monsanto sued by organic farmers

read the techdirt article

read the antantic article

want to read more about BIOPIRACY? her book STOLEN HARVEST is also very good.

bee vac project

Over the winter... a wood-working member of our circle of friends tackled the BEE VAC project for me. This pattern has an OUTER box which acts as the closed "suction" compartment...and an INNER box - like a "cartridge" that the bees go in. He made THREE inner boxes...for that REALLY BIG JOB :) A BIG THANKS to his wife for sacrificing her cutting board (plastic) for the hole closers!

ECWBA Newsletter - February 26 - 2011

Meeting Dates:

March 12, 2011, 9:30 am, at Ripon Public Library, Ripon, WI.

June 18, 2011, 1:00 pm, field day at Denise Palkovich’s bee yard, Mt Calvary, WI.

July 16, 2011, 9:30 am. Place to be determined.

September 10, 2011, 9:30 am. Place to be determined.

Meeting Locations:

• The March meeting will be at the Ripon Library, 120 Jefferson Street, Ripon, WI. The meeting will be downstairs in the Silver Creek Room. The Ripon Public Library is located one block behind the Ripon City Hall.
• The June 18, 2011, meeting will be at the bee yard of Denise Palkovich. Start time is 1:00 pm. Rain date is one week later, June 25. The address is W1575 Pit Road, Mt. Calvary, WI. To get there, take State Highway 23 east out of Fond du Lac (Hwy. 23 is Johnson St. in Fond du Lac). Turn left onto Log Tavern Road (which is the first road after County Highway W). Take a right onto Pit Road and an almost immediate left turn to address of the bee yard by the brown ranch style house.

March Meeting Agenda and Presentation Topic

The scheduled guest speaker for the March meeting might not be able to attend the meeting due to a scheduling conflict. There are a few issues under new business to be covered during the meeting. Then, the presentation will be an open question and answer forum similar to what we did in January. This will be an excellent opportunity for new beekeepers to ask questions before the beekeeping season gets under way.

Thank-you, Thank-you, Thank-you!!!

Thank-you to Craig Petros, Wisconsin State Apiary Inspector, for his very informative and interesting presentation at the February meeting. If you would like to have Craig come and inspect your bees, you can contact him directly at 262-968-5391. Inspections are free of charge, but you do have to schedule in advance a time for Craig to visit your bees.

Membership

Membership dues for 2011 will remain at $15.00 for a yearly membership. Let’s try to wrap-up membership payments by the end of March. See the end of this newsletter for payment information.

Beekeeping Notes:

• Winter is breaking and spring is just around the corner. The bees will start taking their cleansing flights soon. This means it will be feeding time. Be prepared to feed sugar syrup and pollen supplements or substitutes.
• If you use any medications for the control of diseases (nosema, American foul brood, mites, etc.) now is the time to obtain those medications. Study and learn how to properly use the medications. Poorly or improperly applied medications can do more harm than good!
• Before things get going too fast in the spring and summer, this would be a good time to check on your honey gathering supplies and equipment. Will you need more honey supers? Queen excluders? Bee escapes (triangle boards)? Jars and bottles for honey? Start planning ahead.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at 715-330-9969. I’m sometimes hard to contact, but leave a message and I’ll call you back. Or contact me via e-mail at jeff.champeau@yahoo.com.

Best of beekeeping, Jeff Champeau - President, ECWBA

Membership dues will be collected at the upcoming meetings. If you are unable to attend one of the next meetings, you may send your dues to one of the following ECWA officers:

Jeff Champeau, ECWBA President, 145 North Wisconsin Street, Berlin, WI 54923

Or

George Weigel, ECWBA Treasurer, 268 South Peters Avenue, Fond du Lac, WI 54935

If paying by check, please make check payable to East Central Wisconsin Beekeepers Association. A membership card and payment receipt will be returned to you promptly. Thank-you for your continued support of the East Central Wisconsin Beekeepers Association.

It's a BIRD....it's a PLANE...no - WHAT IS IT?

It's a POPPET! slip 'er on over your hand/arm...and make buzzing noises...run around the room and chase children (or adult children:)) !

...once again...I have to say...I HAD NO IDEA something like this even existed. Each day is glorious with new discoveries!!!

This came to me as a gift - from a student taking the most recent beekeeping classes. Thank you!