Current Raffle and February 17, 2026 Meeting Minutes

There were seventeen people in attendance. We had three new attendees, welcome! Ken made the motion to accept the 1/20/26 minutes as emailed out on 2/1/26. Randy seconded the motion. All were in favor. We have $738.77 in the association’s fund with more coming in from the ongoing raffles. Parker Browne was elected as the new Vice President. 

We have several items up for raffle. All raffle item tickets, with the exception of the nuc, are $5 each (Russian Scion, xl bee suit, hot uncapping knife). You may purchase as many tickets for as many items as you would like, to increase your odds of winning. The raffles will end at our March meeting, except for the nuc. The nuc raffle tickets are $10 each. The raffle for the nuc will end at the April meeting. The pickup date for the nuc is May 9th. If you would like to donate an item to be raffled off for the bee association, or purchase a raffle ticket, please contact Randy Austin: flenviro@gmail.com

If you have not already paid your annual dues, the dues are $10 per member, $15 per family and $5 for junior members (ages 14-17). If you can’t make the meetings, you may mail and make your dues payable to the Transylvania County Beekeepers Association, PO Box 92 Brevard, NC 28712, Thank you!

Our President, Devin Gentry spoke about beekeeping. “Is beekeeping right for you?” “What does a new beekeeper need to know?” Devin has 19 years of beekeeping experience. It took him three years before he could make it through the winter without losing a hive. A good mentor helps tremendously when it comes to starting out beekeeping. Covid hit. In 2020 Devin lost his job with the Cradle of Forestry, so he turned his hobby into a full-time career. Devin sells 30-50 nucs a year, does talks and tours to various groups. His business is: Bee Honey and Hive. There are several motives for beekeeping. Many get into beekeeping to help save the bees. Honey bees are not native to America. They originated in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. They were introduced from Europe in the early 1600s by colonists for honey and wax. A pollinator habitat is the number one way to save our honey bees. Have diverse resources of plants, trees and flowers. Reduce, or eliminate the use of pesticides. This site is an excellent resource: 

https://www.pollinator.org/ Others get into beekeeping to make honey and/or wax to make products like lip balm, candles, etc. Some get into beekeeping as a business to make money. Beekeeping is a farming/agriculture business that is a hard and hot business to get established. 

If you want to get into beekeeping, the best start is education. There are several resources available such as local bee clubs, bee schools and universities. NC State has an apiculture program that is very good: https://www.ncbeekeepers.org/programs/certified-honey-producer. YouTube is also a good resource. However, consider where the u-tube speakers are raising their bees. There is a lot of vocabulary to learn when getting into beekeeping (supers, frames, excluders, etc.). Honeybee biology is very important to learn. You need to understand the queen’s life cycle. 

There are a lot of things to consider when starting a bee yard. Full morning sun with afternoon shade is the best. Flat ground with easy access is important. You will have to carry equipment in and out of the bee yard. If you can get a vehicle close by to unload hives and equipment, that is best. A beekeeper needs a good hive stand. The stand needs to be off the ground, about knee height. It is good to have it far away from other houses in case someone is allergic to bees, etc. A good electric fence is a must to keep out bears. There are solar fences available, if you do not have electricity available to plug one in. It is best to start with two bee hives and room to expand. Two hives give the beekeeper something to compare. 

There are several tools a new beekeeper will need to invest in. The most important tool is a good smoker. The smoker will mask the bee pheromones and hopefully prevent the beekeeper from getting stung. However, too much smoke will irritate bees. It is important to make sure the smoker has a good protective cage around it. A good bee veil is also very important. If you want a whole suit, it is best to get a ventilated one. Some prefer to work without gloves. Others prefer to have gloves to avoid stings, especially if working fast and hard. Lighter color gloves are best. Darker colors are associated with predators of the honey bees. Hive tools are also a must bee tool. You will need the tool to pry the hive boxes and frames loose from where the bees propolis them together. 

Hive boxes come in various sizes. There are deeps, mediums and shallows, 8 or 10 frames. Weight is something to consider when you select your hive box formation. The less frames, smaller boxes, the lighter they will be when full of honey and/or brood. Bottom boards come solid, or with a screen. Devin prefers the solid bottom board. He has had more luck with his bees surviving the winter. You may also want a queen excluder to prevent the queen from moving up into your honey supers. Also, if you have any brood or pollen in the frames, it attracts wax moths when you are storing the frames. The frames with just honey are not susceptible to getting wax moths. There are two types of top covers. If you are moving your hives around a lot, you may want a migratory top with an inner cover. There is also a telescoping top that comes down over the top box to keep out water, etc. The book Honeybee Democracy by Thomas D. Seeley is a good resource for the beekeeper. 

There are a lot of pests you will have to manage in beekeeping. Mites are the most difficult to manage and detrimental to the hive. Bees travel and interact with other bees, spreading the mites. There are also hive beetles, wax moths, skunks and bears. 

A beekeeper needs a plan for harvesting, storing and bottling extra honey. A five frame nuc with a queen usually cost around $200. A package of bees is less expensive, but you are behind on raising your bees and getting started. A new beekeeper will probably spend around $1,500 for a two hive set up and equipment to begin their new hobby. 

Hope to see everyone at our next bee meeting, March 17th! Same place and same times.