If you haven't added some extra food yet to your hives by adding a candy board you may wanna try this! I have seen a few recipes out there but this one is simple and easy and does NOT require a candy thermometer.

Ingredients needed:
2 cups of water
2 tablespoons of vinegar
10 pounds of sugar

First bring the water and vinegar to a boil
Add 5 pounds of sugar
Bring all to a boil
Add the second 5 pounds of sugar
Bring to a boil again and let boil for 5 min
Pour into your mold or frame (I use 2 aluminum lasagna pans I purchased at the dollar store)
It will set up right away but I let mine harden overnight

this amount is fine for 1 hive so repeat as necessary.
I have a little box i use to cover mine on top of the hive. Basically just a 4 inch high box the same as the rest of the hive.

Good Luck... keep those lady's alive over the winter and keep your costs down!

Greetings fellow Beekeepers and soon-to-be beekeepers.....or, as many of our friends refer to us, those crazy people who stick their heads in a beehive.  I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and I pray you have a blessed 2010.  It's not too early to start preparing for the upcoming beekeeping season and it's not to late to try to help your bees through this winter.  If you haven't provided a supplemental source for your bees to make it through the winter, i.e. candy boards or sugar, you still can.  Many hives not provided this source make it through most of the winter only to die of starvation in March.  What a heartbreaking thought.  Of course, not all hives will need this extra feed, but it doesn't hurt to have it available to them if they do.  It's also a good idea to make sure your hives are protected from strong northwest winds by providing a windbreak.  There is evidence that a tar paper wrap around the hive can make it possible for the bees to break out of their cluster on a sunny day to feed on frames further away from the center of the hive.  You should have an upper entrance to provide ventilation and a way for bees to come and go when the lower entrance becomes blocked with snow and ice.  Lastly, it couldn't hurt to send up a prayer to the God of your choice.  If your an atheist....well, I don't know.  Are there any atheists in beekeeping?  I think beehives can be scary sometimes like foxholes which, we know, contain no atheists.
 
Now for some good news.  To help you prepare for the new season we have Bob Hollis from Golden Harvest Apiaries coming to this months meeting.  Bob will be taking orders for new equipment and offering a 5% discount for orders paid for before February 1st and he will deliver the order to the Feb meeting if there is enough interest.  I'm pretty sure this will be the case because I'm ordering seven or eight hundred dollars worth of stuff myself....as long as my wife doesn't find out and beat me to death first.  This discount does not apply to bulk frames.  If you can't attend the meeting you can still take advantage of this special provided you get the money to Bob before Feb 1st.  His phone number is: home 810-673-3058 cell 810-338-1523.
 
Also at the February meeting we have Dave Anthony of Anthony Bee Farms to speak about ordering bees.  He will have a price list for his bees and he will also be providing information about other sources of obtaining bees.  For those of you who don't know Dave he was the previous president of Michigan Beekeepers Association and has a wealth of information about all aspects of keeping bees.
 
Finally, as your new president (que music) I ask for your indulgence for my inexperience in this position.  I will be leaning heavily on Jim Dodder for his advice.  I am also seeking ideas for topics you would like to have covered as we move ahead.  We have to keep in mind that we have both new and experienced beekeepers and I would like to have content which has something for everyone.  Looking forward to seeing everyone at the meeting tomorrow night, January 7 at 7:00 at the Richfield Township Hall.
 
Jim Withers

HAPPY NEW YEAR
 Our Beekeepers meeting is on January 7th 2010
 at the Richfield Center Hall at 7:00 p.m.
 If possible please be a little early so we can
 start on time and be sure to sign in every
 meeting. Hope to see you all there.

(See "Monthly Meeting Info" for more details)

Our warmest holiday wishes go out to you and yours this holiday season!

The Mid Michigan Beekeepers Club

First I would like to remind every one that this coming Friday is our Annual Fall Convention in Midland.

