NWIABKA

• Hello Beekeeping Friends,
• Upcoming Events
• NWIABKA Mid-Winter Beekeeper Update 
  Thursday, December 4, 7:30 pm
  Zoom Meeting 
  https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89982466965?pwd=zUkqOZNvHFMm8awBoTq33uWS8dEqa6.1
  Topics:
  Final Steps for Winterizing Colonies
  Winter Varroa treatment options
  Emergency feeding of colonies
  New Varroa control treatment – Norroa 
  2026 beekeeping goals – What are your goals for the next year?
  2026 NWIABKA goals – increase the presence of VSH bee stock in NWIABKA colonies, identify local winter hardy VSH colonies, local winter hardy VSH queen and mini nuc production, continuation of the five frame nuc project, and offering Level 1,2 & 3 classes.
  Q & A – What are you thinking?
• Older News Archive
• Please visit our Honey Bee Booth at Clay County Fair, Spencer Iowa September 6-14, 2025
• Purchase Honey from our local members of NWIABKA
• Learn about becoming a member and sign up for education classes.
• NWIABKA Meeting Sunday, August 24, 2-4:30 pm.Dickinson County ISU Extension & Outreach Office 1600 15th St. Spirit Lake, IA
• Topics:
• NWIABKA Board member Jean Irwin will demonstrate how she adds value to her beekeeping business by rendering wax and creating saleable products.
• Options for managing high moisture honey – (robbing & Varroa control if delaying the removal of honey supers)
• Demonstration of techniques for preparing colonies for winter survival including – late season re-queening, merging colonies, and feeding strategies.
• Q & A
• July 27, 2-4:30 pm – Association Meeting – NWIABKA member Marlene Boernsen will host at her Ocheyedan, IA honey house.
• August 24, 2-4:30 pm – Association Meeting – NWIABKA Board member will share how she adds value to her beekeeping operation by creating products from beeswax 
• September 6-14 – Clay County NWIABKA Fair Booth & Honey Sales
• September 28, 2-4:30 pm – Association Meeting – Getting colonies ready for winter – final steps. Please remember that getting colonies ready for this upcoming winter starts now by controllingVarroa mite numbers at 1 mite or less per 100 bees. Queen Bee Rearing Class
• Sunday, June 22, 2025, 2-4:30 pm
• Location: Dickinson County (ISU) Extension and Outreach Office, 1600 15th Street, Spirit Lake, IA
• Class Instructor Phil Breed: VP of Siouxland Beekeepers
• The Principles & Practices of On the Spot (OTS) Queen Rearing
• Annual Outdoor Classroom Sunday, June 1, 2-4:30 pm
• Steve Lende Apiary
• 2102 120th St., Spirit Lake, IA
• More about, Raising Healthy Bees That Thrive.
• NWIABKA Annual Meeting on Sunday, April 27, 2 p.m
• Raising Healthy Bees that Thrive – “Dead Bees Make No Honey”
• Learn the Principles and Practices of Sustainable Beekeeping to improve winter survival of bees
• Topics will include –  queen genetics, colony nutrition options, ideas for swarm prevention, disease and Varroa mite control using Integrated Pest Management (IPM), making overwintering summer splits, what’s new in beekeeping such as the DeMaree spit for swarm control and increased honey production, the several uses of the double screen board, and more. This class will provide fresh new beekeeping ideas that will challenge “how beekeeping has always been done”.
• January 30, 7:30 p.m. Bee Smart Zoom Meeting: Topics – Winter Chores: Hive Inspections; Emergency Feeding; & 2025 Goal Setting
• February 20, 7:30 p.m. Bee Smart Zoom Meeting: Topic –  Queen Talk: Sourcing credible queen producers; Queen buying options – queen cell, virgin queen or mated queen; Moving from spring queen to summer queen rearing and replacement; and Breeder queen selection criteria for rearing local queens
• March 1, 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m., Dickinson County Extension Office: Level 1 Training – Introduction to Sustainable Beekeeping – Enjoying a Successful First Year of Beekeeping
• March 8 – Level 1 Training Snow Date
• March 22, 8:30 a.m – 4:00 p.m., Dickinson County Extension Office: Level 2 Training – The Principles and Practices of Sustainable Beekeeping – Raising Healthy Bees that Thrive
• March 27, 7:30 p.m. Bee Smart Zoom Meeting: Topic – Spring Chores: Hive inspections; Winter death loss post-mortem; Spring feeding; Minimizing swarming without splitting; Capturing and managing swarm colonies; & Queen replacement techniques
• March 29 – Level 2 Snow Date
• April 10, 7:30 p.m. – Level 1 Training Monthly Zoom Meeting
• April 24, 7:30 p.m. – Bee Smart Zoom Meeting: Topic – Open Mic Bee Talk– What are you observing in your colonies? What are your beekeeping questions, concerns, and ideas?; & emerging beekeeping research and new products.
