Natural Beekeeping Level II What: Natural Beekeeping Level II When: February 11, 2012, 9:30 - 3 PM Where: Spring Creek Community Center Cost: $25 In the morning we'll take a few minutes to cover the basics of Beginning - Level I to refresh your memories. The rest of the morning will be discussing swarms, how to prevent them, how to make splits, and Q&A. It will be show and tell with bee equipment. Lunch will be from 12 -1. You can either bring your own lunch or dine at a local restaurant. In the afternoon, we will discuss when it is a good time to use sugar/feed and when it isn't a good time. We will talk about why honey is important to the honeybee and what is lacking in sugar/water feed that can create a weak colony and Nosema. This class is for any beekeeper. NOTE: All students are welcome to the 3 free gatherings in BEe Healing Apiary 1 in the spring. However, if you take a class and cannot make the gatherings, you cannot send a substitute. If you wish to pay online, you can use the Pay Now Button below. We will provide coffee and hot water for tea or hot chocolate. PS: March 10 & 11 The Center for Honeybee Research is having their first Natural Beekeeping School at the Folk Art Center. Check on www.chbr.org for further details and reservations. You can't beat the price for 2 days of speakers and camaraderie. I strongly recommend attendance. Bee knowledge changes all the time and learning from veteran beekeepers is a great advantage. One always needs more than one teacher.

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We are sponsoring a project in Senegal Africa working with 2 Brothers and their friend. We are helping them in creating a beekeeping business with at least 100 hives of Apis m. mellifera honeybees. Andre, one of the brothers, will be coming here to our apiary as part of our International Beekeeping Program. As Ambassador Lady is also working with the International Beekeeping Program through the Center for Honeybee Research. Most African beekeepers do not have the education required to create and maintain an apiary because they don't have the basic knowledge or were never taught the fundamental skills regarding swarms, splits, hive management, etc. We thought it more prudent bringing the student to our apiary for a full season where they can get the full spectrum of beekeeping 24/7 while they are here, rather than spending a few weeks or a couple months over there. It is our intentions to train Andre in natural beekeeping, Apitherapy, herbalism, and agriculture. He will also meet other beekeepers, attend bee meetings, attend schools and lectures, and any other sessions or meetings that will teach him the needed skills to take back to Africa.  Andre plans on using his education setting up a program to train other beekeepers and perhaps in starting a co-op with other beekeepers. We will also guide him toward African plants, trees, shrubs, etc that can be grown for honeybees in Africa and help him with the research. Andre will be shown how to make tinctures and work with the herbs he grows for the honeybees. Very little knowledge is available on line for beekeepers there. After he goes home, we will guide Andre and his partners while they set up beekeeping classes to teach others while connecting them to the United Nations' worldwide forum for farmers and beekeepers. We will also connect him with other beekeepers throughout Africa. Though we are not a 501c3, we do take and appreciate any amount of donations. Any donations we receive go into the training, education, school expenses, travel, room and board, stipends, etc. for our students. Please feel free to donate through the Paypal below or mail donations to: BEe Healing Organization 443 West Rd. Hot Springs, NC 28743 USA

- We are sponsoring a very unique project in Senegal, Africa. Wood and metal is very expensive so a local beekeeper is going to pour cement in a mold for beehives. Follow along as the pictures come in from beginning to end.

This is called a Gabarit. It can be broken down as shown and put together to be used repeatedly to create new cement hives.

After putting the form together by latching the sides made out of wood, they pour the cement over an empty cardboard box placed in the center.

After the cement is poured, the bottom hole for air circulation is made with a can as shown. You are looking at the bottom of the hive.

This is a picture of Ouseman's son in front of the first completed cement hive. They are in the process of creating more cement hives and transporting them to a forest in Kennebar. With the help of our sponsoring them, they hope to get up to and maintain about 100 hives. It is also our organization's intentions of bringing one of them over here for a few months to train in Natural Beekeeping.

Other Information
	--------------------------------------- The Center for Honeybee Research has gone live. Also check out our Waggle Dancing. Check The Center for Honeybee Research on Facebook. The Center is putting on their first Natural Beekeeping School March 10 & 11, 2012. Go to www.chbr.org for more details.