The OCBA’s October monthly meeting will be held on Thursday, October 13.  We will serve pizza at 6 and the meeting will start at 7.  Dinner will be outdoors (weather permitting) and the meeting will be indoors.  

At our October meeting, Jon Zawislak will talk with us about honey bee pheromone communication. Honey bees have developed some fascinating and intricate methods of communication, including a complex language of chemical signals known as pheromones. Learn more about some of these signals and how your bees use them to communicate information throughout the colony. Dr. Zawislak is an Assistant Professor of Apiculture and Urban Entomology for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture. He has worked and played with honey bees since 1998, and is equally at home in the apiary, the laboratory or the classroom. Each year he teaches workshops and classes for new and experienced beekeepers throughout Arkansas and beyond. He emphasizes understanding the biology and behavior of honey bees and related pests as keys to keeping bees healthy, and minimizing the use of pesticides in the hives. He also spreads the word about the importance of pollinators to the non-beekeeping public. Jon has a background in botany and entomology, and is an EAS certified Master Beekeeper. He and his family operate Walnut Valley Honey Company in Little Rock, Arkansas, producing great products from the hive and supplying pollinators for area community gardens.

Our meeting will be at the Orange County Extension Building meeting room at 1020 US 70 West, Hillsborough, NC 27278 and by Zoom.  The Zoom login information is available on the OCBA listserv.