Other> General Meeting Information
HCBA General Meeting Information:
Next meeting: Tuesday, July 14, 2026
We hope to see you at our upcoming general meeting at Howard County Fairgrounds Dining Hall on the second Tuesday of each month. Our meeting will start at 7:00 PM.
We'll have our regular HCBA business update, and don't forget to come to our pre-meeting open discussion and Q&A that starts at 6:30 PM.
We are looking forward to seeing you!
The July 14, 2026 meeting will start at 7:00 PM.
This meeting will be in person at the Fairgrounds Dining Hall and will also be simulcast.
Our guest speaker in July will be Dr. David Peck, Director of Research and Education for Betterbee. Dr. Peck will present on colony swarming and splitting.
Nothing frustrates beekeepers more than swarming! This presentation provides an understanding of why bees swarm, and what you can do to anticipate and manage this natural process, instead of just reacting to it.
We'll also talk about splitting hives, and why swarm-prevention and splitting are highly complementary beekeeping techniques.
We will cover everything from early spring tactics to reduce the bees' urge to swarm, to last-minute manipulations to prevent a swarm, to post-swarm recovery. We'll also discuss how to successfully catch and hive a swarm.
About our presenter:
Phil Frank is a science journalist and TV producer, writer, and director of non-fiction films. His programs have been seen on CNN, Discovery Channel, National Geographic Channel, Science Channel, A&E, Travel Channel, Headline News, History Channel, TLC, NYTimes website, Washington Post website, and international channels.
While producing a National Geographic program about mass animal die-offs, Phil became fascinated by honey bees. In 2014, he started his first colony and now has 15 hives on his deck, and one glass walled hive in his kitchen vimeo.com/176760818 where he studies bees year round.
Phil runs websites for the Maryland State Beekeepers Association and Maryland’s Montgomery County Beekeepers Association. He earned a Master Beekeeper certification from both Cornell University and the Eastern Apicultural Society. He recently co-authored 'Hive Tour' HiveTourGuide.com, a photo rich book showing the extraordinary lives of honey bees.