Lehigh Valley Beekeepers Association is offering a four-session "Introduction to Beekeeping" 7 to 9:30 p.m. Feb. 5 and 19, and March 5 and 19.

All classes and field trips to the club apiary for hands-on experience will be at Lehigh Carbon Community College, 4525 Education Park Drive, Schnecksville.

Building and classroom information will be provided to registrants before the first class.

Classes will cover basic bee biology, necessary equipment, setting up the hive and adding the bees, a typical year in the life of a beekeeper, honey bee pests and treatment options and small group workshops on assembling hives and components, hive ventilation, feeding and honey extraction.

Instructors will be association beekeepers, including some of whom are certified master beekeepers.

This 93-year-old association includes members from the Poconos to Bucks County to New Jersey and west to Lebanon County and tops 150 members.

In 1990 there were an estimated 3.3 million bee colonies; 15 years later fewer than 2.5 million remained.

Honey bee pollination is necessary to the survival of the American farmer.

Register at lehighvalleybeekeepers.org, by contacting Steve Finke, LVBA president at sjfinke@msn.com or by calling 610-737-7676.