Penquis Beekeepers and Maine State Beekeeping News
Interested in Joining Penquis Beekeeping Club?
You can download a membership application by clicking here.
Open-to-the-Public Honey Extraction was a Sweet Success
2024 was a great year for honey at our community hives. We decided to make a demonstration of the process we backyard keepers use to extract the honey from the loaded frames. One night we did the extracting - a dozen member and non-member volunteers cutting off the capping and loading and spinning the honey in our 3 manual extractors. The next week, after the honey had a chance to settle out, we got together again. We washed and sterilized bottles and poured in the golden honey. We labeled the bottles and donated them to the Sherburne Community Garden, where we have our hives. The Community Garden grows produce for elderly and other members of the community. Each received a bottle of honey in their next bag of produce. Sweet!
Our Community Hives Win the 2023 Penquis Beekeepers Annual Honey Tasting Contest
Even though it was an "interesting" year, and very wet, our community hives at the Sherburn Memorial Gardens did pretty well. We were even able to draw honey from one of the hives. Our president entered it without any members knowing whose it was or where it was from. It ended up being the club favorite and won in our honey tasting contest. It was a very satisfying finish to the beekeeping season at the community hives.
Not everybody is "on Facebook", but the Penquis Beekeepers are now. If you have a facebook account, check us out at https://www.facebook.com/groups/penquisbeekeepers
The annual Maine beekeeper survey of losses and management practices is online at the DACF Apiary Program website (in the right-hand column under "Beekeeper Survey"). Gathering this type of data is important for seeing trends, recognizing when and how losses occur, and determining where to focus education/outreach activities in the future. All Maine beekeepers are encouraged to participate in the annual survey period (which starts again in April)
Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Honeybee Program
If you are interested in beekeeping in Maine, whether commercially or as a "backyard beekeeper", you'll want to check out the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry (DACF) Apiary (Honeybee) Program. Everything from licensing requirements, to education, to requesting help from the Maine State Apiarist, along with links to resources and valuable beekeeping information is available there. Be sure to check it out.
Maine Bee Forage Information
Here are items on bee and pollinator habitat, and habits, that could help you keep your hives strong!
Consider Joining the Maine State Beekeepers Assocation (MSBA)
Hands-down THE place to be if you want to be part of the Maine beekeeping community, and to learn and share with people of all levels of expertise and experience. https://mainebeekeepers.org/about-msba/membership/