Hasn't everyone here been in a smoker lighting contest? It used to be standard entertainment at beekeeper summer picnics.

The rules:
• Your choice of reasonable, plausible smoker fuels (no gasoline) and smoker, and a book of matches.
• First to light and set down her/his smoker wins, provided the smoker keeps going by itself for a set period of time -- I seem to recall five minutes.

At the last meeting Pete Bizzoso challenged everyone to a smoker contest. So maybe we will have one at this meeting. So bring your smokers and your fuel of choice and let’s see if a contest will be on the agenda. Maybe there will be a prize or two.

I mentioned in a previous newsletter how addicted I am to a virtual computer game called Farmville. They just announced that we are going to get virtual honeybees on our game. I am really excited, it will be a lot easier to harvest honey with just a click of the mouse. What fun.

My bees are busy, busy, busy. I added an additional honey super and will have to check them again this week to see if they need another. What a difference from last year. My butterfly/bee garden is coming into bloom so the bees have had a lovely place to work without having to travel too far. And I can just hang out in the hammock and watch it all.

The EAS Conference is scheduled for August 2-6, 2010 at Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina. Complete information and registration can be found at www.easternapiculture.org. For the new members of our club, if you haven’t heard about this wonderful opportunity to meet beekeepers from all over this part of the eastern seaboard, EAS is a great conference. There are wonderful lectures, fun activities and a learning experience not to be forgotten. The honey judging contest and vendors shopping is lots of fun too. Talk to us old timers if you want to learn more about it.

At the May meeting, again, we welcomed some new members: Caroline Sawyer, Milander Momaya, Kevin and Linda Fuller, Amy Pink and Fred Lipsky, Pedro Martinez, and John Mix. It’s really nice to have you join us.

Photos from Munzer Apiary


Marking the Queen


A frame of brood with the queen