Hazelrigg 2016 KSBA Beekeeper of the Year

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1 We wish Happy Holly-days to our honey bee friends, who love to pollinate American Holly plants such as shown here. Kentucky Department of Agriculture State Apiarist Dr. Tammy Horn Potter Kentucky Department of Agriculture, Ryan F. Quarles, Commissioner December 2016 Hazelrigg 2016 KSBA Beekeeper of the Year By Brenda Buchweitz Pennyrile Beekeepers Association Jim Hazelrigg was announced the 2016 Kentucky State Beekeeper of the Year. at the Kentucky State Beekeepers Association Fall Meet This award is given to the KSBA member who is both an excellent beekeeper and has done some outstanding or useful work for the KSBA. Jim has been a past KSBA President (2011) and, more Jim Hazelrigg, former president and treasurer of the Kentucky State Beekeepers recently, the KSBA Treasurer for Association, was named 2016 KSBA Beekeeper of the Year. His wife, Lynn (left), and sister two years, He has Jana are pictured with Jim in the honey house he completed earlier this summer, before donated his time and effort at health issues set him back from beekeeping. (Steve Buchweitz photo) several of the KSBA sponsored bee schools. As KSBA President, he attended almost all of Experts educate at KSBA Fall meeting the state bee schools both recruiting and presenting the Experts addressing the Fall Meeting of the Kentucky State KSBA position. Beekeepers Association included Gabe Blatt (standing, right), West Virginia Queen He also represented KSBA at the Heartland Breeders Association, Apicultural Society while President. We all know he has displaying a mating nuc to the KSBA been wonderfully active in our own club. He has most meeting audience. certainly earned this award. Congratulations, Jim! We Rick Sutton, the 2017 are proud of you. KSBA Beekeeper, is originally in Smoke Signals newsletter seated in the photo. At left, Lindsey New from Pulaski County shared some of the new Farm Service Agency programs, and Judge Dan O Hanlon from West Virginia (center) discussed the West Virginia Bee Immunity law. BeeLines December

2 State Apiarist s schedule Dec. 9: Science Night at Julian Marks Elementary, Lexington. Dec. 9-16: Bee Audacious Conference, Marshall, Calif. See adjacent story. Dec. 21: Veterinarian Bee Disease Overview. See story below. Apiarist asked for audacious solutions Kentucky State Apiarist Dr. Tammy Horn Potter has been invited to Bee Audacious, a summit conference organized by Mark Winston on pollinator policy this month in Marshall, Calif., joining experts and thought leaders all over the world to solve the challenges facing our pollinator partners. The unique collaborative working conference is designed to envision bold, evidence-based ideas through which honey bees, wild bees, beekeepers, and pollination managers can prosper. Following the first invitational event, a second public panel will be held at Dominican University in San Rafael, California, on Dec. 14. That panel will explore the first event s outcomes and explore ways we can all help the planet s pollinators. The Public Panel will be recorded and available online. More: State Apiarist s Report: Introducing 2017 KSBA officers By Dr. Tammy Horn Potter Contact the new 2017 officers of the Kentucky State Beekeepers Association (KSBA) with your suggestions (and your offer to volunteer) on how to make a better 2017 happen for the group. The new slate of KSBA officers held a meet and greet at the Hardin County Extension Office in Elizabethtown to get together with appointed representatives of KSBA bee associations. Many local association presidents attended, and made suggestions for better communication and creating a list of goals and speakers for the next two years. * * * I will host a Veterinarian Bee Disease Overview session on Dec. 21, 1-3 p.m., at the State Apiarist office, 109 Corporate Drive, Frankfort. There is no fee, but participants should preregister by Dec. 19 at tammy.horn@ky.gov. * * * WASHINGTON (USAgNet) Effective Jan. 1, medically important antimicrobials in medicated feed will become veterinary feed directive drugs, and the resulting VFD feed must be authorized by a licensed veterinarian and distributed and used in compliance with the VFD regulation. The Food and Drug Administration also noted that animal producers will no longer be able to use these VFD feeds for growth promotion or feed efficiency. The agency has released a video explaining these changes and providing an overview of VFD regulation requirements. The video can be accessed at: be/j0spgprhg9c See REPORT, page 3 Rick Sutton, President (Garrard Co.) Jake Osborne, President Elect (Daviess Co.) Chris Renfrow, Vice President (Ohio Co.) Jason Conley, Secretary (Martin Co.) John Benham, Treasurer (Allen Co.) Tana Peers, Sergeant at Arms (Shelby Co.) Kent Williams, Historian (Graves Co.) Ray Tucker, Jr., Past President (Pulaski Co.) Beekeepers organize in Ohio Co. KSBA welcomes the Ohio County Beekeepers Association. The new group will meet every second Tuesday at the Ohio County Extension Office at 7 p.m. Chris Renfrow is president, Matt Stagner is vice president, Shelley Renfrow serves as treasurer, and Kristi Milam is secretary. KSBA MEMBERSHIP FORM on last two pages of this issue BeeLines December

