November 2014 Newsletter

Editors:  Gina Gallucci and Linda Tillman

 David Tolar:  Best in Show at Perry Honey Show October 2014

President’s Message

Fall is upon us, the honey has been harvested and you are putting your smoker up for the winter if you are in North Georgia and just letting it cool down if you are in the southern part of the state.  Things are slowing down in the apiary, but your clubs are preparing for the Winter/Spring classes that you present to the public every year.  

With that in mind I have asked Dr. Margo Wimbish to Chair the Junior Beekeeping Committee.  And she accepted!  Her task is to assist us in developing effective junior/youth beekeeping programs or classes that you may want to present this coming year.   I know that many of our clubs present a public class for adults and they generally fill up quickly, but a youth program must be developed and presented a little differently to hold their attention and make them excited to learn.  Not many kids care about neonicotinoids and such and don’t really care about the politics.  Dr. Wimbish presented a couple of breakout sessions, which were very well received at the Fall Meeting in Milledgeville.  Her energy level and desire to help is a blessing to us and we should take full advantage of her work.  She is a volunteer, as we are all, and we appreciate her energy and help.  Her email contact is: wimbish.margo@mail.fc.boe.org.  Once the word gets out, I know that her dance card will fill up fast, so don’t delay in getting her scheduled.  And don’t forget to have your junior beekeeping activity posted on our GBA website calendar. 

You all should know by now that we are having our spring meeting at the Lake Blackshear Resort, near Cordele in February.   The dates are  Feb. 13 - 14, 2015. The board meeting and social will be Friday evening and sessions will be all day on Saturday.  Please plan on attending.  The facilities are great with a fantastic hotel and a campground at the Georgia Veterans State Park, if you choose to bring your RV.   Linda Tillman and Julia Mahood are working hard to put on a great meeting.  Since it will be on Valentine’s Day, the resort will have a special dinner/dance that night, so you can plan to stay and impress your sweetie. 

Other upcoming events are the American Bee Federation conference in Anaheim, CA. from 6-10 January 2015.  Slade Jarrett and I plan on representing GBA at that conference.  The Eastern Apicultural Society  (EAS) Conference will be in Canada this coming year and Mary Cahill-Roberts will represent GBA there, as she is on their board.  I encourage all of you to attend.  Thank you all for your continued support and hard work in keeping the Georgia Beekeeping Association the wonderful organization that it is.  

Clay “Bear” Kelley,

President, Georgia Beekeepers Assn. 

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GBA Club News: 

Dr.  Margo Wimbish has been appointed the Chairperson of the new Junior Beekeeping Committee.   Thank you very much for stepping up and accepting this position and assisting the Georgia beekeeping clubs in preparing and presenting beekeeping programs to junior beekeepers.  Thank you and we all look forward to working with you.

Margo Wimbish relating to kids as she teaches them - great resource for our organization.

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We celebrate Clay “Bear” Kelley, our Georgia Beekeeper of 2014.  Thanks to the photographers who contributed to this collage:  Marybeth Kelley, Cindy Hodges, Deborah Sasser, Linda Tillman

"Bear" Kelly is our 2014 GBA Beekeeper of the Year.  

Bear began beekeeping over six years ago after retirement from the Military.  He has served as past president of the Heart of Georgia Beekeepers Associationand now is the current President of the Georgia Beekeepers Association (GBA).  Since he has taken over as GBA president he has devoted his time and efforts to building membership, promoting beekeeping, and instigating by-law changes for improving the organization.  He has energized the organization through his constant focus on making GBA a better and more active state group.  

• He has managed meetings, made them fun for all, and brought incredible spirit and energy to his role as GBA president.
• He stays in touch with the Board of Directors, both collectively and individually, to keep people working on projects that benefit GBA
• He has worked on projects to get bee hives in state parks and in some state prisons   
• He represents Georgia at ABF and comes back brimming with more thoughts about how to make our organization even better.  
• He has really pushed to get every president of local bee clubs to become a GBA member - that task isn't complete yet, but he is driven to achieve this goal.
• He has revitalized the 4-H program and the Junior Beekeeping program.
• He developed a Power Point about the value of becoming a member of GBA and has shown it to clubs across the state.
• He manages a small apiary in his yard and has beautifully kept hives
• By the time you read this, he will have thought up three or four more ways to improve the Georgia Beekeepers Association.

We are so lucky to have him as president.  He is an involved beekeeper, engages in producing products of the hive beyond honey with his wife Marybeth. He champions beekeeping in Georgia at every opportunity.  Congratulations, Bear!

