Table of Contents
Letter from the President
I hope you have had a wonderful beekeeping year and are looking forward to an even better year in 2025. Please know that we at Alabama Beekeepers Association are constantly at work behind the scenes to improve all aspects of beekeeping for our state. Merry Christmas and Best Wishes for a successful New Year!
Hal Hendrix, President, Alabama Beekeepers Association
Letter From the Vice President
HEY THERE FOLKS! Hope you all are doing great and are looking forward to a wonderful Christmas celebration with family and friends!
What a CRAZY, way to warm fall that we had! I for one am thankful for the cooler temps we are experiencing now! Reminder to FEED YOUR BEES!
This is the time in our beekeeping season to bee checking your equipment, building new and repairing old for spring of 2025, it will bee here before you know it! Jerry Hayes, editor of Bee Culture and one of our 2025 Fall Conference speakers, has given permission to share a great article about beekeeping in Iceland, as I have recently visited there and like every place that I visit, I am searching out a local beekeeper and local honey! Check it out in this issue of The Stinger.
It is my prayer that you all experience the LOVE, JOY, PEACE, BLESSINGS and HAPPINESS that hopefully comes during this CHRISTMAS SEASON! I look forward to seeing you all in Clanton in February at the Symposium! Please get your honey and things ready for the honey show there!
Please let me know if y’all need me! Y’ALL BEE BLESSED!
Your Vice President
Allyson Andrews 
Letter from the Treasurer
** Buzzing with Joy: Give the Gift of Beekeeping Membership This Christmas! **
As the holiday season approaches, I’ve been reflecting on the joys of beekeeping and how it brings together our community of dedicated apiarists. This year, I want to encourage you to consider a thoughtful and unique Christmas gift: a membership to the Alabama Beekeepers Association (ABA)!
A membership in ABA is not only a gift that keeps on giving but also an opportunity to share the fascinating world of bees with your loved ones. Whether they are seasoned beekeepers or simply curious about the wonders of pollinators, a membership provides access to a rich array of
resources, including:
- Educational Resources: From beginner workshops to advanced techniques, our programs cater to all skill levels.
- Networking Opportunities: Connect with fellow beekeepers across the state, exchange ideas, and share experiences that enhance your beekeeping journey.
- Access to Events: Members enjoy exclusive access to our events, including conferences, field days, and bee expos where they can learn and grow in their beekeeping endeavors.
- News and Updates: Stay informed with our newsletter, packed with the latest research, tips, and exciting developments in our beekeeping community.
Purchasing a membership as a Christmas gift is simple and meaningful. For just $15 per year,
you can easily order a membership online, and we’ll even provide a membership receipt that you
can present to your loved one during the holidays.
Imagine the joy on their face when they unwrap the gift of beekeeping! It’s a chance to nurture a
new hobby, contribute to a sustainable environment, and become part of a passionate community
that works towards the health of our bees.
Let’s spread the holiday cheer and promote the importance of beekeeping in Alabama together.
Thank you for your continued support, and wishing you a joyous and bee-autiful holiday season!
Warm regards,
Jeff Monroe
Treasurer, Alabama Beekeepers Association
ABA Honey Show Announcement
There’s a new contest in the honey show this year! We are adding a club-level sweepstakes to the honey show! The way this works is, we will tally up the prize points awarded to each exhibitor (just like we do for the individual sweepstakes award), then we will also tally those points up by each local bee club to calculate a Local Club Sweepstakes award! So, everyone from your local bee club that enters anything in the honey show, any prize points won not only counts for them individually, but those points also count for your entire club’s total! So, the more people from your club that bring entries to the honey show, the more it helps your home club’s chances, and the more exhibits each of those club members bring, the more it helps your home club’s chances! Now is the time to start planning and to start encouraging your club members to get ready for the annual conference and the honey show! Which local bee club is going to bring home the first-ever honey show Local Club State Championship!