3 REPORT... from page 2 VFD Veterianrians list Regarding the VFD, here is a list of Kentucky veterinarians willing to be contacted to set up a Veterinarian Client Patient Relationship (VCPR) that precedes the request to a vet to issue a Veterinarian Feed Directive. To learn more, visit AnimalVeterinary/DevelopmentApprovalProcess/ ucm htm. Holiday season gift giving is easy when you have beekeepers around. Please support your local beekeeper artist and supply chains. This list may expand after the Dec. 21 training session (see previous page). Vicky Owens McGrath, DVM All Creatures Animal Hospital 942 Lovers Lane, Bowling Green, KY vlodvm@gmail.com Phone: (270) Note: Dr. McGrath s husband, Pat McGrath, DVM, is also a veterinarian, and is willing to be contacted. Daniel J. Davis, DVM Florence Veterinary Hospital 8113 US Highway 42, Florence, KY ddavisdvm94@gmail.com Phone: (513) Craig J. Blair, DVM Clays Mill Veterinary Clinic 625 Delzan Place, Lexington, KY Text: (859) Note: Dr. Blair prefers direct personal texts or s rather than phone calls to staff. Sweet holiday gift ideas Jennifer Zingg and Travis Kelley offer bee-themed necklaces, bird houses, and artwork at Full Circle, 309 Shelby St., Frankfort KY The bee necklace pictured is grown from home-planted gourd seed and created in-store approximately $15, with gift box. For those whose chapped hands need a more textured lotion, Annie Broyles Beeswax Jelly (pictured) has more beeswax than liquids, making a longer-lasting lotion. Annie and son-in-law, Chuck, run The Bee Barn, 4445 Clinton Road, Paducah KY They sell supplies, but Annie also is a fine beewax chandler, making Christmas tree beeswax decorations. See Kentucky artisan Rebecca Wheat craftss beethemed jewelry such as the moonstone shown at left. Of her ring and pendant creations, she says, each one is different, and the price varies depending on size and type of stone. Most of Rebecca s works cost $75 to $ lilyofthevalleyky@gmail.com Instagram Website- Kentuckylily.com Etsy shop address - Kentuckylily Honey Bee Health Project receives research grant funding Kentucky s share of the grant proceeds will fund the purchase of Varroa mite-resistant queens and develop a statewide queen bee breeding association. Dr. Potter will serve on the advisory board, helping compile data to be shared and tracking project outcomes such as number of training events held, numbers of Midwest Our proposal was ranked #1 by the funding panel, Hunt queens produced and sold, data on survival, mite biting, and announced to HBHP members. other statistical measures. Kentucky State Apiarist Dr. Tammy Horn Potter said that he Honey Bee Health Project has been grant-funded for the CARE project, which starts in February 2017, announces Greg J. Hunt of Purdue University. Each state queen breeder association will receive $4,000 a year for extension and research activities. BeeLines December

