As we move into the winter months, many local beekeepers are getting ready for the upcoming season by catching up on reading about bees, attending bee club meetings, and building and repairing equipment. One of the questions local citizens frequently ask is: How do I become a beekeeper? Those interested in becoming beekeepers will have the opportunity to learn the tools needed to be successful by attending the 2025 Beginning Beekeeper School.
The series will be held at the O.P. Owens Agriculture Center located at 455 Caton Road in Lumberton. Classes will begin on January 28, at 6:00 p.m., and continues on February 4, 25, and March 4,11, and 25. Topics will be taught by experienced beekeepers. A fee of 45 dollars will be charged, which covers registration, textbook, and handouts. Class is limited to the first 30 to register, so call immediately to reserve your space. For more information, or to register, please contact Nelson Brownlee at 910-671-3276 or Ed Hunt, President, Robeson County Area Beekeepers Association at 704-575-2401.
Honeybees are not only important to Robeson and surrounding counties, but they are important throughout America and, in fact, throughout the world. They have been found in all parts of the world except the extreme Polar Regions. Honeybees are one of the most fascinating insects in the world. They have a society of their own and in many respects each colony is like a small city. It has regular streets and alleys for the passage of its inmates and those streets are kept clean. In some respect, it is like the human kind of city but in another way, it is organized on a different scheme that has for its goal the survival of the fittest.
Studies indicate that about 90 crops in the United States depend on bees for pollination. Bees will travel up to 55,000 miles to collect pollen and nectar. They will visit over 2.6 million flowers to produce one pound of honey. One out of every three mouthfuls of food we eat comes from bee-pollinated plants. A Cornell University Study says pollinated agricultural crops are valued at $14.6 billion to our nation’s economy.
There are over 100,000 beekeepers in North America. Of this number, only about 1,500 make their living producing honey and beeswax or regularly rent their bees for pollination. They may own from 600 to 60,000 colonies each. Another 1,500 are part-time beekeepers. The remainder, nearly 97 percent of beekeepers, are hobbyists who keep one to fifty hives for a variety of reasons.
Persons can also obtain more information by attending the Robeson County Area Beekeepers Association monthly meetings. The meetings are held the third Tuesday of every month except December, at 6:30 p.m. at the O.P. Owens Agricultural Center located at 455 Caton Road in Lumberton. The next scheduled meeting is January 21, 2025.
For more information, please contact Nelson Brownlee, Extension Area Small Farms Agent, at 910-671-3276, by email at Nelson_Brownlee@ncsu.edu.
