This project will help you learn about bees and beekeeping. You will learn about the types of bees, the honey and wax they produce, the plants that attract bees, and the equipment a beekeeper needs. If you want to set up your own hive, you'll learn basic beehive care, how to extract and bottle honey. Advanced topics include: increasing the number of your honey bee colonies, increasing honey production, producing special kinds of honey, and learning more about bee societies.

Exhibit Introduction

Create an exhibit that shows the public what you learned in the beekeeping project this year. Posters are to be displayed horizontally, sized 22" x 28", mounted on a firm backing (foam-core board or other), and covered in clear plastic or other transparent material. Choose one of the topics listed below, appropriate for your grade in school, and use that topic for your exhibit title, so the judges know which activity you completed. You can also use a creative sub-title if you wish.

All posters, notebooks, and display boards must include a reference list indicating where information was obtained, giving credit to the original author, to complete the 4-H members exhibit. This reference list should/might include web site links, people and professionals interviewed, books, magazines, etc. It is recommended this reference list be attached to the back of a poster or display board, be the last page of a notebook, or included as part of the display visible to the public. A judge is not to discredit an exhibit for the manner in which references are listed.

Notes:

There are no age specifications for beekeeping exhibits. No bee hives may be brought to the State Fair.

Honey water content will be measured.

Fill level: the honey should be filled to the jar shoulder, not over, nor under

Chunk honey should go in a wide-mouth jar, preferably one specially made for chunk honey (see beekeeping catalogs).

Be careful to distinguish "chunk honey"(comb in jar) from "cut comb" (comb only in box). Honey (including chunk, cut comb and comb) must be collected since the previous county fair.

Requirements

Level: Division 1: (may do 1 to 2 years) 4-H 571, One State Fair entry per county Exhibit

Present one of the following topics on a poster, as specified above.

Last Modified: 10/1/20

1. Flowers Used to Make Honey - display pressed flowers from 10 different Indiana plants that bees use for making
2. Uses of Honey and Beeswax
3. Setting up a Bee Hive
4. Safe Handling of Bees
5. Any other Beekeeping related topic.

Requirements

Level: Division 2: (may do 1 to 2 years) 4-H 586. There is no limit on the number of exhibits a county may enter in Division 2, but only one exhibit per 4-H member is allowed at the State Fair.

Last Modified: 09/21/07

Exhibit

Exhibit one of the following:

1. Extracted honey - 2 one-pound jars, shown in glass or clear plastic, screw-top jars holding 1 pound of honey
2. Chunk honey (comb in jar)- 2 one-pound jars(>wide-mouth glass or clear plastic).
3. Cut-comb honey - 2 one- pound boxes (These are usually 4 1/2" x 4 1/2" in size)
4. Working with Honey Bees - Present a topic from your manual to teach fair goers about working with honey bees. Use your knowledge and creativity to display this information on a poster or in a notebook. Posters must follow the guidelines listed

Requirements

Level: Division 3 and Above: (may do multiple years) 4-H 593. There is no limit to the number of exhibits a county may enter in Division 3 and above, but only one exhibit per member is allowed at the State Fair.

Exhibit 

Last Modified: 10/14/11

Exhibit two of the four kinds of honey listed below (#1-4) or prepare an educational display about honey bees or beekeeping (#5).

1. Extracted Honey - 2 one-pound jars (glass or clear plastic).
2. Chunk Honey (comb in jar) - 2 one-pound jars (wide-mouth - glass or clear plastic).
3. Cut-comb Honey - 2 one-pound boxes. Boxes are usually 4 1/2" x 4 1/2"
4. Comb Honey - 2 sections (honey built by bees in frames of wood commonly called "sections." Boxes are usually 4 1/2" x 4 1/2" in size)
5. Prepare an educational display about honey bees or

Requirements

Level: Independent Study: Grades 9 - 12, one State Fair entry

Exhibit

Last Modified: 10/14/09

Advanced topic - Learn all you can about a beekeeping topic and present it on a poster. Include a short manuscript, pictures, graphs, and list the works cited to describe what you did and what you learned. Title your poster, "Advanced Beekeeping - Independent Study."

Mentoring - Exhibit a poster that shows how you mentored a younger 4-H member. Include your planning, the time you spent, the challenges and advantages of mentoring, and how the experience might be useful in your life. Photographs and other documentation are encouraged. Title your poster, "Advanced Beekeeping - Mentor."

Related Files