Sign up for the new Backyard Bees Apiary Series at Clark Botanic Garden! This free program offers a unique opportunity to meet with the Queen Bee and observe the subtle changes taking place in the Garden and bee yard throughout the honey season. Free Registration.
The Backyard Bees Apiary
There is a lot of curiosity about the bees living at Clark Botanic Garden. The Garden is the home for Backyard Bees‘ biggest apiary. The bee yard is a fenced in area and garden visitors can safely observe the bees from outside.
Backyard Bees took over the beekeeping responsibilities at Clark Botanic Garden last year You might have already read a bit about our beekeeping start at the Garden. After our adjustment period, we are excited to share our buzz with you!
Before the winter started, there were 10 healthy hives in the apiary. We are hopeful that we come into the spring with a 100% survival rate.
Visitors often think that the bees die in the winter, or that they hibernate. Honey bees do not hibernate; they are very active inside the hive when the weather is cold. Sadly, it’s true that some hives do die in the winter. A major goal of beekeepers is to keep the bees healthy, especially when food is scarce!
Visitors are curious, smart, funny, and soo supportive of the bees. They’re also welcome to chat with the Queen Bee when she is in the bee yard! That’s why we are offering our Apiary Series – to give us an opportunity to share our passion for the little honeybees.
The Apiary Series: Month By Month
It’s a joy to bee at the Garden. This season, the Queen is scheduling a series of visits, so you can join her to learn more about the honeybees, month by month. She’ll bee there on the last Thursday of each month at 2:00 pm to check on the hives and to share those findings with you.
The dates are listed below and we’ll keep on filling in the topics, as we learn what’s needed in the Clark Botanic Garden Bee Yard. Our first topic will be how the bees stay alive with proper nutrition during the cold New York winters.
- February 29: Winter Bees and Survival In The Cold
- March 28 Pretty Pollen in a Wet Bee Yard
- April 25 Queen Bee Season
- May 30
- June 27
- August 29 Battling Hive Beetles
- September 26 Powerful Propolis
- October 24 * date change due to Halloween Spooky Walk
Every beehive has its own personality and there are some locations that are better for bees than others. Clark Botanic Garden is a fantastic location with a lot of opportunities for the Queen to share her passion for the bees…and obviously there are plenty of opportunities for the bees too!
About the Apiary Series
How Much Does It Cost?
The Backyard Bees Apiary Series is free of charge. There is no charge to enter the Garden and parking is also free.
What Will We Do At The Bee Yard?
A visit to the bee yard doesn’t always mean gearing up in full bee gear or pulling out the smoker. A visit can just mean recording some observations about what’s happening – are they busy? is the equipment sealed properly? are there any signs of illness? what plants are in bloom? There’s a lot to observe.
You won’t need to come inside the bee yard. (Honestly, it’s quite bzz-y inside the fenced in area!) But there’s plenty of space around the perimeter. The gazebo is across the path from the bee yard and it offers another space to observe the bees. You’ll have a good view of the yard and bee quite safe from the ins and outs of the bees.
What Should I Bring?
We’ll meet by the gazebo across from the bee yard. Dress appropriately, and bee comfortable.
The gazebo has some seating, and there is a bench with a view of the bee yard too. If you want, you can bring your own chair.
We encourage you to bring a little notebook, something to lean on and something to write with…maybe some colored pencils?
And questions…you can definitely bring questions with you and the Queen will do her best to answer you.
Tentative Schedule:
The format of the group is very informal. We’ll ask you to sign-in and, as a group, we’ll talk about different things you notice in and around the apiary. To really appreciate the changes that take place each month, we’ll give you time to write, scribble, color, draw, record your notes.
- 2:00PM Meet at the gazebo
- 2:00-2:15 PM Record your observations in your notebook. We’ll give you suggestions but it’s entirely up to you how to record your experience. You can add to your notebook throughout the session.
- 2:15 – 2:30PM TOPIC OF THE MONTH The Queen will have a little demonstration or mini-chat about beekeeper tasks for the season. Whenever possible she’ll let you see what’s going on inside a hive, and how the comb inside changes from month to month.
- 2:30 – 2:45 PM Questions, requests, and wrap up
You don’t have to take any notes, but we are going to encourage you to sharpen your senses and it’s really fun to compare your observations from month to month.
Do I Have To Register?
Yes. Please. Sign up and Show Up! When you sign up we can make sure we stay in touch and notify you if there is a change in schedule.
Registered visitors will also be eligible for “garden prizes” and a special raffle at the end of the season. (You will bee entered in the raffle each time you attend a session – the more you attend, the more chances to win!). Sign up is easy.
Bee A Part of It
This isn’t a beekeeping class, but you will learn a lot about honeybees during your visits. The series of meetings at the apiary are free, but you are welcome to donate to the apiary or visit the Shop in the Garden to support the program.
If you can’t make it to the garden, we’ll bee summarizing and posting our noticing’s over here each month. Backyard Bees will bee sponsoring some door prizes and an end of season prize, but you have to bee in it to win it!
[…] to a Backyard Bees apiary, and the bees are very happy in the garden! Backyard Bees offers a free Apiary Series for garden visitors on the last Thursday of the month, February through […]