April 2019
WASHINGTON STATE BEEKEEPERS ASSOCIATION
Keeping the Bee in Business

Take us out to a ballgame,take us out with thecrowd of bees...
Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

Page 1WASHINGTON STATE BEEKEEPERSEXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 2018
President

Kevin R. Oldenburg, PhD, Spokane
509.389.2235, president@wasba.org

Vice-President

Ellen Miller, Cheney
509.939.3752, vpresident@wasba.org

SecretaryMark Salser

Treasurer

Tammy Clark
treasurer@wasba.org

Director &Legislative Chair

Tim Hiatt, Ephrata
509.754.1246, legislativechair@wasba.org

Director

Larry Brainard, Edmonds
425.478.0575, larrybrainard@comcast.net

Director

Bob Arnold
sar3140@aol.com

Director

David White509-948-5216, beemantricities@gmail.com

Director

Sophi Gwynne

Director

Wayne Ranne

Director

Jennifer Short

Executive Director

Jenifer Priest
509-270-2603, jenifer@wasba.org

Newsletter Team

Debbie and Tim Ade
425.418.2094, deblyn80ty@gmail.com

Websitewebmaster@wasba.org

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Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

FROM THE EDITOR… It’s team work!
It’s April.
The weather is beginning to change from cold and frosty days…
to warmer and more inviting temperatures.
You know what that means!
Baseball and bees.
Baseball is a team sport.
There is no way you can have a successful game without relying on all the other players on the team.
If the offense has only one player making hits, it will probably not be enough to win the game.
If the defense has only one outfielder the chance of catching a fly ball is less than with three.
Bees have the same kind of teamwork in their community.
Each bee has specific tasks that are important to the hive as a whole.
Each one is important and becomes truly missed when not an active part of the whole.
This month there is much evidence of teamwork on our WASBA community.
There are many articles from different people that are featured in this edition, along with other articles
published throughout the months on the website.
In this issue you can read about
Alan Woods
Bayer-Feed a Bee Program
New WASBA Board
Preventing Hive Robbing
Beekeeping in the Prison system
Legislative Updates
As always we welcome any contributions or articles to the newsletter.
Happy Spring!
Thank you for reading,Debbie Ade-Editor
deblyn80ty@gmail.com

Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

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Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Although it was one of the snowiest weekends across Washington all year, around 200 people still made it to
Cheney for the WASBA Conference.
The varied speaker topics provided something for everyone. Professor Jerry Bromenshenk from the
University of Montana and Bee Alert Technology shared the App he's developed that can help beekeepers
diagnose issues in their hives according to the sounds made by bees. Keynote speaker Sarah Red-Laird
shared her work in creating healthy bee habitats with information on how soil health can impact bees andother pollinators.
WASBA members also elected a board of directors, with representation from nearly all parts of the state.
The WASBA board includes:
Kevin Oldenburg - President
Ellen Miller - Vice President
Mark Salser - Secretary
Tammy Clark - Treasurer
Bob Arnold
Larry Brainard
Sophi Gwynne
Tim Hiatt
Wayne Ranne
Jennifer ShortDavid WhiteWith the revitalized conference, WASBA also awarded Ellen Miller with the Beekeeper of the Year award.
Ellen is known throughout the state as a mentor and teacher. Her work in community outreach means that
communities are becoming educated on how to create healthy environments for pollinators. Ellen has leadthe team in update the WASBA curriculum, including the creation of a beginning level, as well as updated Apprentice and Journeyman materials.
We want to once again thank our sponsors:
Glory Bee, Mann Lake, Eastern Washington University, The Holiday Inn and Hierophant Meadery.
Be sure to save the date for the 2020 conference - it will be held in the Tri-Cities on October 10.
Jenifer Priest
Executive Director

Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

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How to Reduce Robbing: Yellow Jackets by Rodrigo Guizar-WSU Apiary Manager
Yellow jackets can be a big problem for honey bees on the Palouse in late summer and fall. The yellow jacket
colonies are strong at this time, after having had all summer to rear young and grow their population.
One way to lower the yellow jacket pressure on your bees is to put out pheromone traps in the spring. Springis when yellow jacket queens are out provisioning their newly founded nests (before the first batches ofworkers emerge) and removing queens from the population in spring can reduce the number of yellow jacket
colonies that establish in the area.
Later in the summer and early fall, the normal insect prey of yellow jackets declines in abundance and yellow
jackets seem to become a bit more desperate to find provisions for their young. At this time of year, manybeekeepers notice that yellow jackets become more and more interested in seeking food in managed
beehives. In August we put moving screens (we call them “screened front porches”) on WSU colonies (seeattached photos). We use these porches when moving our colonies, because they can be closed up, keeping
bees from flying during the move, while still allowing bees to ventilate the hive. It also serves to reduce theentrance to a ¾ inch hole, giving the guard bees greater control of who comes into their colony. We preferthese porch screens over regular entrance reducers because they allow improved ventilation during the hotsummer months. This apparatus can also confuse yellow jackets, some of whom can be seen bumping into thefront screen looking for entry to the hive. The joke is on them however, as the entrance is actually now on theside of the porch. The honey bees quickly learn the new entrance, but a proportion of the yellow jackets don’t
seem to “figure it out.” It is not a foolproof system, but we find that it helps.
Below I will explain how I made a new porch in just 15 minutes:
1. I started off with some scrap wood that was ¾” thick and at least 13 1/8” long. I cut 2 strips 1 ¾”
wide and 1 strip only 3/4” wide using a table saw.

2. After I had my strips I cut one of the 1 3/4 “ pieces down to two 5” pieces
and the other 2 pieces down to 13 1/8”.

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Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter3. I then drilled a ¾” diameter hole 1” from the bottom of one of the side bars.

4. Next I assembled the 4 pieces to make a rectangular frame.
I attached a 5” by 13 ¾” piece of 1/8” hardware cloth to the frame using a stapler

5. Then drilled a 3/32” hole in each side bar front to back and inserted a nail so it could be
attached to a hive body.

6. This porch is designed to go onto a 10 frame colony.
A wine cork can be used to close the colony if you need to move it.

Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

Page 7LEGISLATIVE UPDATE-LIABILITY PROTECTION AND THE BEE LAB ON HOLD
Liability Protection On Track
HB 1133 to protect apiarists from liability is making excellent progress. It has passed the House, and it iswaiting to be brought up on the Senate floor for a vote. While it was in the Senate Law & Justice committee,
it was amended slightly, so after it passes the Senate floor vote, it will need to be reviewed by a concurrence
committee of House and Senate negotiators. Once they agree on final language, it will be sent to theGovernor for his signature. I'm very pleased with the progress of this bill. We are still very far ahead of
deadlines and the entire legislature has expressed support for honey bees and beekeepers.
Another bill we are watching is SB5552, to protect pollinators, introduced late in the session by Senator Liias.
Although I had the opportunity to shape the language before the bill was introduced, my suggestions fell on
deaf ears. I actually had to testify against a bill to protect pollinators because it had provisions unacceptable
to beekeepers, like requiring all of us to register the physical location of every hive with the state
Department of Agriculture. That provision has been removed and the language has been clarified that thepollinator protections apply to honey bees as well as native pollinators. This bill creates policy priorities forprotecting pollinators and establishes a task force for interested parties to discuss how the state canencourage forage and protect both native and managed pollinators. Read more about these bills at
https://apps.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/ and search for 1133 and 5552.
Our strong grassroots efforts have the attention of the legislators. Among you, the grassroots, we have beekeepers who are willing to contact their legislators and explain the merits of proposed legislation. Your
support by calls and emails have given us the success we enjoy in passing laws favorable to beekeepers. I
thank you for your efforts and hope we can continue to push the legislature for better treatment of bees andbeekeepers in Washington state.
Tim Hiatt, legislative chair, WASBA
legislativechair@wasba.org

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Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

Mark your Calendars for these upcoming events!!!
Wonder of the Hives-Hood River, OR
Sunday, May 19th (Page 12)
Randy Olivier Presentation-Everett, WA
Saturday, September 21(watch for details in future editions)2020 WASBA Conference
October 10, 2020 in the Tri-Cities

Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

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Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

