TOPSFIELD — Each year, the Bee School sets up shop at the Topsfield Fairgrounds for several weeks.
The program is run by the Essex County Beekeepers’ Association as an introductory course for beginning beekeepers and others with an interest in bees. The class fills up every year and this year was no exception. Bee School started in mid-February and ran for nine weeks on Tuesday evenings through mid-April.
Practical beekeeping is designed to provide students, with no previous knowledge or experience with beekeeping, the necessary information and skills to keep honeybees and produce honey and beeswax. The course includes instruction on bee biology, required equipment, setting up bee hives, acquiring and installing bees, managing bees through the seasons, and harvesting bee products. A key part of the course is introducing the students to mentors who help guide the students through their first years of keeping bees.
Additionally, the ECBA offers ongoing opportunities to educate beekeepers at its monthly meetings. In the summer, ECBA members host “hive openings” where bee hives are opened and inspected for the education of other members. More information about the ECBA can be found on its website, www.essexcountybeekeepers.org.
Registration for next year’s Bee School will be available in early 2025.