Group to host back-to-back bee courses

INTERESTED in amateur apiary but don’t know where to start?

Well, members of the Ballarat Regional Beekeepers will have you covered with two introductory workshops at the end of the month.

Both single-day sessions will take place at education coordinator Jude Porteus’ Haddon property.

She said the courses are all about giving newcomers the basics of beekeeping.

“The aim is to offer a good basic understanding of what’s needed to get into beekeeping,” she said.

“The second one will be far more in depth with a very good education about bees themselves as well as all the laws and regulations.

“The first is a brief overview for people who might be a bit nervous about bees. The second is for people who’ve committed and already have some gear and intend to get into it.

“Both will be open hive sessions, and the more in-depth one will have us there for an hour.”

The first workshop, called 2 Bee or not 2 Bee, will run from 1pm to 3pm on Saturday 24 February, while the four-hour Introduction to Beekeeping course will run the following day from 10am to 2.30pm.

Ms Porteus’ property contains 16 hives each housing 20,000 bees each, two of which will be used in the sessions.

She’ll host the 2 Bee or not 2 Bee workshop while fellow Ballarat Regional Beekeepers member and longtime apiarist Barry Kentish will lead the follow-up.

Ms Porteus said she’s seen many come out of the introductory sessions to become beekeepers, having done so herself in 2017.

“Quite often we find they do often get right into it after these courses,” she said.

“Sometimes it might take a little longer due to circumstance but that’s the time to brush up on bees and get your gear ready.”

Both courses are capped at six to eight people with bookings priced from $40 for the one-hour session and $220 for the four-hour workshop for non-members.

Tickets to the 2 Bee or not 2 Bee, and Introduction to Beekeeping sessions can be found at bit.ly/47MEaG7 and bit.ly/3HvMP51 respectively.