Table of Contents
Letter from the President
I hope everyone has had a good year so far with your bees. It has been a very busy one for me with bees, family, and ABA.
Your board has been working hard all year to provide what we anticipate to be a great Fall Conference. A lot of work has gone into organizing a quality event with something for everyone. We have tried to keep the prices down over the years. Much of our work has been dealing with overall increased costs for food, facilities, etc. Providing what you, our membership, has requested through the comments turned in at the end of each conference (all read and greatly appreciated) is a priority. With that being said I look forward to seeing you there this year and talking to each and every one of you. Fall Conference is THE time we can all come together, learn, and fellowship.
Safe travels to you all and may the rest of your bee year be blessed.
Hal Hendrix
President ABA.
Letter From the Vice President
Warm summer greetings everyone! I have been so excited to host several JR BEEKEEPING camps at my farm this year, I love seeing the fascination of bees through the eyes of children, pictures and article further in our stinger!
I hope you all are having a great honey production year! As we are in the hottest months of the year, bee mindful of your bee ladies and offer them a great source of water, or they may just find one in your neighbor’s pool!
It’s hard to beelieve that our Fall Conference is a little over six weeks away! This is going to bee a GREAT year! I am so thankful to our board of directors. They have worked and planned well together to offer an amazing time to learn, reconnect with other beekeepers, purchase equipment, products, plants, eat, taste honey from around the world and enjoy our time together, sharing stories of triumph and sometimes defeat. I am thrilled about the topics and presenters we have coming to share their knowledge with us all! As you all know it takes a lot of moving parts to plan and serve.
Please if you have a nominee for Beekeeper of the year, get it
To David Ellis soon as you can, this is a huge honor in our state!
I have thoroughly enjoyed my time serving you all as Vice President of this WONDERFUL association the past two years. Planning the fall conferences, communicating with new vendors, new inspectors and the connections I have made with Alfa and Auburn, meeting new folks, visiting your county club meetings have all been a joy. WOW, I AM BLESSED! I would love to hear from you folks, how you think I did, what you would like to see added or changed as we vote in new leadership. There are already new things on my slate as we prepare together to keep, expand on and plan the best in beekeeping practices in our state!
Ya’ll please let me know if you would like to help in any way at our Conference, we have a place for all to be a part of our association.
I look forward to seeing you all in a few weeks!
YA’LL BEE BLESSED
ALLYSON
Letter from the Secretary
Salutations!
It’s been a busy summer. My honey harvest is done, and I will soon get my fall mite treatments underway. I had several young hives from swarms or splits this year that were building up, and I’m hoping that if they all survive the coming winter, I will have a banner season of backyard honey production in 2027… but I feel like I always say that! It’s something I have noticed aboutmost beekeepers I talk to, in fact. Beekeepers are generally very optimistic, glass half-full types of people.
We have to be. So many things can go wrong, and if we don’t have hope for the next season, we may ultimately quit beekeeping. In the fall, our glasses may be half-full, but there are things we can do to refill our glasses.
We can treat our hives for mites, feed our hives, do all the various things necessary to tuck our bees in for the short Alabama winter, and these efforts can increase our chances that our bees will survive.
Additionally, we can use this time between seasons to learn more about what we are doing. Several great beekeeping conferences (including the ABA fall conference) are happening between now and next spring. When you attend beekeeping conferences, you get a chance to learn new strategies, gain understanding, meet other beekeepers, and discuss ideas. I always leave a conference feeling motivated and empowered.
Another thing that might help refill your cup is visual, literary, and cinematic art. Be sure to make time this fall to go see the new Matthew McConaughey movie, Rivals of Amziah King. This movie was filmed in Alabama! You probably know someone who was directly or indirectly involved. All the scenes with bees are really bees, not AI creations. Adam Hickman, one of the bee wranglers for the movie, has seen it and says that the scenes with bees are really beautiful. It will premiere in limited locations on August 14.
Thanks for reading the Stinger, and I hope you all can make the time to see the movie, reconnect with your beekeeping friends, come to the ABA conference, and move towards the next beekeeping season with full cups!
Amy Seiber, Secretary
Fall Conference Info & Opportunities
VISIT Fall Conference – Alabama Beekeepers Association FOR SCHEDULE, SPEAKERS AND TICKETS
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OPPORTUNITIES TO SERVE
E-mail James Guy at redtidefarms@gmail.com or jguy@faulkner.edu for more info.
