Beekeeping 4-H project creates a buzz

Madison Elementary student also versed in bee facts and figures.

Staff photo by Richard O Jones Sabrina Dolph, 9, of Madison Twp., won a first place trophy for her 4-H project about beekeeping.

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By Richard O Jones, Staff Writer 2:36 AM Thursday, July 28, 2011

HAMILTON — Did you know that an individual bee will produce one-twelfth of a teaspoon of honey in its five- to eight-week lifetime? Or that it takes 2 million flowers to make a pound of honey?

That’s the kind of knowledge Sabrina Dolph, a 9-year-old honor roll student at Madison Elementary, gained while working on her 4-H beekeeping project.

The daughter of Rick and Sara Dolph, Sabrina started from scratch to create a pair of hives, which resulted in a 28-pound harvest of honey and a first place ribbon at the Butler County Fair.

In addition to learning the facts and figures concerning of bees and the production of honey, Sabrina also had to become proficient in using the equipment associated with beekeeping.

A smoker, she said, confuses the bees into thinking there’s a forest fire so they will begin to devour as much honey as they can, and while they’re engaged in the gorging, it’s easier to work in the hives. A refractometer measures the moisture content of the honey, and is a fun word to say, she said.

Of course, the proper clothing, including the ever-popular beekeeper’s net hat.

“If you don’t have the hat covering the back of your neck, bees will crawl in and sting you on the neck,” she said, adding that she’s never been stung, one-upping her father, who also is a beekeeper and has felt the sting of not having his protective clothing on properly.

According to 4-H coordinator Erin Simpson Sloan, local 4-H youngsters turned in around 400 non-animal projects at the Butler County Fair this year. There are 70 4-H clubs in Butler County with around 1,400 members.

However, in addition to her beekeeping project, Sabrina is showing two pigs, which earned her fifth- and eighth-place ribbons in her class, and three chickens, for which she finished in the top 25.

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2188 or rjones@coxohio.com.

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