Iowans who are considering taking up a new hobby in the new year might consider taking a course in beekeeping. A record number of beekeeping classes will be offered in the state this winter at locations all over Iowa. State apiarist Andrew Joseph says the courses are starting as soon as January 9th, just over a week from now.

“Wintertime is a good time to learn about all of the basic information you need to get started with a hive of bees,” Joseph says. “You’ll get this knowledge in your mind, you’ll know where to get things, how to order your equipment and put it together and what to expect over your first season. That’ll prepare you well for springtime, which is when beekeepers will start their new colonies.”

It can be a profitable hobby, Joseph says, and the number of beekeepers is growing.  “They’re just skyrocketing and this is definitely true for Iowa and it’s true for pretty much everywhere in the U.S.,” Joseph says. “We’ve jumped over the last ten years from around 3,000 or 3,500 beekeepers across the state to an estimated 4,500 now today.”

Iowa’s 4,500 beekeepers manage more than 45,000 colonies of honey bees. Those bees produce about 4-million pounds of honey annually, valued at over $8-million. Honey bees are also responsible for the pollination of many Iowa crops, as well as home gardens and plants eaten by wildlife. The economic value of honey bees as crop pollinators in Iowa is estimated at $92 million a year. Joseph says the classes being offered by the state will be of help for those who are just starting out.

“Most of the people that would be interested in these classes are new hobbyists, beekeepers with a couple of hives in their back yard,” he says. “It’s a great way to start, just two or three hives, get a taste for it and let it go from there. If you get a passion for it, build up your numbers.”

The state’s offering some 27 classes in beekeeping in a host of sites, included at Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs, on Thursday evenings from March 31st to April 14th. Another class will be held in Glenwood. The date and times for the classes have not yet been set. The full list of class sites and dates is at: www.abuzzaboutbees.com

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is planning to place trout in 17 different urban lakes over the next four months. Biologist Joe Larscheid is in charge of the agency’s fisheries. “Trout are a cold water species and they generally are confined in Iowa into the northeast corner of Iowa naturally, but when the water turns cold in the late fall and winter, we can stock these fish in other parts of Iowa,” he says. “We do that to bring trout closer, especially to urban areas, and make these family-friendly events and just really create some excitement about fishing.”

Larscheid says trout are easy to catch and once D-N-R staff put the fish in one of these urban lakes, it doesn’t take long for all the trout to be caught. “It doesn’t take sophisticated equipment. Usually a biologist is there on hand and some local partners there on hand to help people be successful, so if you have young kids, these are really good events to go to,” Larscheid says. “The odds of catching fish are pretty high.”

There are a lot of “anglers” out there in the state according to Larscheid, and thousands of Iowans are angling to catch trout. “We’ve sold more trout stamps in 2015 than ever before and they continue to increase every year,” Larscheid says, “so trout fishing is extremely popular in Iowa.” In addition to a state fishing license, anglers need a trout stamp to legally catch trout — and more than 44-thousand trout stamps have been sold this year.

The D-N-R’s first urban “trout stocking” event is scheduled fpr January 9th at the Scharnberg Pond in Spencer.  “I’d just like to encourage people when these events are in your area get your plans together, get your family together and really make an effort to get there,” Larscheid says. “A lot of these trout are caught very quickly one we put them in the system, so the fastest action is usually the day of, right when we stock them.”

In addition to the event planned in Spencer, trout will be stocked at lakes in 16 other cities from January through April, including Big Lake (plus Gilbert’s Pond) in Council Bluffs, at 4-p.m., on Jan. 22nd.

(Radio Iowa)