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Club Apiaries & Hands-On Classes

     Our general hive inspection outdoor classes for members are held each year at the Maltby Apiary as soon as weather warms in April or May through August. Saturdays are noon to 3PM early in the season shifting to 10AM to 1PM as afternoons become too hot to comfortably work in the sun. Wednesdays 10am to 3PM are volunteer work days at the Maltby Apiary.  Hive maintenance and inspections will be done as weather permits and there are lots of undercover apiary maintenance activities if rain or heat push us inside. To volunteer in or work with the apiary manager at the Granite Falls location, text or call Ron at 206-719-3604 or email dizzybeeapiary@gmail.com to arrange times and dates.

    Advance notice is appreciated, even if on the day of the class. For the Maltby site, text or call Eli 206-859-7392 or email eliochel@snokingbka.org. Please indicate how many are attending and if you can not provide bee jackets and veils, we can. Apiary waiver needs to be signed the first time visiting the apiary.

     If you wish to be notified or reminded in a weekly email which apiaries are offering classes that weekend, email eliochel@snokingbka.org to be placed on the notification list. Please respond asap if you receive such a notification of openings and wish to attend.

     The annual Queen Rearing Workshop is suspended this year but will return in 2028. For more information about orkshop format in past years, click here. 

      Specific workshops covering Varroa treatments, the Harbo Varroa Sensitive Hygiene (VSH) assay and UBeeO (another VSH-type) assay will be offered. Watch our newsletters, check Calendar for dates and topics.

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     We can only open hives and demonstrate inspection techniques if the weather is close to or about 60 degrees F and sunny. If we can’t open bee hives, there is still lots to show and demonstrate:

  1. 2 methods of oxalic acid vaporization (a popular treatment for Varroa) and how to light a smoker.

  2. BYOS (Bring Your Own Smoker) and we will help you light it and see how to keep it going.

  3. Winterization, feeding and hive management, apiary setup, etc.

  4. Broodminder sensors

      If you are interested in seeing the Broodminder app used to upload data, we have a sensor at each apiary. Broodminder devices are not essential for beekeeping but are fun to use to image what’s going on inside our hives, and they give us an excuse to “talk bees” during the fall/winter months.

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