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Wonders of the Hive
For 2019 BG Bees will be offering “in hive” learning. Each bee club, state andregional forum is filled with information on various aspects of beekeeping. The Backyard
Beekeeper reads, watches YouTube, and possibly other forums. What is screaming to acquireis “hands on” experience through the assistance of highly qualified “bee ICONs”. Each person
attending will be exposed to a myriad of in hive” techniques, norms, and abnorms. What needs
fixing, what is normal, issues for future considerations. Small, intimate, groups will gather
around each presenter for maximum exposure.
Registration is limited to forty (40). Don’t miss this opportunity.
Dr. Ramesh Sagili, Associate Professor-Apiculture, Oregon State University. An opportunity to
ask your beekeeping questions. Dr. Sagili will discuss recent research.

Dr. Michael Burgett, Professor Emeritus, Oregon State University. General ‘rules’ of the first hive
inspection post winter. Knowing what is wrong or right is critical in any hive inspection but mostimportantly to see a path to success for the coming bee season. How healthy does the colony
appear? What to look for? What needs to be done depending on issues discovered?
Dr. Dewey Caron, Emeritus Professor of Entomology & Wildlife Ecology, University of Delaware,& Affiliate Professor, Dept Horticulture, Oregon State University. Identifying a Queen Right hive.
What to look for? Laying Worker?
Carolyn Breece, Faculty Research Assistant, Oregon State University. Frame Diagnostics –Knowing the pests and diseases of honey bee colonies is an essential part of beekeeping. Learn
how to read frames for evidence of brood diseases, mite infestation, and other issues, and learn
techniques to keep your colonies healthy and thriving.
Ellen Topitzhofer, Faculty Research Assistant, Oregon State University. Mites, Mites, Mites!
Sampling, treating, efficacy. So much has come to light in just the past year.
DATE: Sunday, May 19, 2019
TIME: 10:00 AM to 3:30 PM
WHERE: 4565 Riordan Hill Dr, Hood River, OR
CATERING: Lake Taco
COST: $49.00
https://bg-bees.com/wonders-of-the-hive/

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Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

It's time to renew your WASBA membership!
Please go to the WASBA website www.wasba.org and renew your membership.
Both individual and local associations must renew their membership at this time,
unless you registered in October, November or December of 2018.
Please note that going forward, individual and local association membershipwill run from January 1 - December 31 each year.
Here are some reasons why you should join:
1. WASBA represents all beekeepers in the state
2. Provides the most up-to-date education materials and offers certification of Beginning,
Apprentice, Journeyman and Master Beekeepers. Your club must be a member touse WASBA materials
3. Utilize the WASBA speaker’s list to bring interesting members to your club meetings
4. Opportunity to network with the Washington Legislature through our legislative liaison
5. Stay current with news, research and regulations that impact bees and their keepers
6. Take part in research projects
7. There’s strength in numbers – the more we network and learn from each other, thebetter we care for bees
8. BECAUSE IT’S GOOD FOR THE BEES!

Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

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Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

Education Update March 2019
Journeyman Manual: The two biggest pieces of news on the educational front is that the Journeyman
Manual is available. Its acceptance was acted on at the February 9 th membership meeting. All materials
including the manual, the Power Point presentations for use by instructors covering each chapter, and thesuggested test questions with answers for instructors to use are available through Jenifer Priest. The
intended audience for the Journeyman course is a beekeeper who has had at least three years of experience
with honey bees and beekeeping and who wants to learn more. It is not meant to be an easy course. The test
is not open book but there is the option of completing homework assignments on each chapter. Those points
can be added to the test score. A total of 85 points is required to successfully complete the course. Service
points are also needed to complete the requirements of Journeyman certification. There is more informationon the WASBA website. As with all the new courses, the Journeyman materials will be updated so pleasepass along suggestions and comments.
Apprentice Manual: The second piece of news is that the long-awaited Apprentice Manual and related
course material has been submitted to the WASBA Board for review and approval. We hope to have thisavailable by the end of March. This course is intended for the beekeeper who has a minimum of one year ofexperience (successful or not) with keeping honey bees and wants to continue keeping bees. It will build on
the information in the Beginning Beekeepers Manual, offering more options for management so the beekeeper can make their own choices. This is still meant to be a learning opportunity offering support tonew beekeepers on best practices for successfully managing honey bees. The test is an open book test andthe manual is meant to be a resource for the student. For more information on this course there is a
description on the WASBA website.

