It’s not easy to find. If not for the map provided by Garden Walk Buffalo, a Saturday afternoon may have been squandered driving along one-way, west side streets in search of the apiary run by BTPM co-worker, Garrett Adams, and his wife, Stephanie Adams. Meanwhile, thousands of bees have had no problem finding the place in recent summers.
“You kind of fall into it,” Garrett explained. Stephanie raised the idea initially while Garrett took a wait-and-see approach. A year later, the interest remained.
“So, we decided to get invested in it and it’s been really great.”
The benefits have been many. Multiple pounds of honey are jarred each year, more than enough to provide extended gift giving for the holidays.
“We’ve noticed just from our yard, even though bees don’t tend to pollinate really close to where they are, our yard has seen much more fruit on our fruit trees, many more flowers.” Garrett shared.
Healthier trees and honey aside, the Adams seem to love their buzzing and busy guests. They refer to one hive as “Comb Sweet Comb.” Sugar water is left out for nourishment and refreshment. Keep the bees calm and happy; rewards will be reaped.
The Adams are mentoring first-year beekeepers, Eric Dibben and Shannon Rupp. They bought the hive and stop by to check on its progress. While an estimated 50,000 bees call the hive their home, they were initially found in a swarm in a neighborhood tree. Garrett and Stephanie worked with the Massachusetts Avenue Project to transfer the bees into the hive.
“They just stuck them in there and hope they would stay, and they did stay!,” shared Rupp who has been reading up on bees throughout the summer. Dibben favors a more active approach.
“Will this one beehive change the world? No.” Dibben acknowledged.
”If everyone did a little bit of something. Things would probably be better.”
A short visit wasn’t enough time to learn all the secrets of bees. Trial-and-error, they admit, may be the best teacher. The lessons continue to fascinate.
”Because bees forage usually about a mile away from where they live, you actually don’t have to worry about if there is enough for them to forage on in the immediate area,” said Stephanie. She points toward the Niagara River about a half-mile away.
“So, for all we know these are socialist bees that have been foraging over in Canada and not have to worry about the border. “
