Central Iowa Beekeepers Association
January Face-to-Face Meeting
January 20, 2024, 1:00 PM
Reserve this date - we hope you will join us! You do not need to be a CIBA member to attend, but we hope this meeting will entice you to join our organization!
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Location
Northridge Baptist Church, 3700 6th Avenue, Des Moines
NOTE: Park in the lot on Clinton Avenue but enter the building by the door near the alley (not Clinton Avenue), where there is a wheelchair ramp. Picture below to assist in identifying the church entrance:
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Business Meeting
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We’ll have a business meeting and annual election, snacks provided by the CIBA Food Committee, then a Q&A panel discussion, Beekeeping from Urban to Commercial.
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Here’s an assignment: Write down questions that have been bugging you about beekeeping, then bring them to our January meeting. We have fantastic speakers who will serve on a panel to answer YOUR most intriguing and difficult questions about beekeeping. This is YOUR chance to ask the question you always have pondered.
“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” – Gandhi
With 2024 elections looming in January 2024, please consider becoming involved with CIBA by joining a committee or becoming an officer or director—your CIBA is certainly one of the most active bee groups in the Midwest. The time you spend as a CIBA volunteer and leader will be beneficial to you and the association. Call Don Moody to obtain more information!
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Beekeeping from Urban to Commercial - Question & Answer Panel​
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Panelists include Mark Smith from the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, urban beekeeper Abigail Kelly from Des Moines, and Phil Ebert, a longtime commercial beekeeper and instructor from Lynnville.
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Abigail has been beekeeping since she received an Iowa Honey Producers Association Youth Scholarship in 2018. She was the 2019 CIBA Honey Queen and 2020-2021 Iowa Honey Queen. Abigail keeps her bees between Des Moines, Altoona and Pleasant Hill.
Mark has been with the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) Pesticide Bureau the past four years. He is a program planner with a variety of responsibilities including pesticide applicator testing and training and endangered species protection. He has 30 years’ experience working in agriculture, turf and specialty crop industries in the Midwest. He grew up on a farm in Shelby County and has a degree in agricultural education from Iowa State University. He can answer questions about IDALS’ role in bee and pollinator protection, the Iowa Bee Rule, pesticide misuse investigations and hive registry on BeeCheck.
Phil began Ebert Honey in 1980 with less than 10 colonies in the back yard of his home near Fairfield. His hobby later grew into a family business with all four of his sons working with bees as they grew up. Currently, Phil’s two sons Adam and Alex continue to build the business based in Lynnville and Mount Vernon. They produce thousands of gallons of honey sold directly to grocery stores, bakeries, breweries and restaurants throughout central and eastern Iowa. They also sell other honey bee products and services including containers, and ship bees to pollinate local orchards and almonds in California.