Get Ready for the Mit-a-thon!!!

A single Varroa mite infestation can quickly spread and devastate hives across an entire region. Early detection and control are key to supporting honey bee health and preventing catastrophic infestations. That’s why the Honey Bee Health Coalition, which has developed essential Varroa mite resources, is proud to support the first ever Mite-A-Thon.

The Coalition urges beekeepers to participate in this exciting and free event by visiting www.pollinator.org/miteathon.

 

The event, which will take place from Saturday, September 9, to Saturday, September 16, will help collect vital data on Varroa infestations across North America and help beekeepers and others confront these problematic parasites.

Participants will test the level of mites present in their hives using a standardized protocol utilizing two common methods of assessment — powdered sugar roll or alcohol wash — and upload their data at www.mitecheck.com, including location, total number of hives, number of hives tested, local habitat, and the number of Varroa mites counted from each hive.

Beekeepers and others also can learn more about Varroa mites and best practices to monitor and control them by visiting honeybeehealthcoalition.org/varroa/.

5th Annual Tour de Hives – August 18th, 19th, 20th at Zilker Botanical Gardens

Help save Texas Bees!
 
The 5th Annual Tour de Hives will encompass a 3 day weekend much like last year! All events take place at the Zilker Botanical Gardens Meeting space inside with AC! 🙂  YEAR # 5 Here we go again!  
 

We will have a Friday August 18, 2017 – Products of the Hive workshop – 1:30-4:30pm ($25)

The main public event with honey queens, hive touring, honey tasting, bee related vendors, silent auction, and raffle will be on Saturday August 19th, 2017 from 9am-4pm. – $5 per family/group. (Hive tours from 9-12pm due to heat)

Sunday August 20th from 9am-4pm will be a full day of beekeeper classes and learning opportunities with a Beginner 101 track and an Advanced 201 track – See webpage for more details! ($55 + lunch included, limited seating)

Proceeds will be used this year to:
 
Sponsor beekeeping scholarships for TCBA Youth Program
Support Randy Oliver’s work at Scientific Beekeeping
Support Texas Master Beekeeper Program
Support American Beekeeping Federation
and more, we hope! 🙂
Saving the world…one bee at a time!
 
More ways to help: 
 
Please share links to the event with your followers and on your social media sites.
Please share with other potential sponsors, donors, and friends!
Bee ON the tour and share your bee yard!
Bee a volunteer at the event!
 
http://tourdehives.org – Main website
 
https://squareup.com/store/bee-friendly-foundation – direct link to store – to buy tix, pay for sponsorship, donate, etc.
 
https://www.facebook.com/tourdehives – facebook page
 
https://www.facebook.com/events/733549126798902/ event page on fb
 
Thank you, thank you, thank you! 🙂 See you at the event!

TCBA Starts a Youth Mentoring and Scholarship Program!!

Kids and Bees

TCBA Youth Mentoring and Scholarship Program

Thanks to the ground-work laid by our founder, Tanya Philips, as well as our ever supportive and growing number of members, we have finally reached one of our original goals.  TCBA is very proud to announce that we have finally kicked off our inaugural Youth Mentoring Program!

Finding a path or a hobby that you are passionate about is not always an easy task.  And, once you do find a hobby you are interested in, it can be even harder to get started and find a reliable source to learn about your new hobby.  This is why Youth Programs, such as this, play a very important role in the lives of our younger generations.  TCBA’s Youth Mentoring Program is a scholarship based program designed to help today’s youth get started in beekeeping by providing them the resources and guidance needed to become tomorrow successful beekeepers.  By becoming a young beekeeper, our youths are not only learning about the wondrous world of the honey bee, but they are also learning about the importance of our tiny friends in nature, as well as becoming better stewards for our world.

Through our annual Tour de Hives event, fundraising activities, member support, and donations from people like you, we are able to offer kids an opportunity to chase dreams that might otherwise seem out of reach to them.  We are very excited to bring this opportunity to Travis County, and we hope will join us in helping enrich the lives of youths in our area.