30th Annual Alabama Beekeepers Symposium
The 2025 30th Annual Alabama Beekeepers Symposium is scheduled for February 1, 2025 and will be held at the Clanton Conference and Performing Arts Center. This symposium will have 4 tracks to choose from:
- Our Keynote Speakers will hold the main audience hall for the day.
- Beginning Beekeeping is a day-long workshop
- Management Skills
- Do It Yourself
- Journeyman Beekeepers’ talks
SCHEDULE:
8:00AM – Registration
8:30AM – Welcome and Opening Remarks
9:00AM – Dr. Marla Spivak, Propolis & Honey Bees
- Beginning Beekeeping Starts
10:00AM – Dr. Frank Rinkevich, Amitraz Resistance
- Adam Hickman, Old & New Varroa Treatments
- ADAI Inspectors, New Pests In Alabama
- Donald Johnson, Bee Stings Gone Bad: Managing Anaphylaxis
10:45AM – Vendor Break
11:15AM – Dr. Marla Spivak, Breeding Hygienic Bees
- Agostina Giacobino, Comparing Oxalic Acid Applications; Vapor, Dribble Shop Towel, Varroxan
- Rogan Tokach, Test for Amitraz Resistance
- Marisa Masters, Pheromones in Beehives
12:15PM – Lunch
1:15PM – Dr. Frank Rinkevich, Breeding Program for Varroa Sensitive Hygiene
- James Talmadge, Honey Bee Health & Production
- Amy Weeks & Kylar Demi, Wax Processing
- James Guy, There’s A Pheromone For That
2:00PM – Vendor Break & Honey Show Awards
2:45PM – Dr. Geoffrey Williams, Tropilaelaps
- TBD, Beekeeping as a Business
- Jack Rowe, Trees for Bees
- Amy Seiber, Bee Kahoot!
3:45PM, Remaining Door Prizes Drawn!, Closing Remarks, & Evaluations
EXTRA:
The 30th Annual Alabama Beekeepers Symposium is also hosting the Annual Honey Judge Training & Certification workshop and the Annual Honey Show. The certification training takes place on January 31st the day before the symposium.
Register Here for the Symposium
Register Here for Level 1 & 2 Honey Judge Training & Certification
THE HONEY SHOW IS OPEN TO ALL!
Please peruse your options for submittals (honey, baked goods, drinks, condiments, artworks, etc. etc.) here: Honey Show Rules.
You can submit your entries Friday, January 31st from 8AM to 4PM, and Saturday February 1st from 8AM to 10AM.
It’s going to be a great show, hope to see you there!
Beekeeping in Iceland by Erik Donley
Permission granted by Bee Culture
Imagine Iceland. Depending on your perspective, you might envision northern lights flaring above perpetual Winter darkness or, perhaps the endless midsummer sun.
Invariably, you would think about cold weather, rugged volcanic landscape, and Vikings. If you are up to date on current economic trends, you might know that Iceland possesses a wealth of renewable energy resources and almost everything there is impressively expensive. The last thing most individuals would associate Iceland with is Beekeeping.
LEFT: The back of Torbjörn’s diesel pick-up truck. Sugar syrup and bulk sugar for feeding. Plenty of spare hive parts and equipment in case something goes awry.
RIGHT: Beekeeping Journal lying in Heather blossoms and Thistle. Bottle of honey and Icelandic króna.
Editors Note – this is a lengthy and in depth article! If you would like to continue with this fascinating adventure please do so at beeculture.com/beekeeping-in-iceland/
Department of Agriculture Notes for Dec 2024
Make sure you have registered your colonies with us for 2025. The deadline was in October but it’s never too late. Besides it being a state law, we do this for your benefit so we can notify you if there is a pest or disease near you that can negatively affect you colonies. If necessary, we can then assist you with immediate action to inspect and monitor the threat. The discovery of Africanized Honeybees earlier this year is a perfect example of that.
American Foulbrood is another good example.
