Sep
16
Urban Beekeeping
Interest in urban beekeeping has been growing over the past several years. Take a look at how Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are cultivating local honey from urban bees…
PHILADELPHIA
The Philadelphia Beekeepers Guild has been promoting local and sustainable apiculture for some time in the area. They celebrate their sweet delights through an annual Honey Festival (which recently passed.) In addition, they hold monthly workshops/meetings on pertinent topics for urban beekeepers. Philadelphia is so lucky to have this group!
WHYY’s Newsworks featured an interview with Urban Apiaries. In addition to their site at Weavers Way, the company operates hives at two locations in West Philadelphia and one each in South Philadelphia, Queen Village and North Philadelphia.
Other bee-related articles that feature urban beekeeping in Philadelphia are:
- Bee a good neighbor: Urban Apiaries’ honey could hardly be more local, buzzing in from city rooftops and bottled by zip code.
- Urban beekeeping all buzz in Philadelphia: It might make some neighbors apprehensive, but urban bees could be better off than their country cousins. Compared to agricultural regions with industrial monoculture farming, cities have a wider variety of foliage.
PITTSBURGH
Pittsburgh beekeepers create nation’s first community apiary in Homewood: Pittsburgh is now home to the U.S.’s first community apiary, a community garden of sorts, but instead of herbs and veggies being grown, it’s bees being kept.
Pittsburgh beekeepers create nation’s first community apiary in Homewood: Pittsburgh is now home to the U.S.’s first community apiary, a community garden of sorts, but instead of herbs and veggies being grown, it’s bees being kept.
Honey from the ‘hood: A new flow from Pittsburgh’s urban neighborhoods: City honey finds a sympathetic market. There’s the incongruity: City bees produce quality honey, foraging empty lots, flower boxes, even cut flowers — within a couple of miles of their urban base. Also, urban beekeepers tend to be eloquent spokespeople for the embattled honeybee and its role in nature’s balance. In the past five years, Pittsburgh has acquired its own honey from the ‘hood.