Be sure to come on Saturday or leave your ballot. They will be electing a new President and Secretary.  President Candidates are Jim Dodder and Roger Hoopingarner.  Secretary Candidates are Don Schram and Kay Barber. Go Jim Go Don rah rah rah!!!!!

 District Representatives will also be voted on. according to the ballot so far there is only district 7 have four candidates to choose from. ** Reminder  ** that absentee ballots need to be send in by October 22, otherwise can be brought to the  annual meeting.

 Remember if you want to have dinner on Friday be sure to mark it on your registration form of mention it when you call your reservation and motel in, make sure you mention "Beekeepers". 

If you haven't sent in your reservations best get them in before Wednesday October 21, 2009 as this will give them a more accurate count of how many their expecting.

The Seven Ponds Beekeeping Club in Dryden has invited us to an event they've set up.  (We invite them to events, so it's only fair.)  On Saturday, October 3rd, we are invited to take a tour of David Anthony's honey house in Swartz Creek.  David Anthony is the current president of the Michigan Beekeepers Association.  His honey house is one of the largest around and is capable of handling a reported 120 frames per hour.  (This may be urban legend.  Let's show up and find out!)  The tour starts promptly at 12 noon and refreshments will be provided.  The Anthony Bee Farm is located at 1268 Nichols Rd., Swartz Creek, MI 48473.  His phone number is 810 621-4371.  There is no admission fee, although, I'm sure donations to Seven Ponds will be appreciated.

There's a number of things we need to do to get our hives ready for winter.  Whether it's medications (or not), equipment that needs to be installed (like mouse guards), or just questions about how bees typically spend their winter (clustered around the queen, shivering for warmth), c'mon out to Mid-Michigan Beekeeper's Club to ask your questions.  As we meet the FIRST Thursday of the month, this Thursday is October 1st.  Don't let a little thing like forgetting to change over the calendar cause you to miss the meeting!  The meeting starts at 7pm, and we typically stand around talking until 9pm.

Today the first "Flint Apitherapy Bee-club" was held in Paul's (LumpyGravy) house and we continued treatments that were started last sat at the Apitherapy seminar held by the Mid Michigan Beekeepers Club. Kim (Kas1210) and Paul (LumpyGravy) increased their amount of stings... We discussed accepting donations to put towards obtaining more equipment needed to harvest pollen and Kim brought to the table a local magazine that has run bee-related articles in the past as possible ways to reach out into the community. With the emphasis of the club meetings being BVT (Bee Venom Therapy) much was discussed concerning the other forms and benefits around the table as we waited to remove the stingers and then even more conversation ensued! We would like to invite anyone interested in Apitherapy or BVT to join us Mon-Weds-Fri in the afternoon. This is a great opportunity for people interested in Apitherapy who are not beekeepers themselves or just wish to converse with others interested in this subject. Those interested please email Paul at Paulcpapp@gmail.com

Flint Apitherapy Bee-Club meets Mon, Weds and Fri near Pierson Rd & I-75 in NW Flint

I have received a large amount of requests on how to contact Kristine about her work so I am posting her contact info here.
Kris_Stingz@yahoo.com

This upcoming Saturday, Mid-Michigan Beekeepers Club is hosting apitherapist Kristine Jacobson to speak at our usual meeting site, the Richfield Township Offices, at 10am.  Apitherapy is the use of products from the hive to aid in everyday health.  Items that Kristine will speak about include honey (believed to be useful in tissue repairing, wound dressing and burn relief), pollen (used to treat common allergies), propolis (a natural anti-oxidant), along with the sting of the honey bees themselves (believed to be useful in treating arthritis and MS).  Kristine was a guest speaker at SEMBA earlier this year, and has since been featured on the Travel Channel.  Her ideas and advice on health and wellness will surely enlighten people on treatments that have been well known in Eastern medicine, but are still considered "folk" remedies here in the States.  Please join us on Saturday, August 22, at 10am for an interesting presentation on this unique aspect of beekeeping!  Admission is free and open to the public, but donations are greatly appreciated!