A YEAR IN THE LIFE OF HONEYBEES: A 7-Month Training Course

Become a beekeeper in this seven-month hands-on class that meets one Sunday per month while following the life of Honey Bees. The first class starts Sunday, April 23rd, 2023, and continues every 4th Sunday of the month from April through October unless noted.

This experiential class will cover the historic folklore, agricultural politics and current sciences of sustainable beekeeping in northern climates. The seven-session class is designed for beginning beekeepers and will provide hands-on experience at each turning point of the season. Each session will focus on the changing tasks that are involved with keeping bees and will include one-on-one time with the hives, guided by Angie Roushar from Bone Lake Meadows Apiary.

Class meets the educational requirements for Urban Honeybee Permit holders and the WEI Beekeeping Certificate. To earn a WEI Certificate and Urban Honeybee Permit, registrants must attend at least 6 of 7 classes. Please check your local city ordinance to see what they require for keeping honeybees. The class schedule is subject to change and dates will be rescheduled if needed due to weather. We will be following all current CDC and Minnesota State guidelines pertaining to COVID at the time of each class.

Course Schedule:
Class meets on the following days: April 23, May 21(not May 28 Memorial Day) , June 25, July 23, Aug 27, Sept 24 and Oct 22. Beginning students in the first year class meet in a separate location on the farm and at the same time as the advanced beekeeping class. In the last hour, both classes will come together for discussion and Q&A.

Topics:
Beekeeping at WEI is committed to the health of the bees and organic care practices as much as possible.

• April 23: Overview of beginning beekeeping. Where to buy the necessary equipment, supplies and bees; how to build a hive, setting up hives.
• May 21: (Note 3rd Sunday) Hive day inspections: anti-swarming techniques, reversal of hive boxes in overwintered colonies, planting fall flowers for pollinators
• June 25: Hive day inspections: honey assessment, prepping for nectar flow
• July 23: Hive day inspections: Varroa mite counts and hive diseases
• August 27: All things honey extracting
• September 24: Prepping the hives in fall to set them up to survive upcoming winter.
• October 22: All things Beeswax, winterizing hives and saying goodbye

Instructor Bio: Angie Roushar was introduced to beekeeping in 2017 in San Diego, CA working at We Save Bees, a honeybee bee swarm retrieval company. Retrieving swarms in the Southern California region that settled in a variety of places, from tree trunks to benches to roofs. She has assisted in urban rooftop beekeeping at Mademoiselle Mielle and Beekeeping at Bone Lake Meadows Apiary for the past 5 years. Her training includes a Beekeeping Mentorship with Hillary Kearny of Girl Next Door Honey, a Women's Beekeeping Mentorship with Ariella Daley of Honey Bee Wild and an Herbalism Apprenticeship program with Jessica Belden of Flower Folk Apothecary. She tends to bees with an emphasis on their nutrition through the local biodiversity surrounding their hives and practices balanced beekeeping with Mike at Bone Lake Meadows Apiary.

What to Bring: Bee suit, veil, gloves, hive tool, outdoor wear

Please make sure your annual WEI membership is still active.
For membership info click here: FRIENDS OF WEI

Full and partial scholarships are available if you are in financial need. Please visit Scholarship Application - Women's Environmental Institute (w-e-i.org) Or if you need a payment plan, please contact jerry@w-e-i.org at the WEI office (651-583-0705).