By TIM THORNBERRY
Kentucky Correspondent

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — As usual, farmers are taking winter to prepare for the growing season, and beekeepers around the state are no different; to help their endeavors, a series of six beekeeping schools are scheduled across Kentucky starting Jan. 22 and running through March 12.

While many keepers are hobbyists, agriculture on a larger scale depends on bees not only for pollination of crops but for value-added products that have helped in the diversification effort Kentucky producers have gone through over the last several years.

The schools are supported by the Kentucky Department of Agriculture (KDA) and offer classes for beginners and as well as experienced beekeepers, according to the agency. Vendors selling beekeeping equipment will also set up displays at all locations.

“Honeybees play an extremely important role in Kentucky agriculture as crop pollinators,” Agriculture Commissioner Richie Farmer said. “Many beekeepers also sell honey, which helps producers make a living and generates economic activity in many Kentucky communities. The Kentucky Department of Agriculture is pleased to support these beekeeping schools.”

Learning much about honeybees is more important than ever, as many have been lost to a condition known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) since its discovery in 2006. The USDA, in fact, recently released a report, as mandated by Congress, highlighting current research on CCD.

“Honeybees are critical to U.S. agriculture, with about 130 crops depending on pollination to add more than $15 billion in crop value annually. It is vital that we find a way to deal with CCD,” said USDA Agricultural Research Service Administrator Edward B. Knipling. “This report is an important measure of what we are learning about this serious problem.”

The report noted, “During the past three years, numerous causes for CCD have been proposed and examined. There have been many associations identified throughout the course of research; however, it is becoming increasingly clear that no single factor alone is responsible for the malady.

“Researchers continue to document elevated pathogen levels in CCD-affected bees, with no specific pathogen linked definitively to CCD. In addition, tests to examine hives for known honeybee parasites (varroa mites, honey bee tracheal mites, Nosema species), which pose significant problems for beekeepers, and once were highly suspected to play a major role in CCD, have not revealed these parasites, by themselves, at sufficient levels to explain the problem.”
While the mystery continues, education plays a growing role in getting the word out about possible causes as well as the importance of honeybees. Individual associations are helping in these endeavors.

Lorie Jacobs, president of the Kentuckiana Beekeepers Assoc. (KBA), said the information about CCD has helped heighten awareness of what would happen to the food supply if something harms honeybees.

“The CCD has created one big positive thing – it has shed light on the problem that if we lose our honeybees, we lose one-third of what we eat,” she said. “I think the media spotlight turned peoples’ thoughts toward food and where it comes from.”

She added while many still think of honey when they think of a bee, that is just the byproduct of their real job: To pollinate fruits, vegetables, trees and flowers.

Jacobs has noticed a resurgence in home gardening and community gardens that are using beehives for pollination. These are urban gardens, for the most part. Jacobs and her husband have three hives in their small yard, located near the center of Louisville.

With the bees, Jacobs said she has seen an increase in those with rain barrels in their yards, using rainwater for watering purposes along with other hobbies such as raising backyard chickens.

“Just because we live in an urban area, that doesn’t mean we can’t get back to nature and do some of the things we like to do to sustain ourselves, instead of running down to the local grocery store,” she said.

The KBA has grown to 58 members throughout the Louisville and southern Indiana area and meets once a month to learn from others in the industry and share ideas.

Jacobs recommends that those wishing to get started use common sense as to how many bees to work with and to educate their neighbors so they won’t fear getting stung every time they step out into their yards. She also said that in her experience with neighbors, they have been appreciative because of the beautiful flowers and trees that adorn the neighborhood thanks to the bees.
For more information on the beekeeping schools, including programs, pre-registration forms, directions and lists of vendors, go to www.kyagr.com/stat
evet/bees/index.htm