Learning about beekeeping in Sisters

Of all the insects we interact with every day, flies, mosquitoes and bees top the list. Flies, because no matter where you live or what you do, they're in our faces constantly; mosquitoes as they are in the news currently as vectors for the dreaded Equine Encephalitis; and bees because we can't have food without them - we love to eat honey - and they're in big trouble, worldwide.

Currently, there are a lot of people in Sisters Country who are not only interested in the welfare of bees, but are seriously considering becoming beekeepers themselves. The role of bees - both natural and domesticated - as pollinators is becoming more and more clear; hence the new interest in their welfare and life history.

A new business in Sisters, Liddell's Honey and Supply, based in the Sisters Industrial Park at 597 Sisters Park Ct. will be putting on a "Central Bee Day" as an introduction to beekeeping at the Small Farmer's Journal Auction in Madras at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds this Friday, April 19 at 2:30 p.m., and again in Sisters, May 4, from 8 to 11 a.m. at the Sisters Park Court address.

Experienced and first-time beekeepers alike will be taking pre-ordered three-pound packages of bees to their new homes. Peter and Eric Liddell will have everything to get the new beekeeper started with their very own backyard hive, including a few packages of bees.

Most of the bee packages will be spoken for prior to Central Bee Day, so if you're seriously thinking of joining the growing number of Sisters Country residents who are setting up a hive, contact the Liddell brothers on their website: http://www.liddellshoney.com. Families are encouraged to attend Central Bee Day, and take a shot at the door prizes while supplies last.