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An introduction to several types and why you'd want one, with a special focus on Long Langstroth hive construction and management Thursday, May 14, 2026 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm Ivy Creek Foundation Educational Building 1780 Earlysville Road, Charlottesville Noa "Noy" Szefler is the Education Director for the Ashland Beekeepers Association and an active mentor, teaching in Bee School and leading hands-on workshops. She manages up to 13 colonies in a home apiary focused on treatme

Beekeeping Class The Beginning Beekeeping class is scheduled this fall beginning Sept 27, 2026. It is sponsored by the Albemarle County Parks & Rec. Dept. Watch for their “Open Doors” newsletter. Experienced beekeepers will teach the core topics and Karen Hall will act as class coordinator. It will run 2-4 pm, Sunday afternoons for 5 weeks: Sept 27, Oct 4, 11, 18 and 25. Virginia Winter Honey Bee Colony Loss Survey Winter is a stressful season for honey bee colonies i

As the days begin to get longer in January some colonies will begin to brood up a bit. Minor brood rearing is stimulated by warm sunny days paired with winter pollen sources such as witch-hazel and mistletoe and ornamentals. The brood will really kick into gear when red maple blooms in mid-February. Winter hive inspections strike a delicate balance between the risks of stressing the bees and the potential to help them avert crisis. I try to do a brief check on bees about once

A story of small hive beetles and lessons learned.

Though it is somewhat “old news” at this point, I wanted to give a shout-out to the volunteers and honey judging winners in this year’s Albemarle County Fair. As in recent years, the fair was held at Ashlawn – Highlands. We’ve become a major fixture at the fair, and this year saw our exhibit humming with guests almost continuously. Numerous visitors to our tent stopped back by our exhibit as they were leaving the fairgrounds to thank us for the time that was spent talking to

Veteran beekeeper, Ron Stilwell has handled literally millions of stinging insects over the years. When not beekeeping, he relieves local homeowners and businesses of the hassle and fear of ground-dwelling yellow jackets, while also providing support for people seeking venom immunotherapy. 2 Photo courtesy of Ron Stilwell Yellow jacket wasps are collected live, flash frozen, and shipped to a laboratory in Washington State where their venom extracted for clinical use. Ron S