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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 16, 2017)
Polk County News 6A Polk County Itemizer-Observer • August 16, 2017 Beekeeper shares interest George Woodward talks all about bees at Polk County Fair display By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer RICKREALL — George Woodward likes Oregon honeybees. OK, so technically, honey- bees aren’t native to Oregon or the United States, but they have been beneficial since being introduced. Woodward, a master bee- keeper, speculates bees im- ported from states like Hawaii and California react to Oregon the way people do — thinking it’s beautiful and plant-filled, but what’s with all the dreary rain? “I figure they are beach bums,” he said. “They are used to warm weather.” He gets his bees from people who raise them in the Willamette Valley. Woodward talked about his “more than hobby” at the Polk County Fair on Friday and Saturday at the Polk Soil & Water Conservation Dis- trict booth. He picked up beekeeping out of curiosity. Members of his family had been bee- keepers, so he decided to give it a go. Woodward found a men- tor while picking up his Christmas tree several years ago. He noticed a bee box at the tree farm. Woodward asked the owner about the bees, but the tree farmer said: “Ah. You don’t want to do bees” and walked away. The next year, the farmer did the same thing. Finally, on his third try, Woodward got the tree farmer to talk about bees. “He said, ‘You want to do bees, come back after Christmas,’ so I came back after Christmas,” he said. Woodward said the farmer sat down with him and helped him pick out equipment and gear from supply house Mann Lake. Woodward bought two hives and was off and running. During the first year, some of his queen bees fell victim to what could be described as JOLENE GUZMAN/ Itemizer-Observer Polk County Fair attendees check out a hive of George Woodward’s bees on Saturday. Woodward gave an “intro to beekeeping” presentation on Friday and Saturday. helicopter parenting. “I was in my bees all the time,” he said. “Sometimes every other day or at least once a week, I would get in there to check them out to see how they were doing.” It was too much. He ended up killing a few of his queens. He learned a few more lessons on the way, such as how easy it is to turn two hives into eight without meaning to. Early in his beekeeping days, his backyard hives were getting out of hand. One was about to swarm, meaning half the hive was getting ready to fly off with the queen and find a new home. At that point, he was limited to five hives. “I’m in West Salem with a backyard beekeeping per- mit,” he said. “They actually have laws about this stuff.” He and his mentor re- arranged his hives before the bees swarmed, but then they had another problem. After moving the bees around, he had eight hives, more than allowed in a backyard. “My wife’s like, ‘umm, that’s illegal,’” Woodward recalled. Four years into his hobby, he spends two days each week working with his bees — he’s also a full-time electrician — and maintains a bee yard on a 41-acre property off Kings Valley Highway. As a DIY kind of guy, he’s quite happy with his honey- making hobby. Those who are interested can order equipment and bees from supply houses. He recommends getting a suit, smoker, hive tool, hive box and feeder to start out with. You can customize your equipment as much as you want from there. He said keepers can find more bees by putting them- selves on a list to collect swarms when people call to have them removed from their property. His advice is to find a local beekeeper who is sell- ing what are called nucleus colonies or “nucs” that have hive and queen that are al- ready compatible. Packaged bees can sometimes reject the queens placed with them — and local nucs come with another benefit. “They know what they are getting into with the rain and what we’ve got for weather,” Woodward said. Most important, Wood- ward said would-be bee- keepers should attend “bee school.” Most beekeeping clubs offer it in some fashion. Chemeketa Community College has a three-night course to teach you about what you are in for. “Excellent head start,” Woodward said. “They really give you a hand up. ... They cover everything under the sun.” For more information about beekeeping: Willamette Valley Beekeep- ers Association: wvbahive.org/. For more on pollinators, see next week’s I-O. For bee trivia go to www.polkio.com. Recycle