Setting your hive up for success in the winter starts in the summer. Join Peter for a 3-hour hands-on class on managing your hives for successful overwinter survival. In the Puget Sound region, that means dealing with your (and your neighbors') mites, and preventing excessive moisture buildup in your hives. We'll talk through multiple ways of succeeding at both of these tasks, including options for chemical free and natural management practices. We will practice inspecting, testing, and treating our Shoreline apiary for mites, and walk through setting up a hive for winter.

We keep our class sizes small (maximum 8 people) so that we can give appropriate attention to every student. Our goal is for you to succeed in your beekeeping endeavor, and we believe that the only way to do that is by working in small groups, teaching through both classroom time and hands-on field work with actual bees.

Class duration is an estimate. We want/expect students to bring lots of questions, so class duration will vary based on what people want to talk about.

About your instructor:

Peter has been keeping bees in Seattle backyards for over ten years. In that time, he has grown from 1 hive to 200 beehives, managing hives in 35+ backyards in King County and leading a team of beekeepers. A skilled educator, he has developed the Rainy Day Bees apprenticeship program, taught classes for the Puget Sound Beekeepers Association and schools around Seattle, as well as offer 1:1 coaching sessions.

Classes include:

• One 4 hour classroom/field session in Shoreline learning about mites and moisture. Topics will cover:
• Varroa mite biology and life cycle
• Signs of varroa predation
• Ways of testing for varroa mites
• Options for dealing with a varroa infestation
• Why moisture is a problem in the winter
• How to avoid hive deaths caused by excessive moisture
• An experienced beekeeper you can call with questions, and a Facebook group for you and other students to talk bees on throughout the year (Rainy Day Bees will check in too!)
• 15% discount on consultations at your hives with Rainy Day Bees

Class Dates:

• Day 1: Sunday, August 6th, 2023 1-4pm. In case of weather cancellation, we will reschedule on the earliest date that works for all participants
• Additional dates may be added if the current class(es) fill up

Things to Know:

• You will need to provide your own protective equipment for beekeeping sessions. We have suits and gloves available to rent if necessary.
• Class will focus on beekeeping in Langstroth hives, but concepts can (and should) be applied to top bar and Warre hives as well.
• Cancellation Policy: Cancel up to two weeks ahead of your first class for a 50% refund.
• Have any questions? Email us!
• COVID-19 POLICY (subject to change based on city/county/state pandemic rules, or changing conditions of the pandemic): Masking policy for outdoor/field sessions will be flexible, depending on the comfort level of the group. If anyone feels strongly about everyone needing to mask outside, then we will all mask. Most outdoor time can be spent reasonably distanced.