Thank you: I want to publicly express my thanks for the support that many people have provided in bringing
these two manuals to life. A very special recognition goes to Master Beekeeper, Jim Miller and the inmatesat Airway Heights Correctional Center, who he inspired to begin work on helping to develop a new
Journeyman Manual. Having met some of these inmates personally last month, they are enthusiastic anddedicated to learning more about beekeeping and are putting into practice what they are learning. WASBA
appreciation goes out to them for their commitment to this project. Additional appreciation goes to the West
Plains Beekeepers Association and Jim Miller for test driving an initial draft of the Journeyman Manual andthe students taking the class and the Journeyman instructors who sat in on the class. They all provided
feedback and their evaluation was used in the final version accepted by WASBA last month. From the pointthat feedback was gathered about what students and instructors wanted to see in the education program to
the final editing of each of the manuals, the contribution of many have made these manuals possible.
Without all of us working together, we couldn’t get these kinds of projects done, much less done as quickly as
we have. Now we all need to commit to keeping them up-to-date!
Master Level Certification: Another educational event, this one affecting the Master level program, is WASBA
has approved a reciprocal relationship with the University of Montana. Students who have successfullycompleted the U of M, Master Level Beekeeping Course can receive a WASBA Masters certification. This
allows student two ways of obtaining a Master level certification. Check the website for more information.
Ellen Miller, VP, WASBA

Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

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Congratulations to Alan Beverly Woods!
Alan Woods is our first WASBA beekeeper to be awarded areciprocal Masters level certification as a result of his
successful completion of the University of Montana, MasterLevel Beekeeping Course.
Alan’s journey in beekeeping started about ten years ago
when his daughter, Shayna, gave him a beekeeping class forhis birthday. His first two hives were purchased from abeekeeper in Stanwood who immediately became his friend
and mentor, taking Alan under his wing. The relationship only
lasted three years with the loss to cancer of the person who
gave Alan his love of bees and the desire to learn more about
them. He promised his friend’s wife that he would invest allthat he had learned from his mentor into sharing with others
his knowledge of honey bees and beekeeping.
This promise resulted in the family starting
Wood’s Bee Company in April of 2014, selling beekeeping
equipment, bees, queens, and honey, as well as offering
beekeeping classes and other services. Alan describes the company as being “dedicated to serving thecommunity and giving back when it can” and demonstrates this by supporting various community groups
donating:
Time and funds to the Relay for Life.
Bee hives to be auctioned off by Work Opportunity of Lewis County.
A scholarship for Community Service for a participant of the Miss Lewis County Pageant.
Bees, hives and equipment to multiple youth educational groups.
Time, bees and hives to the veteran’s group GRUB which teaches veterans and their family gardening andsustainability.
Time to work with the inmates at the Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) Correctional Facility teachingthem how to keep bees.
And giving $10.00 off the purchase of each NUC of bees for every beekeeper that is an active member ofthe Washington State Beekeepers Association in their local area.
I would say that he is doing his mentor proud. But he didn’t stop there. After keeping bees for about eight
years, Alan wanted to challenge his personal knowledge of honey bees and beekeeping and began looking
for an academic experience that would test his personal experiences. Alan selected the program at the
University of Montana and says that he not only found “this course challenging but it renewed my desire
for the bees and helping others.”
Besides his interest in bees, Alan is a retired Army Veteran with 23 years of service. He is married with threedaughters, a son-in law and two grandsons. Alan has a bachelor’s degree in Information System Management
and has completed his pastoral training with CBNW in Portland Oregon. He works full time at JBLM and isalso the Lead Pastor of Trinity Christian Fellowship in Chehalis WA. As Alan says, “It is his first love for God
that allows him to serve so many while doing so much.” He and his family “believe that God has ordained
man to take care of the environment, but if we lose the bees there will not be much of an environment tocare for.”Continued on Page 17
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It is an honor to grant Alan a reciprocal Masters
certification. For anyone else interested in thisoption, please contact master@wasba.org for
more information. In the meantime, as Alansays, “So if you are ever in the Centralia area,
stop by and visit me and my family at Woods
Bee Co. or visit us online athttps://woodsbeeco.com where we“Make Beekeeping Fun and Affordable.”

Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

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Local Club NewsRegional Area 1a and b
Mount Baker Beekeepers-Meets 3rd Wednesday each month at 7:00p in Bellingham
Northwest District Beekeepers-Meets 2nd Tuesday each month at 6:00 in Snohomish
Skagit Valley Beekeepers-Meets 2nd Thursday each month at 7:00pm in Burlington
Stanwood-Camano Island Beekeepers-Meets 2nd Wednesday at 7:00pm in Stanwood
East Jefferson Beekeepers Association-Meets the 2nd Saturday each month in Port Hadlock
North Olympic Peninsula Beekeepers-Meets 2nd Sunday each month at 1:00 in Port Angeles
Puget Sound Beekeepers Association-Meets next on the 4th Tuesday each of August in Seattle
Snoqualmie Valley Beekeepers Assn-Meets 1st Tuesday each month at 7:00 in North Bend
West Sound Beekeepers-Meets 3rd Tuesday each month at 7:00 pm in Silverdale
Vashon Island Bee Association-Meets first Saturday of month location changes seasonally

Regional Area 2
Clark County Beekeepers-Meets 2nd Thursday each month at 7:00 pm in Brush Prairie
Cowlitz Beekeepers Association-Meets 3rd Thursday each month 7:00 pm in Kelso
Lewis County Beekeepers-Meets 2nd Thursday each month at 6:30 pm in Centralia
Pacific Northwest Queen Rearing Club-Meets last Monday
PACIFIC NORTHWEST

WILD SURVIVOR QUEENSOLYMPIC WILDERNESS APIARY

VSH / RUSSIAN / FERAL-HYBRIDS-D I SEASE R ESI STA NT -M I TE TO LERANT ISOLATED MATING YARDSHARDY – HYGIENIC-No Package Bees–

BREEDER QUEENS ONLY(360) 928-3125
www.wildernessbees.com

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Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

Regional Area 3 and 4
North Central WA Beekeepers Association-Meets 3rd Sunday each month in East Wenatchee

Regional Area 5 and 6
Inland Empire Beekeepers-Meets 2nd Friday each month at 7:30pm in Spokane
West Plains Beekeepers-Meets 3rd Friday of each month at 6:00pm in Medical Lake
Backyard Beekeepers Association-Meets 3rd Thursday of each month at 6:30 in Deer Park

Washington State Beekeepers Association Newsletter

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Feed a Bee Program Reaches 50-State Milestone
Feed a Bee, is national pollinator forage initiative by Bayer, a crop science company. On March 20th itannounced reaching its goal of awarding grants supporting diverse forage for honey bees and otherpollinators in all 50 states. The 50th recipient awarded recently was Gateway to the Arctic Camp located in
Talkeetna, Alaska. This nonprofit camp is dedicated to service and agriculture. It teaches the significance ofserving those in need and the value of hard work through fun activities involving sustainability, farming andenvironmental stewardship. This summer it will dedicate an entire field as forage for bees and otherpollinators where campers of all abilities, including those with special needs, will discover the connection
between honey bees and the crops they pollinate.
One of the Washington state grantees is Downriver Golf Course by the City of Spokane. There they planted
over an acre of wildflowers on a 120-acre golf course, in addition to a smaller community garden. The
project is inspiring and very community-oriented. Below are some great photos to showcase the work
being done.
You can go to the website https://www.feedabee.com/impact/ and see the map of all 50 states. By clicking on the state of your choice you can see the different projects supported by the Feed a Bee program.

About Bayer
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the Life Science fields of health care and agriculture.
Its products and services are designed to benefit people and improve their quality of life. At the same time,
the Group aims to create value through innovation, growth and high earning power. Bayer is committed tothe principles of sustainable development and to its social and ethical responsibilities as a corporate citizen.
Visit the website www.bayer.com to learn more.

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