BGSV Meeting Minutes
June 8, 2020
Welcome: following Virginia guidelines for COVID safety, this meeting was held via Zoom. President Nick Delphina welcomed members and guests: Even with these limitations, 17 members and guests participated. Welcome to Gina and Pam, new members.
Mentor Program: The COVID guidelines really limit close mentorship, but mentors can always take questions and provide guidance.
Nuc Program (Steven B.)- there are more nucs available than takers at the moment. This is highly unusual. Call Steven if you are interested.
Nominating Committee: Brent Van Brunt, Teresa Yost and Kurt are putting together the slate.
Treasurer’s Report: no report
Extractaganza: Because of Phase II guidelines, Extractaganza’s been postponed. We hope to host it in the fall.
Fall Workshop? Perhaps on an advanced topic (wax working, Kristin Traynor, etc.)
Fall Garden Festival: perhaps in October at AERAC…more information to follow.
Educational Program: Have questions? We might have answers!
An informal question and answer period, members posed questions to each other and reported on the status of their hives…some examples:
Q: My bees are walking around on the ground and not flying into the box…their wings look good and they look healthy…what could it be?
A: because there’s been a lot of aerial spraying of crops lately, the bees could be affected by the pesticides. There are also some fairly rare neurological viruses that bees could catch that cause them to be disoriented.
Q: There’s palmetto bugs in my hives!
A: They make a nice crunching sound when you squish them.
Q: I harvested some honey from a weakening hive that also had the beginnings of wax
moths…
A: the honey might not be good, as the weakening could be caused by a high mite count,
wax moth larvae or bee and moth excretions could find its way into the honeycombs.
Q; I’ve heard that some essential oils are helpful for hive pests….
A: that can be true, but be careful that the oils are used correctly.
Q: Some things to think about when I inspect my hive?
A: (many tips were given, one being to keep in mind that when a hive is opened, the bees must
reestablish the optimum temperature again, which takes time)
This is just a sampling: good information was shared by all.
Respectfully submitted,
Jean Carideo, Secretary