Every Sunday morning, Meara Perrin dons a pink suit and does a weekly home inspection for the several thousand inhabitants that take up residence in her backyard.
And for keeping them comfortable, fed and happy, Perrin gets paid in honey. Last harvest, the backyard beekeeper collected three pounds of the sweet stuff, and gifted bottles of it to friends and family.
“Harvesting the honey is one of my favorite days. You get all sticky and you filter it through the strainers, and it slowly drains through the spigot and into the jars,” she says with all the excitement of a kid on Christmas morning.
But like her fellow backyard beekeepers, Perrin understands and embraces her small, yet vital role in helping to give the dwindling bee population a boost. Data shows that one out of every three bites of food that mankind consumes is possible only because of bee pollination.
“Without bees, we could not survive,” Perrin says.
Today, she’s the proud mama of two thriving hives. However, Perrin encountered her share of sweet sorrow right off the bat when she entered the beekeeping world four years ago. After purchasing her first nuc box—a starter kit that comes with a queen and bees—she ran into two common challenges that rookie beekeepers in Arizona face.
Her first was caused by the bees absconding, or leaving the hive, because it’s not ideal due to the temperature, placement, or the box itself.
Feral—also known as Africanized—bees living on Perrin’s 7 ½-acre property were the cause of the second. Upon discovering her hive and the food she left for it, the aggressive bees robbed the once-thriving hive, killing the adult bees and leaving the babies to starve.
Like most keepers and non-keepers, she had no idea these feral bees were around. Bees fly about a 2-mile radius, so if there are any feral colonies within that distance, they will rob a hive. The only solution would be an expert removal of those aggressive bees.
She realized there was much to learn that couldn’t be gleaned from the internet alone.
“As new beekeepers, we think we can just jump in. And then we learn things the hard way. They’re not just simple pets to keep,” she says.
That’s when she sought advice, and that’s when she found Phoenix beekeeper and instructor Roy Arnold, owner of Roy’s Bees. With Arnold’s guidance, Perrin has been able to sustain a hive for the last three years—and added a second one with its own queen.
A 25-year veteran beekeeper, Arnold has 150 hives on his property. He’s experienced every scenario new and seasoned backyard beekeepers face. When giving a hands-on beekeeping introduction class, the first thing he pays attention to are the students’ faces. That tells him who should pursue the hobby and who should steer clear.
“When I open a hive, if someone is calm, it’s a good indication. If their eyes get really big, it may not be a good thing for you because bees can sense fear,” Arnold says.
Dave Owens, also known as The Garden Guy, recently installed two hives in the lush backyard of his Paradise Valley home that sits on 2 acres and backs up to Mummy Mountain. He took a class from Arnold and connected with Perrin in preparation to indulge his interest in backyard beekeeping.
“It’s going to be a bit of an adventure,” Owens says with a chuckle.
Owens knows the revitalization of bee colonies is crucial to survival, especially since there’s less wind pollination in the desert southwest than in other regions. It’s why he’s decided to join the fight.
“It’s our chance to add a little bit back into nature, and that’s our inspiration. It’s our way of giving back,” he says.
Since taking up beekeeping, Perrin, an independent marketing consultant in the luxury residential design space, has only become exponentially more passionate about the hobby that has become so much more as she takes active roles in helping to spark that passion in others, often teaming up with Arnold.
How did Perrin get started? Her journey began due to a conversation about Kickstarters with her two sisters, some wine, and a persuasive video.
They stumbled onto a video for Kickstarter Flow Hive, a hive and tap system that allows beekeepers to extract honey from a hive without destroying it, or traumatizing or accidentally killing its bees. What caught their attention, however, was the male Australian beekeeper in the video.
“We thought it was a neat idea. But we also thought this beekeeper was pretty darn cute,” Perrin says, giggling. “The next thing you know, for my birthday, my husband and sisters bought me a Flow Hive.”
Of course, the rest is history.
Over the years that followed, Perrin has experienced many more benefits to her hobby-turned-passion. Finding a peaceful Zen while beekeeping and bonding with her bees are among them, and knowing she is doing what she can to stimulate the bee population and assist with the sustainability of a healthy planet brings its own special joy.
“If we can get more people involved with this, it’s good for gardens, good for the environment, and good for education,” she says.
Thinking about entering the world of backyard beekeeping? Arnold and Perrin have suggestions to keep in mind:
- Each city has its own ordinance regulating beekeeping. Research what’s legal in yours before starting.
- Consider your physical capabilities. A full hive that needs to be moved for inspection when full of honey can weigh 90 pounds. If that’s too much, get more manageable equipment.
- A five-frame nuc gives you the best shot at first-time success. It costs about $200 and comes with everything needed, from food sources and ample growth space to a queen, eggs, pupa and larvae. Get insulation to protect it against extreme cold and heat.
- Obtain a non-Africanized queen. Arnold’s queens are from Hawaii, where there are none, so her colonies won’t be Africanized.
- Take at least one hands-on introductory class before starting.
- Find a mentor who can help you navigate the new territory.
For the first year, Perrin spent about $1,000 for the nuc, queen, bees, and two beekeeping suits—one made of canvas and another of light mesh for the summer. She also joined a beekeeping class.
When inspecting your hive, do it at a time when your neighbors are less likely to be out in their backyard.
If beekeeping is for you, Arnold advises, “You’ve become a steward of a hive. If you give them a good home, they’ll return the favor.”