Well, the 2018 annual Tri-County Beekeepers Workshop is now in the books. This is the 40th year for this workshop and as usual, the TCBA put on another fantastic day and a half filled with educational and entertaining presentations and all the vendors you could possibly want to visit. The workshop started Friday evening and ran until late afternoon on Saturday. Saturday was filled with 3 workshops, each offering several options for presentations to listen to. In between there workshops there was time to visit the many vendors (39 this year) and see what is new in the beekeeping world, or buy those items you need for the upcoming year. The workshop sold out this year with a max attendance limit of 1000 people. This made for a full venue but still manageable to get around and get to the vendors. The workshop is held at the Fisher Auditorium and Shisler Center at the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center. This venue, part of the OSU campus in Wooster that includes the Agricultural Technical Institute, offers plenty of presentation rooms and space for vendors too. Also on the grounds is the beekeeping museum and a pollinatarium to visit. This year’s two main speakers included Dr. Jamie Ellis, Associate Professor of Entomology in the Department of Entomology and Nematology from the University of Florida, and Randy Oliver, beekeeper and biologist from California. Both of these speakers are incredibly informative and highly entertaining. The wealth of knowledge they bring is amazing. Their delivery is very down to earth and the information very applicable to the topic at hand. If you ever get a chance to hear either of these men speak I would recommend you do it. Likewise, if you haven’t gone before, you need to keep the Tri-County Beekeepers Spring Workshop on your calendar. It is typically held on the first weekend in March. Watch their website (http://www.tricountybeekeepers.org/) starting at the first of the year to see when registration opens up. It is not uncommon for this workshop to sell out and there are no walk ins allowed, so make sure you get registered early. I’m looking forward to next year and already have my calendar marked. Maybe we’ll see you there.