Mark Owen listens to the quiet buzz coming from a package of bees during the Intro to Beekeeping workshop Saturday, May 4, 2024, at University Farm in Chico, California. (Evan Tuchinsky/Enterprise-Record)
CHICO — Two-dozen people and hundreds of bees gathered at the University Farm for a beekeeping workshop Saturday morning.
Co-hosted by the Chico State College of Agriculture and the Honeybee Discovery Center, the half-day session covered apiary basics for hobbyists with enough how-to tips to reinforce the knowledge of experts. The north state features plenty of both given its status as the Golden Triangle of beekeeping in the United States; Saturday’s attendees covered a spectrum of ages — teens to seniors — and experience.
Heavy rain forced a pivot for the demonstration portion. Commercial beekeepers Fredy Valenzuela and Jerry Hightower relocated two hives from an exposed location to a covered courtyard by the greenhouses, where fellow presenter Kevin Ward showed how to transplant a package (ie, a starter colony) into a new box.
Classroom lessons included a history of bees told by Hightower and science explained by Rob Snyder from UC Davis.
For future events, visit honeybeediscoverycenter.org/events.