4 2016 Hive Count / Honey Report totals: Many beekeepers with ten years or more experience have not suffered the losses of hives they had in years past. The wet, cold month of May really hurt honey production, and eastern Kentucky seemed to be in a mild nectar drought the entire year, But timely rain in June and consistent rain patterns thereafter seemed to make the rest of the summer and fall fairly consistent. At this writing, the honey bees were still bringing in nectar, and since the November has been unseasonably mild, there were still brood patches in the hives. Also, the consistent nectar flow, while light, prevented many beekeepers from treating their hives. We never really had a fall dearth, and so many beekeepers are beginning to see Varroa mites. For those new to treating for Varroa mites, there is a new video series produced by the Honey Bee Health Coalition. The website is www. honeybeehealthcoalition.org. These 12 videos are short how-to demonstrations of sampling, applying oxalic acid, and other Varroa mite controls. They are free to download. Hive Count, 10,712 hives with 2,355 losses (approximately 21 percent losses). I expect both of these to go up as reports still are rolling in to the office. Honey Report, 121,393 pounds of honey, with the Kentucky State Fair numbers still not recorded as of Nov. 15. I expect this number to go up before Dec. 31. Please use and share these videos: Video 1 - IPM - afllpz5kbgu Video Sampling methods - youtu.be/igpft9fqxlc Video 4 - Essential oils - Video 5 - Using Apivar - Video 6 - Using Apistan or Checkmite+ - youtube.com/watch?v=nsby1nuurey Video 7 - Formic acid - watch?v=6pk5btjexss Video 8 - Using HopGuard - watch?v=rolafuibbf0&t=8s Video 9 - Using Oxalic Acid - watch?v=sp-9ed3sgww Video 10 - Using sanitation, screen bottoms Video 11 - Using drone brood removal - youtube.com/watch?v=j17astzxegs Video 12 - Using requeening - watch?v=gnpbistvc60 Chart, next page USDA: Kentucky must fight Varroa, but is beating Nosema By Dr. Tammy Horn Potter The USDA-APHIS Honey Bee Health chart is the first baseline data tracking bee health in Kentucky. I took samples from 24 apiaries and we received in return a pathogen count of Varroa mites and nosemae spores, and then a virus report. Take-aways: All apiaries (100%) had Varroa mites. No surprise. 46 percent of apiaries had high Varroa mite counts. This is unacceptably high. USDA recommends that hives have no more than 3 mites per 100 honey bees. There is not a lot we can control when it comes to our bees having Varroa, but we can control the mite threshold levels. My future goal is to promote better management strategies of Varroa so that this number is lower in future years. Very good news: Our hives are not dying from Nosema. The researchers were unable to glean virus titers from Sample #13, but otherwise, every apiary had at least one virus. Some apiaries had four viruses. Deformed Wing Virus is the most common virus, and there is a strong correlation between DWV and Varroa mites. Kentucky is included in the federal budget year for and also for I really appreciate all the volunteers who have participated. BeeLines December

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6 Kentucky State Beekeepers Association Membership Form Year 2017 Annual dues are $15 (per family) Family is parents & children under 18 If a local association submits dues, the local association may keep $2.00 and send in $ Membership expires Dec. 31 renewal due January 1 Please Type or Print All Information Clearly * Name: * Address: * City: * State * Zip: Home telephone #: Cell telephone #: address: Name of local beekeeping association, if a member: We are adding a new section to the KSBA website to help the public know where they can purchase local honey and related items. If you would like to be included, please fill out the information on the back of this form. * Required information While phone number(s) & address are not required, this information will aid in communication, especially if we have questions about your address. Mail form and check to: Kentucky State Beekeepers Assoc. C/o John Benham 1523 Colesbend Rd. Smiths Grove, KY (Below for treasurer s use) _ Date Received: Amount: Check No.: BeeLines December

7 I would like to be included on the KSBA website. Below is the information I would like the KSBA webmaster to include on the website to help the public find my products. * Name: Farm Name: * County: * Products / Services (check all that apply): Honey Lotions / creams Nucs Pollen Lip balms Queens Propolis Swarm removal Beekeeping equipment Beeswax Candles Hive removal from trees or buildings Honey bee related art I certify that all my honey, pollen, propolis, and beeswax come from hives located in Ky. * What contact information would you like listed? (Check all that apply.): * Required items Address: Telephone: Website: All transactions will be solely between you and the purchaser. By submitting the above information you agree not to hold KSBA liable for any circumstances arising from publishing your information on the website. PRINT AND SEND these two pages; OR Visit website ksbabeekeeping.org/membership/ and complete the same form online; OR A fillable-field PDF of the form is included with the message carrying this issue of BeeLines. BeeLines December