FEATURE
“ We typically have 20 to 25 in attendance and sometimes as many as 35 or 40 people . Some are newbies , and some are experienced beekeepers with 35 or 40 years of experience . Surprisingly , we have had several women beekeepers show up .”
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Steve Neely
Pictured above and at left , club organizer Steve Neely talks to attendees at a recent Pollinators Bee Club meeting in Quitman . address the group on a topic timely for that month . Topics range from constructing and maintaining beehives to harvesting honey to avoiding destructive pests .
At a recent meeting , he polled attendees to gauge their beekeeping experience .
“ Just in the little group we had there , we had 180 collective years of beekeeping knowledge ,” Neely said . “ So almost any question anyone would have concerning beekeeping , there is probably somebody in our group who has experienced it and can share their knowledge .”
Pollinator club member Austin Dickerson , who has been a beekeeper off and on for more than three decades , presented one month on the topic of inspecting beehives and checking swarms .
“ Beekeeping is really popular right now ,” the Quitman resident said . “ I am on several Facebook group pages in the state and in the nation ,”
His first run at beekeeping was short lived as varroa mites wiped out his colonies in the 1980s . He got back into beekeeping about six years ago and now manages 16 hives .
Dickerson believes beekeeping is more popular now because people have listened to researchers ’ warnings about declining bee populations and have stepped up to protect the honey bees .
“ Anyone who is interested in beekeeping and wants to learn should come to our meetings . It is a wealth of knowledge ,” he said . Club member Richie Owen agrees . Owen , who is legally blind , got back into beekeeping a couple of years ago . He previously was a beekeeper in the 1970s .
“ I lost about 80 percent of my colonies last fall , but I think that is typical with a lot of hobby beekeepers ,” he said .
After catching three swarms , splitting a swarm three ways and receiving two swarms from fellow beekeepers , his bee population is back up to 10 hives .
“ A couple of the members have helped me a good bit by going with me to do cut outs and a couple have brought me a swarm ,” Owen noted .
He encourages anyone new to beekeeping to visit the monthly meetings for the valuable information discussed and to find a mentor .
The Pollinators Bee Club meets the first Thursday of each month at the Clarke County Multipurpose Building . The next meeting is scheduled for 6 p . m . Aug . 4 . More information is posted on the club ’ s Facebook page . M
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