MANSFIELD — Last weekend was unseasonably cold, wet and blustery. Nevertheless, I trudged through the mud at Kingwood Center Gardens to check out the Richland County Beekeepers’ Association Field Day.
It was not the ideal day for it. Before the event even got started a metal tent pole blew down and slammed the President of the Association in the face, resulting in a trip to the emergency room.
Still, I’m not one to let a bit of wind and rain put me off and neither are the good folks of the Beekeepers’ Association.
“The show must go on!” announced board member and veteran beekeeper Dave Duncan. “I’ve told 20 or 30 people about today.”
“Were they crazy people?” someone piped up. “Because only crazy people will come out today.”
Dave chose not to respond and instead showed me what’s known as a “branch colony” (see picture).
“Take a look,” he said, “it’s a work of art, plain and simple.”
He explained that these are “feral bees” – in other words, bees in the wild. Although they can and do form a colony around a tree branch, it’s not ideal in Ohio’s climate.
What’s better, I asked?
“What they want is a hollow tree. Warm in the winter, then in the summer the shade of the leaves keeps them cool.”
I was surprised to learn that, with care, these branch colonies can be moved intact and housed in wooden hives, where they have a greater chance of survival during the winter.
“It’s best to move them at night,” said Dave. “It looks different then, like it’s covered in a carpet of bees, a sort of cushion.”
He handed me a piece of honeycomb and I took a close look, marveling at the mathematical precision and the intricate pattern of the individual cells.
I looked up and Dave caught my eye.
“You have a bee on your shoulder. Stay calm. No hand waving. That means ‘Sting me, I’m stupid.’”
Sensible advice, and a world away from the examples I’d witnessed as a child on family picnics, where the strongly-favored reaction to a bee was to whirl about screaming hysterically in an elaborate dance of terror, squashing cakes and sending cups of tea flying.
Apparently this is not the thing to do.
By now a small group had arrived and gathered around Dave’s demonstration, so I stepped aside and spoke with Andy Rex, another experienced beeman.
Andy catches swarms in the wild for his hives. He told me that a swarm of bees represents the birth of a new colony, as the queen bee and her workers fly around looking for a suitable place to live.
“The bees are actually calmer when they’re swarming. You can stick your finger in a swarm and they probably won’t sting.”
Once Andy caught four swarms in a single day.
“I did get stung nine times on the face that day. There was a storm coming and I didn’t have time to get all my protective gear on. The bees aren’t happy before a storm.
“You know, you’re gonna get stung at some point. The thing is to get the stinger out as quickly as possible, because when it’s stuck in you it carries on pumping venom. Then get some ice on it and take some Benadryl.”
Despite the rain, more folks had started to gather and I spotted Darla Komora, one of my library colleagues. I didn’t know she was part of the bee crowd so I asked her how she got started.
“I just came to events like this and asked lots of questions. I always said it was for my grandson, but I guess it was for me! I was curious, because I had a butterfly garden that attracted a lot of bees. I got involved and now I’ve been keeping bees for four years.”
Association Treasurer Jennifer Hurst was kind enough to bring me a bratwurst, and as I munched away she told me about her first experience with bees, long before she moved to Ohio and started keeping bees herself.
“I was living in Miami Beach, Florida, and bees got into my attic through a hole in the eaves. I actually had honey dripping down the walls of my living room.”
I asked her to repeat this.
“Yes, honey dripping down the walls! But I was not a beekeeper at the time and did not expect to be. After I left Florida and traveled before moving to Ohio, I visited some hives in North Carolina. It’s thrilling to see bees boiling out of a hive. It scared me a bit.”
Jennifer caught the bug and now keeps bees of her own here in Mansfield.
“I’m a hobbyist, I don’t worry about selling bee products. My goal is to keep the bees alive and enjoy the learning. They intrigue and humble me.”
I’ve only touched on the information and enthusiasm that was being shared that day. If you’re interested in beekeeping – or even if you have no intention of keeping bees but are just curious – drop in on one of the Association’s monthly meetings. They have a wealth of practical knowledge that they are happy to share, and new faces are always warmly welcomed.
The following day, I called Jennifer to check on the progress of Hager Hicks, the Association’s President who’d been whacked by the tent pole. I’m pleased to report that no permanent harm was done and he is on the mend.
The Richland County Beekeepers’ Association meets on the third Tuesday of every month (December and January excepted) at 7 p.m. at the Longview Center, 1497 Longview Ave, Mansfield, Ohio. Guests always welcome.
Find them online at http://www.richlandareabeekeeper.com.
