees by Hanna Carroll