NEW GLOUCESTER – The University of Maine Cooperative Extension, in cooperation with Pineland Farms, will offer a multi-session beekeeping course on consecutive Wednesday evenings beginning Feb. 25.

Classes will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Pineland Campus Visitors Center.

The course, “Meeting the Challenges of Keeping Bees in Maine,” will feature state apiarist Tony Jadzcak and experienced beekeeper Bob Egan. The topics addressed will include seasonal management, problem-solving and mite control, a major problem in beekeeping.

The fee is $50 and covers the cost of the textbook, a bee disease publication and the beekeepers’ reference notebook. There will be four classroom sessions and a beekeepers’ field day in June. The course is limited to 30 participants, and enrollment is on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Call the Cumberland County Cooperative Extension Office at 1-800-287-1471 for more information or to request a registration form. Registrations are due Friday, Feb. 20.