BEGINNER BEEKEEPING 2.0

Congratulations on making it this far in your beekeeping journey! Whether you’re a first, second, or third-year beekeeper, you’ve likely discovered that beekeeping is both rewarding and full of surprises.

This Beginner Beekeeping 2.0 course is designed to refresh your knowledge, answer common questions, and help you improve your beekeeping success. During this informative one-day session, we’ll focus on the critical management practices that help colonies survive winter and thrive the following spring.

Topics Include:

Preparing your hives for winter survival
Proper winter storage of beekeeping equipment
What to do if your bees don’t survive the winter
Effective feeding strategies for fall, winter, and spring
Pest management techniques for:
Small hive beetles
Varroa mites
Wax moths
Proven methods for building strong colonies for the 2027 spring season
Best practices for capturing swarms and caring for newly collected bees

Remember: The success of your hives next spring depends greatly on what you do this fall.

Join us as we explore the seasonal management techniques that can help your colonies emerge healthy, productive, and ready for another successful year.

Fees: Member $70, Non-Member $84

All programs are subject to change. Pre-registration through our website is required.

Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden strives to be a Garden for all and we are committed to offering diverse adult learning opportunities that are inclusive and accessible to all learners. If you would like to request an accommodation to support your participation in an adult learning opportunity at the Garden, please contact [email protected] or call 804-262-9887 x328 and we will make our best effort to help.

Event Details

About the Instructor

At heart a devout “country boy” from Columbia, SC, Jesse Frierson’s beekeeping experience dates to 2010, after he heard about Colony Collapse Disorder. Like many at the time, Jesse really wanted to do something to help the struggling honeybee population. Shortly after moving from the city out to the country, a chance meeting with a local beekeeper led to Jesse joining a local beekeeping club, taking a beginner course, and later ordering two packages of honey bees just for kicks! Fast forward over a decade later, Jesse now oversees the operation of hives in three states: Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. Trading as www.EastCoastHoney.com, its local, raw and unfiltered honey is prized as a solid staple for many families from the Washington, DC area to Charleston, SC. Over the years Jesse has attended many state beekeeping conferences in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Pennsylvania and Florida. He is also a Certified Beekeeper in South Carolina and holds beekeeping club memberships in both Virginia and South Carolina. An avid learner, Jesse continues to research many aspects of beekeeping to ensure continued successful experiences in caring for honey bees and helping them to produce prized and high-quality honey.