If you would like to learn more about our Youth Mentoring Program, please visit our Scholarship Page.

~ John Swan| TCBA President

Congratulations to the NEW Advanced Master Beekeepers!

Travis County Beekeeper members John Swan, John Kirkland, and Pamela Yeamans all took and successfully passed the Texas Master Beekeeper Advanced Level Exam on Thursday November 3, 2016!  Congratulations to all of you! 🙂

The Texas Beekeeper’s Association Annual Conference in Belton TX this past weekend was a great success!  The keynote speaker Mike Palmer was fantastic!

Tanya Phillips was elected to the Texas Beekeeper’s Association Executive Board as a new Director. Congratulations!

American Beekeeping Federation Conference is coming up in January 11-15th in Galveston TX!  Early registration discounts end today on November 7th!  http://www.abfnet.org/default.asp? – Register today! 😉

There is also a discount for members of ABF and TBA, so make sure to use your discount code if you are a member! 🙂

 

Austin Mayor’s Proclamation for the Honey Bees

proclamation

Austin Mayor proclaims August 15, 2015 as Honey Bee Awareness Day which will be celebrated during the 3rd Annual Tour de Hives.  This is an all day event for the public to tour private bee yards from Dripping Springs to Georgetown and get the opportunity to learn more about honey bees and beekeeping.  The day begins at 8am at Bee Friendly Austin apiary in SW Austin where you can sample honey, taste mead, meet our Texas Honey Queens, buy tour t-shirts, take beginning beekeeping classes, listen to a variety of speakers, and pick up your maps to tour around to other bee yards.

proclamation – pdf

Congratulations to the NEW Apprentices in the Texas Master Beekeeper’s Program!!!

traviscountymembers

On Friday March 27, 2015 several of the Travis County Beekeeper members drove down to Brenham Texas to attend the FIRST Texas Master Beekeeper Testing Day and we are happy to report, they all passed their exams with flying colors and have been accepted into the Master Beekeeper Program!  In attendance was Pamela Yeamans, Brandon Ferhenkamp, Chuck Reburn, and Tanya Phillips.  Congratulations to all!  If you are interested in taking the next Master Beekeeper exam, you must have been keeping bees for at least 1 year and currently have at least 1 hive.  Cost is $50 per person and the next exam will be November just prior to the Texas State Beekeepers meeting in New Braunfels.

Special Guest Speaker on June 1, 2015

Les Crowder is coming to Austin Texas to lead a workshop at the end of May and will stay through June 1 in order to join the Travis County Beekeepers to discuss the next generation of beekeepers getting started today and how to care for your bees without putting harsh chemicals into the environment.  7:00-9:00 pm at the Zilker Botanical Gardens.

For more information on his workshop May 30-31, please go to www.BeeFriendlyAustin.com

 

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topbarbeekeeping_frontcoverM bee class

Have you heard about the new Texas Master Beekeeping Program?

http://masterbeekeeper.tamu.edu/

The Texas Master Beekeeper Program (TMBP) is an educational program designed to increase the knowledge and skill level of participating beekeepers. The program is a five-year (minimum) beekeeper training and certification program provided by the Texas Apiary Inspection Service in association with the Texas Beekeepers Association, Texas A&M Honey Bee Lab and AgriLife Extension.

The Texas Master Beekeeper Program (TMBP) is modeled after the well-established University of Florida’s Master Beekeeper Program. By using this model TMBP is able to provide the beekeepers of Texas with a well-designed program that both increases the knowledge base of the beekeeper but also helps to educate the general public about beekeeping. This is done through public service credits; a requirement in this program.

It is the goal of the Texas Apiary Inspection Service that by providing this program we can increase the overall health of the apiary industry. The TMBP will accomplish this goal by producing highly knowledgeable beekeepers that can help lead the industry and act as honey bee ambassadors to the general public.

If you have any questions about the program, or you would like to be added to the Master Beekeeper e-mail listserv, please contact the Texas Apiary Inspection Service using the “Give Us a Buzz” icon at the top of their page (link at top) or e-mailing tais@tamu.edu directly.