To volunteer, complete this form (you may need to cut and paste into your browser): https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfrFrgZpPhnAAEgKwmTpk2J3uPvSYpVPA6GbsREGY-sSXqMGw/viewform?usp=publish-editor
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2026 Young Beekeeper
CONGRATULATIONS to Ienn Ruiz of Birmingham, AL, this year’s Young Beekeeper Scholarship winner.
My name is Ienn, and for as long as I can remember, I have been outside day in and day out observing and admiring the insects in my backyard, even going out of my way to climb on my dad’s shoulders and reach for that elusive Polyphemus moth, or strolling about in the dark with a flashlight in search of nocturnal beetles. Insects are a passion of mine. Every book I check out is centered on these diverse creatures. All my family and friends know that I’ll likely be exploring during outings. My parent’s coworkers know to hold on to any unusual insects they come across.
My ideal career would be something insect-related, and beekeeping seems to be a good fit for me. I have enjoyed my recent experiences as a counselor for the Foxhound Bee Company’s summer camp for kids, and I aspire to continue in such a promising direction. Beekeeping has opened a door for me. Perhaps there is a successful career working with insects in my near future.
HONEYBEE ESSAY
I have always been an insect enthusiast, fascinated by all the various species that I encounter in my day-to-day life. My passion for insects started when I was very young. I am now 15 years old, and I feel I have accumulated several years’ worth of experience with insects. Several people say that I’ve become fairly knowledgeable about the subject. Recently, though I have been exploring one particular species in more detail than I have with most others. I’m referring to the honeybee, Apis Mellifera. The honeybee is a familiar, but unusual insect that nearly everybody knows about. I know I used to ignore these small honey-colored insects because they’re just so common, but my viewpoint has recently changed.
It started when I attended a honeybee presentation given by a local beekeeping company, Foxhound Bee Company. I soon found myself volunteering as a counselor for foxhound’s first summer camp. It was undoubtedly an enlightening experience. As it turned out, I learned so many new facts about honeybees that would have never crossed my mind before.
I already knew some of the reasons why people have domesticated honeybees, but spending time with actual beekeepers added so many little details to my existing knowledge details that most people would likely take for granted. These insects are one of the few species of bees that produce such copious amounts of honey – enough to be easily harvested and sold on a commercial scale while still leaving more than enough for the bees themselves to survive. Amazingly, although it may crystallize the honey never spoils. Honey is perhaps the only food that meets all the conditions to sustain life. I understand that in addition to honey production, honeybees are also kept for the unique wax that they produce to construct their comb.
Before I became a camp counselor, I was unaware that honeybees use anything other than beeswax to build. In addition to that yellow wax, they also harvest tree resin. This processed pitch, which is called propolis, is used by the bees to seal holes, reinforce structures, and glue down the lids of high boxes, protecting the breed from the elements. The sticky substance actually has some medicinal properties as well and can be harvested by humans in addition to wax honey and even the pollen that honeybees collect when they forage. These bees are responsible for pollinating a large percentage of flowers, fruits, and trees, and their adaptability has allowed them to be kept on nearly every continent. They are exceptional pollinators, another reason they are kept around the world. Farmers everywhere rely heavily on this bee’s versatility for the pollination of their crops
I’ve also recently learned some other things about these industrious insects. For instance, honeybees’ fuzz is actually more like feathers than hair, and honeybees secrete their wax from a set of eight glands on the underside of their abdomen (I always assumed it came from their heads.) They then use their jaws to soften and sculpt it into hexagonal cells that they measure with the size of their own bodies. Inside those cells, young bee larva live curled up, lying on their sides in a pool of brood jelly. I knew this much, but I didn’t know that the larva only have spiracles on the left sides of their bodies, and that they always lay with the spiracles facing out, lest they should drown in their food supply. I also learned that there was a difference between brood jelly (for young worker larvae) and royal jelly (for queen larvae). I should also mention, pestilent Varroa mites and hive beetles, pests that can wreak havoc on bee colonies. Some kinds of honeybees can manage these pests on their own while others can’t. I’d love to learn how beekeepers deal with such problems.
