To all Bee-L members. The Montana Beekeepers Annual Meeting will be in Helena, MT, Oct 16-17, at the Red Lion Colonial Inn. David Westervelt from Florida will be the Keynote Speaker and will address CCD, hive beetle, and other issues. Dave Wick and I will talk about Nosema ceranae and viruses in bees, now that we have the results from several hundred bee samples from across the U.S. We've found one that reproduces in both mites and bees (first discovery in U.S.), and we have learned a lot about viruses and are beginning to see how bee management affects viral infestations in bees. Sue Blodgett will talk about alfalfa weevil control (chemical and non-chemical) in the Dakotas and MT. Western Bee and Mann Lake will be there. One thing that may be of interest to Bee-L members - MT still has a strong apiary law, and Patty Denke, our State Entomologist, and the MT Beekeepers have been working on changes to update the law. The law change committee will be having a conference call on Sept 22nd. During the conference call they will be wrapping up all of the proposed changes and moving them up forward to the 2009 legislator to be come law. Members of the Committee are Andy Drange, Steve Parks, James Rehm, Jim Rodenberg, Brian Dyer, Tom Hamilton, or Wade Anderson. The following is from Andy Drange, President of MT Beekeepers: "We hope to see everyone at convention. There will be lots of good information. Don’t forget : Make room reservations ASAP, Auction items, items for speaker baskets. Please return your registration to us by OCT. 8th. We have to give head counts to the Hotel. Registering the day of, may mean you can’t go to any of the meals. They need a count 72 hours in advance." Andy Drange, Pres. Note: The hotel block of rooms reservation ended on Sept 16, but you can call them at 1-800-733-5466. Tell them you are with the MT Beekeepers Association. (Jerry) If you'd like to attend, you can reach Andy or Jodie Drange at [log in to unmask] (mailto:[log in to unmask]) , 406 628-8839. The meetings start at 1 on Thursday, end with a Banquet Friday evening. MT Beekeepers are mainly large scale, commercial, family-run operations, but the Association welcomes all beekeepers. Jerry **************Looking for simple solutions to your real-life financial challenges? Check out WalletPop for the latest news and information, tips and calculators. (http://www.walletpop.com/?NCID=emlcntuswall00000001) **************************************************** * General Information About BEE-L is available at: * * http://www.honeybeeworld.com/bee-l/default.htm * ****************************************************