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The Perry Honey Show

submitted by Bear Kelley

The second annual Georgia National Fair Honey Show took place on October 3, 2014. There were 27 entries  in categories ranging from extracted light, amber and dark to black jar.  Secretary Slade Jarrett eagerly welcomed each entrant and studiously recorded the participant's contribution to the show.  Senior Judge Keith Fielder, with assistance from Judges Brutz English and Bear Kelley evaluated and critiqued each entry.  Not an easy task!  

Ribbon winners were: 

First Place Light Extracted, Kristie Jarrett; 

Second Place Light Extracted, Jay Parsons; 

Third Place Amber Extracted, David Tolar; 

Third Place Dark Extracted, Brutz English; 

Second Place Black Jar, Katrina Papel; 

Third Place Black Jar, Amanda Hayes;  

Best in Show, David Tolar Black Jar.  

All of these deserving participants had their ribbons on display at the Heart of Georgia Beekeepers Association honey booth throughout the fair.  David Tolar was the recipient of the beautiful Georgia Beekeepers Association award, which was also on display at the honey booth. 

A big thank you to Heart of Georgia Beekeepers Association for again sponsoring the honey show.

* A judge having an entry in a particular honey show category may not judge that category. 

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Club News and Notes:

November Club Meetings and Speakers:

Beekeepers Club of Gwinnett

Nov 11 7 PM Hebron Baptist Church, Dacula, GA

Berry Brosi: Speaker’s Topic of Choice

Coastal Empire Beekeepers:

 Nov 10 6:30 PM Oatland Wildlife Center, Savannah, GA  

Members Roundtable: Fall Inspections: Did you Miss Anything?

Chattahoochee Valley Beekeepers Association

Nov 10  6 PM Oxbow Center, Columbus, GA  

Bill Owens: Speaker’s Topic of Choice

Eastern Piedmont Beekeepers

Nov 3 7 PM Campbell Research Center, Watkinsville, GA

Planning meeting for tour of Blue Ridge Honey Company on Nov 15

Henry County Beekeepers 

Nov 11  7 PM 116 S Zack Hinton Pkwy, McDonough, GA  

BJ Weeks: Speaker’s Topic of Choice

Lake Country Beekeepers

Special date:  November 24 7 PM Hancock County Extension Service, Sparta, GA 

Jamie Ellis:  Speaker’s Topic of Choice

Lake Hartwell Beekeepers Nov 6   7 PM  First Baptist Church, Lavonia, GA  

Bob Binnie: Bee Equipment and What You should Know about Processing Honey

Metro Atlanta Beekeepers Association  

Nov 12  7 PM Atlanta Botanical Garden  

Keith Delaplane: Speaker’s Topic of Choice

Mountain Beekeepers 

Nov 4 7 PM United Community Bank, Blairsville

Potato Creek Beekeepers Club

Nov 20 7 PM  Spalding County Extension Office, Griffin, GA
Linda Tillman: Fun and Facts about Wax

SOWEGA Beekeepers Club

Nov 8 6:30 PM  Parks at Chehaw Learning Center 

Annual  Honey Show (entries due 5:30 - 6:30) 

Program during judging on the life of the worker bee

Tara Beekeepers Association

Nov 17 7 PM Forest Park  

Jerry Edwards:  How do I Sell this Honey?

Send in your club’s monthly meeting information to be published here in the Newsletter every month.  We’d love to help you expand your attendance and to help generate interest in what your club is doing.

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Below you'll find a crossword celebrating beekeepers in Georgia that we GBA members all know and love!  Have fun with it.

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Can You Believe It?!   IMITATION HONEY #$%@#

Walmart has broken the news of a revolutionary breakthrough, Sugarfree Honey.

In fact it's already on the shelves, see it in this picture.

How do you think the bees do it? (grin)                          contributed by Ricky Moore

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Medicinal Use of Beehive Air

by Steve Page

We spent the first eleven days of October in the Black Forest region of Germany.  Germany is a wonderful country with friendly people.  There are many quaint towns surrounded by beautiful farms and forests.  The food, beer and wine are excellent.  There are many beekeepers too. 

We visited two beekeepers and a beekeeping supply store.  We found honey for sale at farmers’ markets and in grocery stores. 

One of the beekeepers uses hives to provide hive air for people to breathe for healing.  The hives are in a shed with an opening in the wall to allow outside access.  The top of the hive has an opening with a screen and a small fan to pull air out of the hive and blow it into a tube and mask.  The beekeeper explained how hive air or ApiAir can help with asthma, bronchitis, croup, COPD and other afflictions. 

