DC Beekeepers Alliance

10/15/2026

Are you interested in beekeeping and wondering if this hobby is right for you?
Are you interested in taking the 2027 DCBA Beginning Beekeeping Class?
If your answer to either of these questions is yes, then register for the "Is Beekeeping Right for Me?" orientation today!
Three sessions are offered, so choose one that works for you:
Tuesday, Oct 20, 7-8:30 pm
Thursday, Oct 22, 11:30am-1pm
Saturday, Oct 24, 5:30 to 7 pm

To register for any of these sessions, please check out

Registration: “Is Beekeeping Right For Me” 2026/Required Orientation SessionInterested in beekeeping and wondering if this hobby is right for you? Join us for this FREE 90-minute session covering the costs, time commitment, and logistics of keeping bees. This session is designed for people who a...

10/02/2026

Hey DC-area bee learners! DCBA has posted our July and September monthly meeting recordings, and they are open to everyone until December 1, 2026!

- September 2026: Alexis and Daniel Boback on Thermahive: Using Heat not Chemicals for Varroa Control, https://tinyurl.com/vmdezymm
- July 2026: Karla Eisen on the History, the Why and the How of Honey Shows, https://tinyurl.com/5ekuzwht

See the comments below for recent meeting recordings that are available to DCBA members!

07/25/2026

Yellow Jacket and Hornet Alert/Tips!

Most of the "bees" of late summer are not bees at all, and beekeepers DON'T handle them.
Tip 1: honey bees do not live in the ground (Yellowjackets can)
Tip 2: honey bees do not build nests that hang in trees. (Hornets do, some of them.)

TL/DR advice: in DC call the Mayor's 311 number, and INSIST on "filing a ticket with the Department of Health." If they send you to us, that is just frustrating and useless for you!

DC government will respond to public property, but not private. You or your landlord will decide what to do.

We don't recommend pest control professionals: we don't know who is good near you.

Here's advice, though!

Yellowjackets
If you are seeing something bright yellow and black and getting stung, it's probably YJs. They are mean neighbors and (mostly) not endangered. They do hunt alot of other bugs, though. If you are not being stung, live-and-let-live is an option. There is no dishonor in eradicating them from your yard or house.
They can live Spring-Fall, but can survive mild winters, and in houses.

Hornets
If you see a nest which is kinda round and hanging in a tree, it is hornets (there's a photo below) If nests are 20' high or more, they are unlikely to bother you unless someone bothers them (kids, tree workers...) It's up to you.

Hornet nests die before the first hard frost. If you see one in the winter, it is dead. No one is coming back. You can knock it down if you want to bother.

If you are not being stung, you can also wait and see. It is rare for nests to fall down (they have many incentives to do good construction work).

Happy to answer questions, if I can!

07/15/2026

DCBA Member? It's time for to order discount honey jars!
DC Beekeepers Alliance members can participate in a group order of jars (a dozen options) and lower than retail cost.
If you are a member, you can log in at to DCbeekeepers.com, then you can browse and purchase at https://dcbeekeepers.com/jars/
If you are not a member, please join!
We offer all sorts of stuff all year round (jars, OAV, classes, meetings, more)

Join or Renew NOTE: If you are renewing your membership, you must login before continuing. (Your old .org password will not work on DCbeekeepers.com)Click 'Forgot Password' to set, or re-set a new password.If you try to submit this form but get an error message saying your "email is already in u...

06/20/2026

DCBA members: check your email! We are taking nominations this weekend and holding an election next week for our Board of Directors!

If you are not yet a member, it is NOT TOO LATE to jump in on the election (or to participate in DCBA summer offerings like access to honey harvesting tools or the wholesale honey jar group buy)!

https://dcbeekeepers.com/join-or-renew/

Memberships pay for the majority of what DCBA offers, from monthly meetings to winter mite prevention! Become a part of the colony! 🐝❤️🐝

Join or Renew NOTE: If you are renewing your membership, you must login before continuing. (Your old .org password will not work on DCbeekeepers.com)Click 'Forgot Password' to set, or re-set a new password.If you try to submit this form but get an error message saying your "email is already in u...

05/21/2026

DCBA does more than offer meetings and deploy a swarm squad!
This is a bee-box decorating session that happened today, capping off a year of second grade bee lessons.
The artists were asked to paint us something that they learned or liked about bees!
We can teach YOU how to include this activity for your school, church, scouts, and more!

05/20/2026

🐝 Happy World Bee Day!

DC Water's Blue Plains facility is known for being the largest advanced wastewater treatment plant in the world. But we're also known for something a little sweeter: our honey🍯.

In partnership with the DC Beekeepers Alliance, our 18 hives (and growing) provide a new home for hundreds of thousands of bees rescued from all over the city. These hardworking pollinators support the local ecosystem while producing about 200 pounds of award-winning honey every year.

Next time you're at Blue Plains, don't bee a stranger and come say hi!

05/20/2026

04/15/2026

Don't miss our meeting tomorrow: Build an Urban Pollinator Paradise: Wed April 15, 6:30 to 8
https://www.dcbeekeepers.org/dcba-meetings
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/7fE08y5VR3ipTEGJOCxEHw