Hi Allen,

Thanks for asking!

The Northeast Treatment-Free Beekeeping Conference is a little more than 2 weeks away in Leominster, Massachusetts. 

Our theme for 2011 is "Grow Your Own" - your own queens, your own operation, your own mead, your own understanding...

This year's program includes a Beginner's Intensive (July 19-20 - $100), "Picnic Table Science Fair (July 21 - free with either registration) and the Conference (July 22-24 - $210).  All programs include three delicious, nutritious meals a day, prepared and served on-site by our excellent cooks!  Day registrations are also available.

Details including registration, schedule, speaker bios, transportation and lodging info are outlined on our homepage: http://BeeUntoOthers.com

We're very excited to be welcoming a fantastic group of speakers including Dee Lusby (Arizona), Kirk Webster (Vermont), Erik Osterlund (Sweden), Chris Baldwin (South Dakota), Kerstin Ebberston (Sweden), Corwin Bell (Colorado) and Sam Comfort (New York/Florida).  We'll also be hearing from Matthew Halley (Pennsylvania), a bird field researcher , Andrew Joslin (Massachusetts), a recreational tree climber and Andrew Munkres, who grew his treatment-free apiary in Vermont from one nuc to 70 in three years.

The Moran Lab at Yale will be joining us Friday to talk about their work on gut microbes in honeybees and Dean and I will  be reporting on our progress in developing a treatment-free northern apiary.

The official conference begins Friday, July 22 with breakfast at 8 am and ends after dinner Sunday, July 24.  The evening talks will be followed by a campfire.  Talks are 1 1/4 hours each and are followed by either a break or a meal.  We have outdoor field work with the bees each day after lunch with both Langstroth and top bar hives.  

The conference is preceded on Thursday, July 21, by a "Picnic Table Science Fair" where our speakers and attendees will have the day to share information and field techniques.

Tuesday and Wednesday (July 19-20) we will be teaching a Beginner's Beekeeping Intensive.  We began this program last year for those folks who have little to no beekeeping experience but want to be better able to follow the  conference presentations or for anyone who wants to brush up on basic beekeeping knowledge or add a treatment-free perspective to what they already know.  The Beginner's Intensive is taught by Dean, Sam Comfort and myself and includes both Langstroth and top bar hive management.

We hope to see as many of you as possible in Leominster!  Many of our attendees are coming back for their second or third NETFBC.  We can guarantee a festive atmosphere, intense and focused program, food for thought and thoughts of food for the year to come!

Ramona (aka Laurie)

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