Please join us at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday 10th November at the Montgomery County Health and Human Services Building at 210 Pepper St., Christiansburg  when Dr  Marcel Durieux will give a talk “From ‘appropriate technology’ to ‘balanced beekeeping’: a history of the top bar hive.”

Top bar hives have recently become popular in the western world, but the system has a very long history and in fact revolutionized beekeeping by allowing management and inspection for the first time. In this talk, Dr Durieux gives an overview of the history of the top bar hive, touching on items as diverse as other hive systems in use prior to the invention of the movable-comb hive, top bar hive use in Greece in the 1600s, the development of the Kenya top bar hive for African beekeeping, and the current interest in the system as a part of “balanced beekeeping”.

Marcel Durieux MD, PhD is professor of anesthesiology at the University of Virginia, and a backyard beekeeper with an interest in bee biology. Much of his academic research focuses on improving outcomes after surgery. Another part of his professional work involves teaching in developing countries, which has led to an ongoing collaboration with beekeepers in Rwanda. Prof. Durieux has published several articles in our beekeeping journals.

We will also have our monthly beekeeper raffle and a “what should you be doing with your hives this month” discussion.

Please consider bringing a snack or drink to share.