Email Discussion Group

The San Mateo County Beekeepers Guild offers an email discussion group for members: a place to share questions, answers, and observations about beekeeping with others in the guild.

Guidelines for Responsible Beekeeping

Our reference for good honeybee management practices.

Honeybee Health Coalition’s Varroa Management Guide

The Honey Bee Health Coalition brings together beekeepers, researchers, government agencies, agribusinesses, growers, conservation groups, manufacturers and other key partners to improve the health of honey bees in general
and specifically around production agriculture. Their Varroa Management Guide gives practical, effective methods to manage Varroa mites in your hives.

Bee Buddy Program

The Guild’s Bee Buddy program connects groups of beekeepers in the same area so that they can work together on beekeeping activities. To sign up you’ll need to fill out the registration form. Registration is open from 2/20/21 to 3/14/21. After registration closes, participants will be sent a list of fellow beekeepers in their area. It’s up to the members to connect with each other and decide how they want to work together.

Basic Bee Biology Handouts

This bundle of literature is used in the Guild’s Beginning Beekeeping class, and covers many aspects of basic bee biology. Download Zip file.

All About Langstroth Beehives

Just getting started with beekeeping? Check out Bay Area beekeeping educator Kendal Sager’s video detailing all the parts of a Langstroth hive.

Email Discussion Group

The San Mateo County Beekeepers Guild offers an email discussion group for members: a place to share questions, answers, and observations about beekeeping with others in the guild.

Suppliers and Bee Clubs

Contact information for equipment suppliers, bee and queen suppliers, and local and national Beekeeping organizations. Please note that inclusion in this list does not indicate promotion by the Guild. This list is provided as a resource only.

Zazzle Shop — Get Your Guild Gear Now!

The Guild now have a Zazzle shop, where you can purchase t-shirts, coffee mugs, hats, and other items emblazoned with the Guild’s logo or other bee-related designs. The shop uses Zazzle’s payment collection system, allowing you to pay with debit cards, credit cards, or Paypal. All profits from items sold via the shop support the guild financially. Ready to check it out? Buzz on over to: www.zazzle.com/smc_beekeepers_guild

Extractor Tips

We’ve put together a handy list of tips on using the Guild’s extractor.

Bee-friendly, Water-wise Gardening in San Mateo County

We offer a Google doc listing plants that grow well in our area, including information on whether they produce pollen or nectar, and bloom season. We also offer a downloadable PDF on Bee-friendly, Water-wise Gardening in San Mateo County.

Bee-friendly Nurseries

Bee-friendly nurseries in or near San Mateo County (Google spreadsheet or Google map).

Book Reviews

So many books on bees and beekeeping… where do you even start?! Check out members’ takes on classics and newer publications. And feel free to submit a book review for publication on this site.

Member Sites

Some of our members have bee-related web sites — take a peek! If you’d like to add your site to the list, just let us know.

Swarm/Hive Removal

If you need assistance with swarm removal or honey bee colony removal, we have you covered.