This bee-Learning Short Course explores the field of commercial crop pollination, highlighting pollination of California almonds by sideline and commercial beekeepers. Beekeepers can make significant income by renting healthy honey bee colonies to growers to provide pollination services for a variety of agricultural crops. In this course, you will learn what it takes to be successful in this industry including understanding what goes into a pollination contract, the rules and best practices regarding the transport of bees, and how to prepare, grade, and place colonies for pollination of almonds and other crops.

This short course includes the following lessons:

1. Pollination Contracts
2. Finding an Almond Grower
3. Preparing Bees for Almond Pollination
4. State Regulations
5. Moving Colonies
6. License and Weight Requirements
7. Commercial Bee Hauling and Subcontracting
8. Hive Placement
9. During the Almond Pollination Contract 
10. End of the Almond Pollination Contract

Important Information

• Software requirements: For the best user experiece use Chrome when accessing this course. Some features in this course are not be compatible with other internet browsers. 
• Some of the lessons in this course overlap with lessons in the Master Beekeeper online course, part of the UF/IFAS Master Beekeeper Program.
• This short course qualifies for one Continuing Education hour for the Master or Master Craftsman levels of the UF/IFAS Master Beekeeper Program. You do not need to be a participant in this program to take this short course.
• bee-Learning Short Courses are completely self-paced, although must be completed within 60 days of registering.
• You will receive a certificate of completion for this course via email after you have passed the final assessment and completed the course exit survey.
• No refunds will be granted for this course after the course has been accessed.