• April 27, 2-4:30 p.m. Dickinson County Extension Office – NWIABKA Annual Meeting – Guest Speaker – Dr. Becky Masterman, co-host of the Beekeeping Today Podcast
• May 18, 2-4:30 p.m.  Location TBA – Outdoor Classroom – Basic beekeeping skills for beginner beekeepers; & Demaree swarm prevention demonstration and introduction to non-grafting queen rearing methods for experienced beekeepers.
• June 7, 9:00 a.m., Dordt University Agriculture Stewardship Center – Siouxland Beekeepers Summer Field Day
• June 12, 7:30 p.m. – Level 1 Training Monthly Zoom Meeting
• June 22, 2-4:30 p.m. – Association Meeting: On the Spot (OTS) queen rearing method taught by Phil Breed. Phil is an OTS practitioner from South Dakota. 
• Level 5 Beekeeper Succession Education
• Level 1 – Introduction to Sustainable Beekeeping – Enjoying a Successful First Year 
• Level 2 – The Principles and Practices of Sustainable Beekeeping – Next Steps Towards Sustainable Beekeeping
• Level 3 – Mastering the Science and Art of Sustainable Beekeeping – Advanced Techniques of Sustainable Beekeeping
• Level 4 – Mentor Training – Sharing the Science and Art of Sustainable Beekeeping with Level 1 Beekeepers
• Level 5 – Capstone of Level 5 Beekeeper Education Program: Beekeepers will 
• Manage colonies for 75% or better winter survival rates. 
• Follow IPM principles and biosecurity protocols to maintain bees in good health free from preventable illnesses
• Select breeder colonies based on selection criteria and trait testing to constantly improve stock quality 
• Anticipate colony losses and prepare for them
• Maintain a closed apiary – only importing bees when new genetics is needed 
• Participate as member of a health-first local queen and nuc production network (optional)
• Provide excess bees to fellow beekeepers in the local region
• 2025 Beekeeper Education Schedule based on the above Level 5 Beekeeper Education Initiative
• March 1  Level 1 classes. Level 1 Zoom meetings, April – October
• March 22 Level 2 class
• May 18 – Outdoor Classroom
• June 28 – Queen Rearing
• May-September – Bee Smart Zoom meetings
• May-September – Weekly/biweekly email honey bee colony management tip sheets
• February-October – Association in-person meetings
• In the Hive Newsletter – Emailed 6 times per year
• – old news –
• Association Meeting Sunday October 20, 2024, Dickinson County Extention Office, Spirit Lake, Iowa 2 PM
• Meeting Sunday September 22, 2024, Dickinson County Extention Office, Spirit Lake, Iowa 2 PM
• Bee Smart Presentation by Randall Cass, ISU Bee Extention Specialist
• EVENT: Bee Smart: “Keeping Bee Colonies Healthy & Thriving”
• July 28th 2024 NWIABKA meeting has been revised from the previous meeting schedule. Steve Lende will host the meeting at his house.
• Location: 2102 120th Street, Spirit Lake Iowa. 2pm Sunday.
• Special Guest Speaker July 28th: Dr. Eva Reinicke, DVM. Owner of Northland Honey Bee Veterinary Services in
  Northfield, MN. Dr. Reinicke assists beekeepers in preventing and controlling colony pests and diseases.Dr. Eva Reinicke DVM will be our guest speaker. It’s the same program that was flooded out in June. 
• Other news: Eleven beekeepers attended the first queen grafting & rearing workshop at the Central Lyon HS FFA Farm. The culmination of classroom work and bee yard demonstrations was the grafting of appropriate aged larvae into plastic queen cups. FFA beekeeper, Maddie, went five for five on her grafts. All of the grafts made by Maddie were drawn out by nurse bees. Most of the workshop students took the opportunity to pick-up three queen cells on Memorial Day. Unfortunately, a rogue virgin queen or an early emerging queen killed her competition. Fortunately, workshop instructor Phil Westra was drawing out 45 of his own cells for sale in the second cell builder. He gave up his cells to the workshop students. The cells should emerge on June 6. In addition, he will be providing 5 of his winter-hardy and gentle mated queens to the FFA to requeen their colonies. We paid Phil $400 for his workshop instruction, mileage, and supplies. For his extra effort, that included making several trips to the FFA bee yard to check on the cell builders and giving away his queen cells, I recommend we pay Phil an additional $100. Phil is willing to do another workshop in 2024.
• To date, Sean and I have traveled to the bee yards of three beginner beekeepers, including a trip to Tripp, SD. We assisted with mite checks and requeening. Generally, the bees and their beginner beekeepers are in good shape. 
• I’m getting 3-5 beekeeping calls, texts, and emails per week. The questions have included how to manage aggressive colonies, queen concerns, the diagnosis of chalkbrood, when to stop feeding sugar syrup, when to add a second brood box and/or honey super, and other basic colony management tasks.

REGISTER FOR Level 2 Beekeeping Class