LBA and USDA-ARS 
FALL FIELD DAY
Help your bees by learning the latest research and practices!
Register now to hear presentations from experts right here in our state at our world-class bee lab in Baton Rouge. For close to 100 years, the bee lab has been providing helpful and practical information for beekeepers. Don't miss this opportunity to gather information first-hand from these researchers during this year's Fall Field Day.
Saturday, October 7, 2023
USDA ARS Honey Bee Lab
1157 Ben Hur Road, Baton Rouge, LA. 70808
Varroa mites can cause massive colony losses; they are the single largest problem facing beekeepers since they spread to the United States from Southeast Asia in 1987. While miticides used to control Varroa exist, resistance is developing to some of them.
“We would like to replace reliance on chemical controls with honey bees...that have high mite resistance of their own and perform well, including high honey production...” said Frank Rinkevich, Research Entomologist.
Learn the latest from the best experts in the world, the USDA ARS researchers and LBA beekeepers in the morning, lunch included in the ticket price, and hands-on demonstrations in the hives for the afternoon with the researchers and our LBA commercial beekeepers.
2023 Field Day information: (Bring your beekeeping gear!)
The Field Day will include a series of talks in the morning from members of the Louisiana Beekeepers Association and the USDA-ARS staff about Louisiana beekeeping and research being conducted at the USDA-ARS lab. The afternoon features break-out sessions for beekeepers of all ranges of experience and plenty of opportunity for hands-on hive demonstrations.
Bring your bee suit for one of the following:
The beginning beekeeper course is directed to those who have little to no beekeeping experience. Topics will include basic bee biology as well as necessary beekeeping equipment and management techniques. A question and answer session precede a practical demonstration in honey bee colonies.
The intermediate beekeeping course is focused on the beekeeper with a moderate amount of experience that is now ready to take it to the next level. Topics will include spring colony management, nutrition, and examining open colonies, followed by a final talk on treatment options for Varroa mites.
There will be a workshop for advanced beekeepers that focuses on selecting and rearing queens.
About the USDA ARS Honey Bee Lab in Baton Rouge
The mission of the Honey Bee Breeding, Genetics and Physiology Research Unit is directly related to improving honey bee stock and honey bee management. This broad mission includes components related to problems caused by varroa mites, tracheal mites and microsporidians in the genus Nosema. The devastating problems caused by varroa mites and the serious problems caused by tracheal mites and Nosema are targeted as the most critical. Scientists are engaged in breeding and testing honey bees for resistance to mites and Nosema, evaluating mite-bee interactions to better describe breeding criteria, and evaluate stock production processes to explore and solve stock problems caused by mites and Nosema.
