About Us
ILLINOIS VALLEY BEEKEEPING CLUB
is a support group for people interested in getting started keeping bees.
Next Meeting!
Friday September 13th, 2024
7:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Masks will bee a personal choice for the meeting.
La Salle County Extension Office
1689 North 31st Road
Lower Level (basement)
Ottawa, IL 61350
Detail on what will be discussed at the meeting coming soon.
Of course we will have the wonderful bee questions.
See you there!
It's going to be another great meeting
Bee There Or Bee Square!
Recap of the Aug. 9th, Meeting
Aug 9th Meeting
We had another wonderful meeting in June
We learned soo much!
We learned about a natural product that helps with bee stings - here is the name and it is sold on Amazon - Ollois Apis Mellifica 30c - it helps with the swelling and itch associated with a bee sting.
We talked about rating your queen - if she isn't laying well now your hive isn't going to make it through the winter. Now is a good time to replace her if you need to. Here is a link to the video on how to determine if you need to replace her. There are lots of videos on YouTube - here is one that shows what a really bad laying queen pattern looks like - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTWA1BwyatA
There will be queens for sale still for another month or so - just remember if your queen isn't laying good the hive will not survive.
How to feed your bees outside the hive - to help with inspections - the foragers wouldn't be home they would be bringing in the food to keep the queen laying. Here is a link to a video on how to make a bucket feeder.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RZaVOgyZBs - make sure you have it quite a ways away from your hives. You don't want it by your hives. 300 yards would be great. You also would be feeding any wild bees you might have that you do not know about. After you have removed your honey is a great time to feed. This helps them get ready for winter and feeding them when there isn't much out there keeps the queen laying so you build up for winter. The Asters and Golden Rod aren't really blooming good yet.
We also Thanked Meyer Bees for the wonderful picnic we had in July! They really do a lot for our club and he showed his apiary to the visitors.
The bee beard and the smoker contest were highlights of the day also.
We also got to meet a lot of nice beekeepers from 3 different clubs and some came from near Chicago.
Thank You again Dave and your family for a wonderful day!
If anyone has a problem and needs some help with their hives please call the number on this website or email us by way of the contact us button, and we can get some help for you.
LOCAL BEEKEEPER MENTORS
SUPPORT GROUP FOR BEGINNER BEEKEEPERS OR HELP GETTING STARTED!
We have monthly meetings to help the beginner or anyone who has questions. You do not have to be a member to attend the meetings!
They are open to anyone who wants to attend!
We welcome anyone who would like to come and talk at any of our meetings. We are always looking for speakers about beekeeping, observation hives, wax making, honey extracting, pretty much anything bees!
Total membership are $20.00 - $10.00 for the IVBA Club and $10.00 to Join the ISBA Club.
The ISBA gives us more information on what is happening down state and they have a lot of good information about new things with bees. They send out a quarterly news letter that is very informative.
If you would like to get someone a gift membership to the club please
call the number on the website and we will get you taken care of.
You can also use the contact us button to ask any questions about your bees or installing bees - any question is welcome.