Beekeepers hope scholarship brings buzz to hobby

KIMBALL — "They probably won't be too aggressive today since it's chilly," Erin Gutwasser said as she zipped up her beekeeping suit. "But you don't want to take the chance."

Gutwasser and Amanda Loewen, both members of Central Minnesota's Tri-County Beekeepers Association, suited up Sunday and went to check on the two hives they are keeping in a field behind Gutwasser's parents' house. They learned they'll need to feed the honeybees sugar-water one last time before winter comes, in a last-ditch effort to ensure the bees will have enough honey to make it through the winter.

This will be the first winter for Gutwasser and Loewen as beekeepers. They bought the hives in the spring and have been tending them for five months now, under the mentorship of the association's vice president, Vern Heise.

Gutwasser's main motivation is a simple one.

"I like honey," she said. "Raw honey has so many health benefits, and that was something I wanted to have."

Heise said natural honey is one main attraction of beekeeping. Others include the fascination of watching a hive develop — Loewen said some highlights were seeing the bees gather to fight off invading yellow jackets, and seeing how the females drag the males out of the hive each winter — and helping to preserve a struggling insect that is important for pollination. The Beekeepers Association is hoping to spread those interests to younger people. Heise said of the 120 or so members of the association, hardly any are younger than 30.

So the association, for the first time, is offering a scholarship. Applicants between 12 and 17 years old could receive equipment, woodenware and a package of bees for one hive. The winner will also receive a year of membership in the association and tuition for a beekeeping class at the University of Minnesota.

Heise hopes the scholarship will encourage more people in Central Minnesota to pursue an interest in beekeeping. It's an important goal, since beekeepers can play a crucial role in slowing the decline of the honey bee population over the last several years. According to the University of Minnesota Extension, wild bees pollinate more than 70 percent of fruits and vegetables in the U.S. And since 2007, according to the university, 30 percent of colonies die each winter on average in the U.S.

"Bees aren't surviving in the wild anymore," Heise said. "They just can't make it because the pesticides and the lack of crop variety are too rough on them. They really need somebody to help them along."

Gutwasser and Loewen both say the hobby does not require too much work. They check the hive and offer whatever support it needs every two or three weeks, they said.

"That's kind of the beauty," Gutwasser said. "They are self-sufficient primarily. They're doing the work, and you're just supporting them.

"It's such an important thing, and I wish more people were doing it. It was quite a jump, but I'm glad we did it."