Lawn & Garden

Alabama Beekeepers Symposium

4 min read
Honey Bees on Comb

29th Annual Alabama Beekeepers Symposium

The 29th Annual Alabama Beekeepers Symposium is back in Clanton, Alabama in 2024. The symposium will take place Saturday, February 3 at the Jefferson State Community College Clanton Conference and Performing Arts Center in Clanton, Alabama. The cost to attend is $45, and registration is required. Lunch and refreshments are included in the registration cost.

Online registration is now closed. However, people can still register and pay at the door on the day of the symposium by check or card only.

What to Expect

As always, the ideal of this event is providing science-based beekeeping information for Alabama beekeepers. This year, the symposium will feature two fabulous keynote speakers: Pierre Lau and Elizabeth Walsh from USDA-ARS.

For those new to the world of beekeeping, this year’s symposium has the Beginning Beekeeping track. This day-long workshop is taught by professionals from the Alabama Cooperative Extension System and the Auburn University Pollinator Lab. Attendees of this workshop will receive a certificate of completion.

As usual, the event will feature a full floor of beekeeping supply vendors, from major name brands to local artisans. The honey show and pre-symposium Welsh Honey Judging Level 1 workshop has been added. Both of these events will be run by Brutz English.

  • The Honey Show is open to any attendee. Find an instruction sheet for submitting your exhibit here. Ribbons will be awarded to the Honey Show winners at the end of the symposium.
  • The Welsh Honey Judging Level 1 workshop is Friday, February 3 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The cost of this workshop is $45 and is separate from the symposium.

Vendors

Many of the participating vendors take preorders for delivery to the Symposium. The following is a list of those vendors that are accepting preorders this year:

Pre-Symposium Agenda

Friday, February 2

8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

  • Welsh Honey Judging Level 1 Workshop

Main Program Agenda

Saturday, February 3

8:00–8:30 a.m.

  • Registration

8:30–8:45 a.m.

  • Welcome and Opening Remarks (Auditorium) — Jack Rowe, Moderator

9:00–9:45 a.m.

  • Honey Bee Nutritional Ecology in Practice: The Landscape from a Bee’s Point of View (Auditorium) — Pierre Lau

10:00–10:45 a.m.

  • Hangry Bees: How an Environmental Stimulus Can Impact Colony Temperament (Auditorium) — Elizabeth Walsh

10:45–11:15 a.m.

  • Vendor Break (Vendor Area in Exhibition Hall) — Visit vendors in the Exhibition Hall

11:15 a.m.–12:00 p.m.

  • Interactions Between Nutrition and Stress: Practical Applications for Improving Bee Health Through Nutrition (Auditorium) — Pierre Lau
  • Feeding Bees and Why (Room EDC1) — Allyson Shabel
  • Nucs for Profit (Room EDC3) — Angie LeMay
  • Management of Observation Hives (JS 202) — Richard Praeger

12:15–1:15 p.m.

  • Lunch (Vendor Hall) — Provided for those who preregistered

1:15–2:00 p.m.

  • Honey Bee Foraging Choice: Food Availability, Viruses, and Behavior (Auditorium) — Elizabeth Walsh
  • Queen Rearing Basics (Room EDC1)  — Amy Weeks
  • Varroa Sampling (Room EDC3 ) — Jennifer Standley
  • Bees Go Kahoot! (JS 202) — Amy Seiber and Angela Manning

2:15–3:00 p.m. 

  • ADAI Update and Panel (Auditorium) — Apiary Inspection Team
  • Ask Master Beekeepers Questions (Room EDC1) — V. Wallace, P. McCallman, A. Andrews
  • Queen Loss: Preventing and Correcting It (Room EDC3) — Amy Weeks
  • Honey Bee Glandular System: Nutrition for Proper Development and Impact on Colony Growth (JS 202) — Stephen Langford

3:15–4:00 p.m.

  • GMOs and Bioengineering in Agriculture (Auditorium) — Rudy Pacumbaba
  • Varroa Management by Season (Room EDC1) — Rogan Tokach
  • What to Plant for Nectar and Pollen Year Round (Room EDC3) — Oliva Fuller
  • Kicking and Screaming: My Journey from Backyard Beekeeper to Paid Apiary Manager (JS 202) — Joy Layton

4:10–4:30 p.m.

  • Closing Remarks and Raffle Items — Jack Rowe, Beekeeping Specialist, Alabama Extension, Moderator

Beginning Beekeeper Program Agenda

Saturday, February 3

This program will run concurrently with the main program schedule. After picking up registration materials, beginner beekeepers should look for signs directing them to their meeting rooms. All the instructors are experienced beekeepers who have helped many new beekeepers develop the skills they need to start keeping bees.

9:00 a.m.

  • So You Want to Be a Beekeeper? — Jack Rowe, Alabama Extension Beekeeping

9:15 a.m.

  • A Little Bit About Honey Bee Biology — Amy Weeks, Auburn University Bee Lab

10:00 a.m.

  • Setting Up Your Apiary — Jack Rowe, Alabama Extension Beekeeping

10:45 a.m.

  • Vendor Break — Visit vendors in the Exhibition Hall

11:15 a.m.

  • Inspecting Your Bees —Emma Breda, Auburn University Bee Lab

12:15 p.m. 

  • Lunch — Provided for those who preregistered

1:15 p.m. 

  • Feeding Your Bees — Rogan Tokach, Auburn University Bee Lab

2:00 p.m.

  • Managing for Pests & Diseases — Rogan Tokach, Auburn University Bee Lab

2:45 p.m.

  • Refreshment Break

3:00 p.m.

  • Managing Varroa — Rogan Tokach, Auburn University Bee Lab

3:45 p.m.

  • Getting Help & Learning More — Allyson Shabel, Alabama Extension Beekeeping

Beekeeping Symposium mapDirections

This event will be held at the Clanton Conference and Performing Arts Center at Jefferson State Community College, 1850 Lay Dam Road, Clanton, Alabama 35405.

Take I-65 to Exit 212. From the north–turn right, from the south turn left, off of the exit ramp. Go approximately 1 mile, and Jefferson State Community College is on the left. The entrance to the Clanton Conference and Performing Arts Center is through the far left double doors.

More Information

For more information on the 29th Annual Alabama Beekeepers Symposium, contact William Rowe at wjr0001@auburn.edu or (251) 589-5572.