this newspaper. EMILY MENTZER/Itemizer-Observer Dash McNett won three ribbons for his photos. Young photographer shines at Polk fair By Emily Mentzer The Itemizer-Observer RICKREALL — Dasheill “Dash” McNett, 7, enjoys taking photos with his Canon Rebel — and, if the number of ribbons on his Polk County Fair submis- sions suggests anything, he has an eye for photography. “I just do it because it’s fun,” he said. His repertoire includes animals, people, land- scapes and other various projects organized by the Dallas Photography Club. In one club-led experiment in water photography, you can barely make out a Lego Batman figure. The piece is titled “The Dark Knight Sinks.” Strolling through the photography exhibits at the fair, Dash’s name can be found in each category. Here, a panoramic shot of Oregon’s Painted Hills. There, a collage of his soc- cer team playing a match. “My mom and I decided which one was the best pic- ture and put the rest around it,” Dash said. “It was my soccer team.” Fortunately, his coach didn’t mind him sitting that match out to practice his photography skills, Dash said. His mom, Marita Barth, said she gave Dash his Rebel when she upgraded her own camera. Both using Canons, they can share lenses. Dash won a first-place award at the fair for a por- trait of his friend’s dog. “They said they would pay me for taking a pic- ture,” he said. So far, it’s been his only paying job. With his skills, it likely won’t be his last. Dash is pleased with how well he did at the fair — three ribbons, so far. He said he wasn’t sure “partic- ipant” ribbons should count. Barth said her son’s work is very different from what she sees. “I tend to dampen things, he’s, ‘Brighter! Louder!’” she said. “Both can still be good.” FCC rule affects Dallas’ decision on meeting recordings Itemizer-Observer staff report Join us for a celebration 70 years in the making! In 1947, Dallas Retirement Village opened its doors as a small care center for seniors in Dallas. Over the years, we evolved into an active, flourishing neighborhood providing all the opportunities and conveniences residents want and need. You’re invited to help us celebrate 70 wonderful years of fellowship, friendship and fun. Thursday, August 24 • 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM The Lodge Clubhouse 225 NW Jasper St., Dallas, Oregon 97338 8th Season! Thursdays! • Enjoy delicious appetizers and refreshments. • Experience the new Lodge Clubhouse, featuring the Cascade Commons and Clubhouse Grill. • Mix & mingle with residents. May - Sept 10 am - 3 pm RSVP for yourself and a guest 503-623-9211 Share your memories. If you have any historical photos or memorabilia of Dallas Retirement Village, please contact Lindsey Horton at 503-623-1747 prior to the event. Still need to stock up on groceries before the BIG eclipse weekend? Come shop with us to pick up your fruits & veggies, meat (yak, beef, pork & rabbit), poultry (duck and chicken), eggs (duck and chicken), canned goods, fresh cut flowers, Artisan breads, pastries, confections, shrubs, glazed nuts, dipping sauces, wine and more! We have a full house of vendors this week to serve you! • NO LINES • NO HASSLE PARKING • FRESH LOCAL GOODS from those who grow it or make it • HOT FOOD • LIVE MUSIC: Cash & Company 11am to 1pm DALLAS — The city of Dal- las recently began looking into making videos of its council meetings, but a pro- posed Federal Communica- tion Commission rule may prevent that. The proposal would re- quire closed captioning on videos, greatly increasing the cost of providing the service, said Dallas City Manager Ron Foggin. Councilor Micky Garus in July suggested the city inves- tigate ways to take video of meetings. “No sooner had we start- ed looking into that that the FCC has decided that it’s going to require every agency that offers any kind of public hearing or public video of their meetings to require them to do closed caption- ing,” Foggin said at the coun- cil’s Aug. 7 meeting. “We are actually having to slow down on that idea because until the FCC decides that, that would be extremely, ex- tremely expensive.” He said government agen- cies that already provide the service are weighing in on the potential rule, saying it would force them to stop be- cause of the expense. “We want to do it. We are anxious to do it, but this rule might change that,” Foggin said. Visit our website, Facebook.com/bountymarket http://www.exploredallasoregon.org/bounty-market.html www.polkio.com
