Freebee’s: 7 Free Beekeeping Courses Offered Remotely

COVID-19 is a virus that has proven difficult to combat. One of the main defenses that the CDC has recommended is social distancing. This puts a wrench in beekeeping courses and club meetings that are usually hands-on and taught in person. To alleviate the stress of putting classes, hobbies, and future careers on hold, there are universities and organizations that are temporarily offering free online beekeeping courses and educational videos.

Beekeeping 101 (Penn State Extension)

Penn State Extension is presenting a free beekeeping course during the pandemic that is accessible for 60 days. There are 10 sections that will take about nine hours in total to complete. The course covers honeybee biology, hive knowledge, and beekeeping best practices. In order for the course to be free, you must register by April 30th.

Stay at Home Beekeeping Series (Alabama A&M and Auburn University Extension)

Due to COVID-19, the Alabama A&M and Auburn University Extension is offering online sessions every Tuesday from 6:30-8:00pm CDT. These sessions will be available to anyone with internet access and a love for beekeeping. The streams will cover a variety of topics that are highly important to the beekeeping community. Registration is available here, and the prior session recordings are also available to watch on the Lawrence County Extension Facebook page. Upcoming topics are:

• April 16: Learning from Pandemics, Dr. J. Tsuruda (U. of Tennessee)
• April 30: Queen Management Essentials, Dr. J. Rangel (Texas A&M)
• May 14: Bee and Parasite Biogeography, Dr. K. Delaplane (U. of Georgia)
• May 28: What’s Killing Honeybees, Dr. J. Ellis (U. of Florida)

The Stay at Home Beekeeping Series (Metro Atlanta Beekeepers Association)

The Metro Atlanta Beekeepers Association is allowing anyone to join their meetings via Facebook Live until May 28th of this year. Apiculture research and extension programs from many SEC Universities are coming together to make this possible. They are encouraging on-site, scheduled meetings to be canceled and are inviting beekeepers to join them on their online web-series for the next month!

While some of the meetings on the Metro Atlanta Beekeepers Association site are the same as the Alabama A&M and Auburn University Extension sessions, they have additional sessions included on the calendar on the right-hand side of their site.

Pollinator Champions (Michigan State University)

Michigan State University provides a four-unit long course all about pollinators, why they matter, who they are, and how to help them survive. It includes videos and activities to guide students through the eyes of a pollinator. The course itself is completely free and for a fee of $30, anyone can become a certified MSU Pollinator Champion.

Online Beekeeping Course (University of California Cooperative Extension)

The University of California Cooperative Extension-San Diego County offers a 3-module long beekeeping course that is always free. There are training videos and a quiz that is 10 questions long. Overall the course should take about 30 minutes to complete. This course is advertised as helpful to beginning beekeepers as well as a way to keep up-to-date for annual training for established beekeepers.

Beekeeping and Honey Bee Biology, Part 1 (The Ohio State University)

In collaboration with iTunes, The Ohio State University created a program that consists of 139 videos all about bees and beekeeping. This program is completely free and is available through the iTunes U app on iPads and iPhones. This program goes in-depth about the biology of honeybees and queens.

A Web Based Introductory Beekeeping Training Program (The Ohio State Beekeepers Association)

The Ohio State Beekeepers Association produced an online training program that is always free of charge. These training videos are geared towards beekeeping beginners and it includes 34 videos and three PowerPoint productions. This course focuses on how to keep a hive healthy during every season. It also touches on how pollination works and how to safely transfer your bees.

Stay Safe, Stay Home, & Learn about Bees!

A decline in virus cases will surely make a beeline to success if everyone stays home, practices social distancing, and practices proper hygiene as the CDC suggests. Beekeepers everywhere are given opportunities to continue their craft from a safe distance thanks to free, online beekeeping programs such as the ones listed above. Bee sure to stay healthy!

(Did we miss any? Feel free to add a comment of a class, course, or educational session that should be included here!)

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