The Polk County Beekeepers Association was formed to support beekeepers in Polk County and the neighboring counties. The association holds monthly meetings, distributes a monthly newsletter, hosts a bee library and supports blogging. Local beekeepers are busy monitoring their hive activity, as well as the plants blooming in the area, to determine what the bees have to work with at any given point in time.

Bees use the plants in bloom for making honey and most honey one sees locally is a mix of the plants the bees found within a mile or two of their hive. Bees are currently at the end of the sourwood flow and the summer honey period is coming to a close. After the summer activity dies down, beekeepers will be taking the honey from the hives and then preparing the hives for the fall season.

The next meeting of the Polk County Beekeepers Association and potluck will be Thursday, July 21, at 6 p.m. at the Ag Center in Mill Spring.  The guest speaker will be Mr. Phil Holbert, of Holbert Bee Supply in Saluda.

Mr. Holbert will discuss current bee activities such as how to harvest honey and how to prepare hives for the fall season. There will also be a question and answer session. All are welcome to attend whether you are a new beekeeper, you are a seasoned beekeeper and would like to support the bee community, or you would like to join in the fellowship of the community. Come and join the meeting and the potluck.

Please bring a dish to share and your own plates, silverware, and cups to cut down on waste and help support the environment. Meetings are held monthly on the third Thursday at the Mill Spring Agricultural Center from 6-7:30 p.m. through the fall. The meetings will feature speakers and question and answer sessions so that the local bee community can become more knowledgeable.

For questions about beekeeping in Polk County or the Polk County Beekeeping Association, please contact the Office of Agricultural Economic Development at 828-894-2281 or email lisakrolak@hotmail.com.

– article submitted

by Lisa Krolak