Like most other domesticated animals, there are various breeds of honeybee, which have distinctive characteristics that make them better suited to whatever environment they originated in. I learned that Italian Honeybees are the variety most commonly kept, but there are also unpredictable Russian honeybees, defensive, German honeybees and rare Cordovan, (or Golden) Honeybees. Killer Bees, on the other hand, are the result of a crossbreeding experiment, gone wrong. It’s a good reminder to be ever careful and it’s important to be able to distinguish these aggressive bees from their gentler counterparts.
Honeybees are far more complex and surprising than I once imagined. I’m certainly considering beekeeping since honeybees are amazing insects, despite being so common, The ones that I’ve gotten to see inside their boxes were actually very calm and quiet, even while having their hive opened and frames removed. The idea of beekeeping did make me a bit nervous early on, but now that I understand them better, I think I’m ready to take on the challenge. I thank you for considering my entry and giving me this special opportunity.
Looking Beyond the Color: Understanding Honey Bee Genetics
When beekeepers talk about honey bee races, names such as Italian, Carniolan, Russian, Caucasian and Buckfast often enter the conversation. These names are commonly associated with certain colors, behaviors and management traits. However, understanding honey bee genetics requires looking deeper than the name printed on a queen cage.
Most honey bees managed in Alabama belong to the Western honey bee species, Apis mellifera. Within this species are geographic subspecies traditionally called races. Italians and Carniolans are examples of recognized subspecies, while Russian, Buckfast, Varroa Sensitive Hygiene and Pol-line bees are more accurately described as selected stocks, composite populations or breeding traits.
Italian bees are commonly associated with gentleness, strong brood production and large honey-producing populations. Carniolans are known for rapid spring buildup, economical use of stores and close adjustment of brood production to available forage. Russian bees have been selected for greater resistance to Varroa and tracheal mites, while VSH bees are selected for the ability to detect and remove mite-infested brood.
These descriptions are helpful, but they are tendencies—not guarantees. Not every yellow bee is Italian, not every dark bee is Carniolan and not every queen advertised as VSH will produce a colony capable of controlling mites without assistance. Color is one of the least dependable measurements of a colony’s overall value.
Honey bee reproduction also makes genetics more complicated. A queen normally mates with numerous drones away from the apiary. Workers within the same colony can therefore have different fathers and may vary in color, temperament and behavior. When a colony raises a daughter queen and she mates with local drones, the next generation may be considerably different from the original purchased stock.
This is why beekeepers should pay attention to the performance of the entire colony rather than relying solely on a race name.
When evaluating genetics, consider the traits that matter in your particular operation:
- Varroa mite levels and the rate at which mites increase
- Temperament during routine inspections
- Brood pattern and colony health
- Honey production
- Swarming tendency
- Queen longevity and supersedure
- Food consumption during summer dearth and winter
- Small hive beetle tolerance
- Hygienic behavior
- Performance during Alabama’s heat and humidity
A colony that performs well in another state may not perform the same way in Alabama. Our long brood-rearing season, summer heat, humidity, periods of nectar dearth, small hive beetle pressure and changing regional nectar flows all influence colony success. Genetics must work together with local conditions and good management.
Be mindful of where your queens and bees originate. Purchasing from reputable breeders who measure mite resistance, brood health, temperament and production is far more valuable than purchasing based on color or advertising alone. Ask breeders what they select for, how their queens are mated and whether their claims are supported by actual colony records.
Beekeepers can also contribute to better genetics by keeping records of their own colonies. Identify the colonies that consistently maintain lower mite counts, produce healthy brood, remain gentle and perform well without requiring constant correction. These may be valuable candidates for making splits, raising queens or producing drones. Colonies that repeatedly show poor temperament, weak brood patterns, high mite growth or queen problems should not be allowed to dominate the genetics of an apiary.
Genetics are not a replacement for feeding, mite monitoring, proper equipment or sound management. Even resistant bees should receive regular mite washes, and every colony should be treated when monitoring shows treatment is necessary. Good genetics simply give the colony—and the beekeeper—a stronger starting point.
As Alabama beekeepers, we should begin asking more than, “What race are these bees?” Better questions are: “How do they perform here? What traits have been measured? How quickly do their mite levels increase? Are these genetics worth reproducing?”
The future strength of Alabama beekeeping will depend partly on our willingness to observe, document and select. Look beyond color, pay closer attention to performance and make genetic decisions with purpose. Every queen purchased, raised or allowed to produce drones helps shape the honey bee population around us.
