Hello, fellow beeks!
We hope that you all are looking forward to the BCBC August meeting as much as we are. This meeting features Nancy Ruppert, one of our 6 very talented state apiary inspectors (and the only female, by the way). Nancy has been an NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services apiary inspector since August of 2010 and she covers the 17 counties along the North Carolina coastal region. A registered nurse since the 1980’s, Nancy worked almost 20 years as a family nurse practitioner before changing to what she calls a less stressful occupation. Nancy’s Montgomery county residence has been home to her own apiary for 15 years. Her particular apiary interests include hive pests and diseases, honey bee nutrition, and reducing honey bee stress.
Nancy is a favored speaker of bee clubs around the state, all of which have said she is very informative and enlightening. There are obvious similarities and differences in mountain and coastal beekeeping and Nancy will illuminate these, as well as answer any questions we have time for. She will be discussing what the challenges in the East are, and how they relate to our region and our beekeeping. There will be ample time for questions and answers as well.
As an added treat make sure to come early to enjoy ice cream from the hop (served starting at 6:30) during the mentoring/pre-meeting time. There will be several experienced beekeepers available to help answer any questions or issues you may be seeing in your hives this time of year.
Come Early, enjoy a summer time treat and be prepared to learn a lot from Nancy!
BCBC meets the first Monday of each month. Meetings are at:
Groce United Methodist Church, 954 Tunnel Rd, Asheville, NC 28805
Mentoring /Advice time – 6:30 – 7:00pm Meeting time is 7:00pm