You have bees. Now comes the harder part: learning how to make good management decisions.
Bee Great's Intermediate Beekeeping Class is designed for beekeepers who already understand the basics and want to become more confident evaluating colonies, recognizing problems, and deciding what to do next.
Rather than simply following a calendar or a list of instructions, this class focuses on understanding what the colony is telling you and using that information to make better decisions throughout the season.
Class Details
Date: Saturday, January 16, 2027
Time: 9:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.
Location: Bee Great
Individual Registration: $95
Two-Person Household Registration: $150
Class Size: Limited to 10 participants
What You'll Learn
During the class, we'll cover:
- Evaluating overall colony strength
- Reading brood patterns and recognizing queen problems
- Understanding spring buildup
- Recognizing and managing swarm preparation
- Deciding when and how to make splits
- Queen replacement and queen-management decisions
- Evaluating food stores and feeding needs
- Monitoring and managing Varroa mites
- Preparing colonies for honey production
- Understanding seasonal changes inside the hive
- Recognizing when a colony needs intervention
- Preparing colonies for fall and winter
- Learning from colony losses and dead-outs
- Building a management plan for the coming season
We'll also work through real-world hive situations and discuss how different conditions can lead to different management decisions.
Who Is This Class For?
This class is designed for beekeepers who:
- Have completed at least one season of beekeeping
- Have taken a beginner beekeeping class or have equivalent experience
- Understand basic hive equipment and colony inspections
- Want to improve their ability to diagnose problems
- Want to become less dependent on rigid checklists and more confident making decisions
- Are preparing for another season and want a stronger management plan
This is not an introductory class. If you are preparing to keep bees for the first time, Bee Great's Beginner Beekeeping Class is the better starting point.
What's Included?
Registration includes the Bee Great Intermediate Beekeeping Guide, which can be used during the class and throughout the coming season as a reference.
A short break will be included during the class. Lunch is not provided.
Two-Person Household Registration
Two people from the same household may attend for $150.
Both participants should have basic beekeeping knowledge and both count toward the 10-person class limit.
What Happens After the Class?
Intermediate students will be able to continue building their skills through Bee Great's seasonal hands-on learning opportunities, including future hive-inspection, splitting, and honey-harvest experiences.
The goal is to help you move from simply performing beekeeping tasks to understanding why you are doing them and when a different decision may be appropriate.
