Six local youth participated in 4-H Beekeeping Bootcamp last week. The camp was taught by Julie Murphy and Elizabeth Towe, both members of the Beekeepers of Chowan County.

On Monday and Tuesday, youth learned about honey bees, honey bee anatomy, members of the colony, honey bee jobs, how honey bees communicate, pollination, honey, why we should care about pollinators, and much more. On Wednesday, the class took a field trip to a local apiary in Tyner. Youth were given a tour of Mrs. Julie’s honey house, where she keeps all of her beekeeping equipment. After dressing in bee suits and veils, youth were taken into the apiary to see what goes on inside the hives. On the final day of bee camp, youth created thumb-print honey bees on a bee hive that will be donated to the wildlife garden located at the N.C. Cooperative Extension of Chowan County office. Youth also designed bee bookmarks, watched a movie about bees, constructed bee hotels, and enjoyed a watermelon snack with a honey, lime juice, and mint glaze.

For more information on Chowan County 4-H, contact Camaryn Byrum at cibyrum@ncsu.edu. Follow us on Facebook, @Chowan County 4-H.