Brandon Hargraves
State Apiary Inspector
AL Dept of Agriculture and Industries
1445 Federal Drive
Montgomery, AL 36107-1123
334-922-8996
2026 Master Beekeepers Report
The 2026 Alabama Master Beekeeping Program was another successful weekend of education, testing, and collaboration, bringing together beekeepers from across the state to advance their knowledge and skills. Thanks to the dedication of Alabama Beekeepers Association Board members, Auburn University personnel, ACES Extension staff, instructors, Master Beekeepers, and numerous volunteers, participants received quality instruction, completed practical and written examinations, and strengthened the beekeeping community through shared learning and mentorship. The willingness of so many volunteers to step in wherever needed demonstrated the teamwork that continues to make the program a success.
This year’s program recognized new graduates at every certification level. Three participants completed the Beginner program, twenty-three earned Apprentice certification, fifteen achieved the Journeyman level, and six completed the rigorous requirements to become Alabama Master Beekeepers. In addition to classroom instruction and examinations, candidates participated in hands-on field evaluations, including the popular “Hive Dive” inspection, which allows participants to demonstrate practical hive management skills. While organizers identified opportunities to improve future programs, the weekend was widely regarded as a rewarding success and a testament to the continued growth of Alabama’s beekeeping community.
CONGRATULATIONS to the 2026 Master Beekeepers!
Congratulations to David Goodson, Donald Johnson, Jeff Scott, Kim Ly Patten, Lisa Gowan, and William Calvert on earning the prestigious Master Beekeeper certification. (not pictured in order)
Congratulations 2026 Journeyman!
Fifteen beekeepers advanced to the Journeyman level after successfully completing both written and practical examinations.
Angela Parham, Bailey Lummis, Brian De Assis, Cole Gilmer, Craig Ramsay, Gordon Ruggles, Harry Graleski, James Garner, Jonathan Thoennes, Marty Brunson, Michael Klusman, Michelle De Assis, Millard Evans, Mona Daughtry, Shannon Reese (not pictured in order)
Congratulations 2026 Apprectices!
Adam Kline, Barry Dorman, Brianna Merly, Cortez Alexander, Dannelle Ellision, Darcy Dickhausen, David Landy, Deidre Walker, Dennis Mintlng, James Lennon, Jason Brown, John Rogers, Joss Carr, Kali Biddlecombe, Keith Wille, Mary Gray, Randy Bonds, Stephany Henson, Steve Emerson, Troy Hawkins, Wesley Frandson, Melissa Rogers, Paul Mcvay (not pictured in order)
Congratulations 2026 Beginner Graduates!
Beginner Program Graduates – Holly Woods, Valerie Young, and Deanna Young.
Lastly, a huge THANK YOU to Patrick McCalman (top left) under whose leadership the Master Beekeepers Program improves every year.
American Heritage Girls
Event Note from Allyson Andrews
I was BLESSED to bee able to host the American Heritage girls at our farm to help them achieve their sustainability badge! We had an AMAZING morning, learning about beekeeping, from introduction into our country until present day! They tasted honey from all over the world, planted a pollinator plant, learned the importance of honey bees as pollinators as well asother pollinators! The girls got up-close looks at a frame of bees and the best TASTED honey right out of the hive! WOW! What a blessing it is to bee able to teach children about Honey Bees! This is what beeing a part of the beekeeping world is all about – teaching others! I am so thankful to bee able to share my passion! YALL BEE BLESSED!
This & That
USDA sued over organic honey certification – A lawsuit, filed in US District Court for the Eastern District of Washington, claims that not only are US organic farmers being competitively injured, but cheap organic imports are making it virtually impossible for conventional honey producers to sell their honey. Get the full story HERE.
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Australian Varroa Solution? – The “land down under” is researching a novel solution to varroa destructor using local spider venom. More info available at https://www.facebook.com/reel/1679055976653170. Previous studies in New Zealand found that Chelifer cancelloides, a pseudoscorpion with pinchers but no stinger, would eat varroa but were not practical to use for hive control because their reproductive rates were so low compared to varroa.
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Jefferson was an avid student of apiculture and is the one who correctly noted that the honeybees (Apis mellifera) were not native to America. Sadly, he struggled to keep his apiary (over 40 beehives) running and often had to obtain new bees and supplies from other farmers.
Washington, a progressive farmer for his time, was one of the first to build dedicated wooden-box hives to house bees and collect honey more efficiently.
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If you love both honey and coffee CLICK HERE for instructions to a decadent treat.
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