I don’t know of any documented positive results of hive air but the next time you’re inspecting a hive take a deep breath and enjoy the possible benefits.  Be forewarned:  if you breathe the air from a hive in the fall the pleasant aroma of spring wildflower nectar may be replaced with the unpleasant locker room smell caused by goldenrod nectar.

Beekeeping is a lot like moonshining.

Here's how:

• • Your neighbors aren't quite sure what you do
• • You have strange trucks visit you at irregular times
• • You do your work near or in the woods
• • You have strange contraptions and tools
• • You work with Mason jars
• • You work outdoors
• • Your product is often sold by the quart, and right out of your trunk
• • You're very vague about how much product you produce
• • You have unwritten secrets and recipes passed down by word of mouth
• • Everyone wants what you produce
• • You buy sugar: lots and lots of sugar

Rick Moore

Heart of GA

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Dear Aunt Bee,

All of my hives have screened bottom boards.

In your opinion should I change all my bottom boards to solid or am I okay to leave screened bottom boards over the winter?  Is there an advantage one over the other?

Thanks for your help to all of us new beekeepers,

Ventilation Vicky

Dear Vicky,

Luckily in Georgia and the deep South, we don’t have severe winters (last February notwithstanding).  We can leave our hives on screened bottom boards all year long.  The thing is, the bees keep their cluster warm and not the whole hive box.    

If you want to want to buy them little blankets, go ahead, but they are hard to clean.

Seriously, if you are concerned, closing off the screens in winter will do no harm and perhaps help a little if we have another February Snow Catastrophe.  Some beekeepers slide the plastic insert for varroa counting under the screen for the cold months.

Warmly,

Aunt Bee

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Honey-Glazed Turkey

14 Servings Prep: 25 min. Bake: 3-3/4 hours

Ingredients

• • 1 turkey (14 to 16 pounds)
• GLAZE:
  1/2 cup honey
  1/2 cup Dijon mustard
  1-1/2 teaspoons dried rosemary, crushed
  1 teaspoon onion powder
  1/2 teaspoon salt
  1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  1/4 teaspoon pepper
• STUFFING:
  1/2 cup butter, cubed
  2 cups chopped onion
  1-1/2 cups chopped celery
  12 cups unseasoned stuffing cubes or dry bread cubes
  1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
  2 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules
  1 teaspoon pepper
  1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
  1 teaspoon lemon-pepper seasoning
  3/4 teaspoon salt
  3-1/4 to 3-3/4 cups boiling water

Directions
Place turkey on a rack in a shallow roasting pan, breast side up. Tuck wings under turkey; tie drumsticks together. Bake at 325° for 2 hours.
In a small bowl, mix glaze ingredients; brush over turkey. Bake 1-3/4 to 2-1/4 hours longer or until a thermometer inserted in thickest part of thigh reads 170°-175°. Baste occasionally with pan drippings. (Cover loosely with foil if turkey browns too quickly.) 

For stuffing, in a Dutch oven, heat butter over medium-high heat. Add onion and celery; cook and stir until tender. Add stuffing cubes and seasonings; toss to combine. Stir in enough boiling water to reach desired moistness; transfer to a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Bake, covered, for 1 hour. Uncover and bake 10-15 minutes longer or until lightly browned.  Remove turkey from oven; cover loosely with foil and let stand 15 minutes before carving. If desired, skim fat and thicken pan drippings for gravy. Serve with turkey and stuffing. Yield: 14 servings (8 cups stuffing). 

Editor's Note: Stuffing can also be baked in turkey. Loosely stuff turkey just before baking; bake as directed, increasing final bake time by 15 minutes or until a thermometer reads 180° in thigh and 165° in center of stuffing. 

Wine: Medium-Bodied White Wine: Enjoy this recipe with a medium-bodied white wine such as Riesling or Gewürtztraminer 

 © Taste of Home 2014 

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Our Survey about Winter Equipment Storage - take a short moment to have fun with this one question survey!

Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey , the world's leading questionnaire tool.

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The Final Buzz

 We have much for which to be grateful this Thanksgiving.  We are thankful for the bees, honey, good friendships at GBA, all our newsletter contributors and our own Beekeeper of the Year & GBA President, Bear Kelley.  We acknowledge all these gifts and more.  Happy Thanksgiving to all!  

Gina and Linda