We will continue with African Honeybee swarm trapping in north Alabama and the Mobile ports starting back in February. Again, if anyone has a colony that stays very aggressive collect five or six bees in isopropyl alcohol for DNA testing. If you send the sample straight to our lab in Auburn, it will cost you money so either we can pick it up from you or you can mail it to us.
We are still seeing high levels of varroa mites, especially on colonies with several frames of brood. If you are waiting on a complete brood break on your colonies to reduce varroa you are making a mistake cause many colonies are still producing several frames of brood. Furthermore, continued feeding will still stimulate brood rearing. Therefore, check for varroa to make sure colonies are below five mites/300 bees. If you are above five then you will have to do an extended treatment, especially with several frames of brood. What can I use now? The cold temps now do make it more challenging but first a few flash treatments of oxalic acid vapor will help with phoretic knock down while at the same time some formic acid or thymol gel. With our current temps I have more faith in formic than thymol. I definitely like to use two pads of formic acid for the 14-day treatment if there are several frames of capped brood. I know some will opt to just do 3-4 treatments of oxalic acid vapor 4-5 days apart and hope for the best. You may get lucky doing this with little to no brood. ALWAYS check your post treatments after each oxalic acid treatment with a sticky board to confirm you are dropping mites from the bees. So many options! Anyway, that’s only my opinion for what it’s worth.
If we can assist you, please contact us. Doesn’t matter if you have one or a thousand hives to us. We are here to help! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Phillip Carter, Apiary Inspector
Plant Protection Division
AL Dept of Agriculture and Industries
1445 Federal Drive
Montgomery, AL 36107-1123
334 414-1666
phillip.carter@agi.alabama.gov
This, That, and Visit our Sponsors
Cell Punch Queen Rearing: Rear queens using the cell punch method. Kit with complete instructions including photographs using the tool. Kit includes several items to get started plus a tool that is hand fabricated from raw materials. Send $20 plus $4.50 dollars for shipping to: Wil Montgomery, 1401 Lakemont Dr. South, Southside, AL 35907
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Baked Pears with Feta, Honey, and Cranberries
4 ripe but firm pears, halved and cored
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup dried cranberries, chopped
2 Tablelspoons raw honey
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
Salt and pepper, to taste
Optional: Chopped walnuts or pecans for garnish
Instructions:
Start by preheating your oven to 375°F (190°C). While the oven is warming up, halve the pears and remove their cores. To create a nice, deep well for the filling, use a melon baller or a spoon to scoop out just a little more from the center of each pear half.
Arrange the halved pears cut-side up in a baking dish. Lightly drizzle the pears with olive oil, making sure they’re evenly coated. This will help the pears roast to perfection while adding a subtle richness to the dish. Next, fill each pear’s center with crumbled feta cheese and chopped cranberries.
Place the baking dish in the oven and let the pears bake for 15-20 minutes. You’ll want the pears to soften slightly, and the feta should begin to melt and brown around the edges, creating a lovely golden hue. Keep an eye on them to ensure they don’t overcook—soft, but not mushy, is the goal here.
Once the pears are perfectly roasted, remove them from the oven. While they’re still warm, drizzle each pear generously with honey. The honey will add a glossy, sweet finish to the dish. Sprinkle fresh thyme leaves and nuts over the top for an aromatic, earthy flavor that complements the sweetness beautifully. Finish with a light seasoning of salt and pepper to enhance all the flavors.
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Order your Spring Package Bees for March and April 2025, $140 each. Orders for 25 packages or more are $125 each with mid March Pickup. 25% off all Bee Suits in December. 10% off all wooden ware until January 15. Place your order for the spring symposium pickup.
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HONEYBEES FOR SALE IN ELMORE COUNTY, ALABAMA
5 Frame Nucs, Italian or Buckfast, and 3 lb. package BEES FOR SALE! Please text or call Allyson Andrews at 334 799 2254 with questions or to be added to our list.
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Thank you for visiting The Stinger. We’re always open to improvement and welcome your thoughts, ideas, photos and submissions. Please send to stinger.editor@gmail.com. Merry CHRISTmas and Bee Blessed!