Year Of The Beekeeper - Alveole

Q& A

Alveole

Owners: Alex McLean, Declan Rankin Jardin, Etienne Lapierre Profile by: Sean Elizabeth Higgins, Beekeeping Team Manager, Alberta Location: Global! But my team is based in Calgary. Social info:@alveolebuzz

Q: How did you get involved in this sweet industry – what’s your story?

A: We all come from backgrounds in biology, environmental sciences, education, communications, and other similar fields. Personally, I took a fantastic course from Eliese Watson of ABC Bees originally just out of curiosity. I was doing ecology work with Parks Canada at the time. Wanting to incorporate more of a social and community focus into my career, I ended up at Alveole training to become a full-time beekeeper! Q: What’s a typical day like for you? A: We each have a roster of hives spread around the city that we look after. Most days we’re visiting hives to perform inspections, make adjustments when needed, and make sure our bees are healthy and happy. We also deliver educational workshops to our clients about not only their honeybees, but native bees and other important pollinators, urban agriculture, candle-making, and honey extraction.

Q: What is the most satisfying part of being a beekeeper? A: So many things! Opening up hives after a long winter to find them alive and well is always satisfying. That moment in a season where all your colonies are queenright and pest-free is a great feeling also!

For our team, we love watching our clients get super excited about their bees. Watching someone go from the first magical moment when they hold a frame, to becoming a passionate advocate for all pollinators and their habitat, is an amazing thing to be a part of.

Q: How have things like new research, sustainability, innovation, and technology influenced your beekeeping? A: One of the benefits of being a young and growing company is that we’re constantly trying out new and better ways to do things, and have the capacity to incorporate and adapt to new innovations and technology.

As we grow we’re prioritizing growing our sustainability. Although we use honeybees to inspire learning and stewardship for all pollinator species, we’re also bringing in more ways to directly support native pollinators at the same time.

On a personal level, attending webinars held by ABC Bees and the Calgary and District Beekeeping Association has been invaluable to me in learning about research and innovation from Alberta’s many amazing experts.

Q: Finding great sources of nutritional forage for your bees is an integral part of crafting delicious, pure Alberta honey and supporting pollination and biodiversity. What are some of the strategies you use to when selecting apiary locations for your hives? A: We visit potential clients’ sites to ensure their location is appropriate for a hive, and safe for both the bees and humans. A big part of our mission is encouraging folks to create pollinator habitat, both at their building and in their personal spaces, whether it be through adding planters of native plants or refraining from spraying/cutting their dandelions in the spring.

Q: With such a short beekeeping season in Alberta, how do you manage all the work required to support and maintain the health of your hives and harvest your honey? A: We bring on extra help during the harvest and extraction season to account for the heavy lifting and time sensitive work. We schedule our weeks so that we’re visiting hives during the first three days, offering workshops one day a week, and have one free day to return to any hives that need extra adjustments.

Q: What is the strangest beekeeping question you have ever been asked?

A: We sometimes do workshops with elementary school kids, which always makes for some great questions. “If someone ate a bee, would it come out alive?” was a memorable one.

Q: If you were to describe your honey in four words, what words would you use? A: Unique, hyperlocal, urban, blended Q: What types of honey do you sell, and do you sell other bee related products? A: As part of our service, clients receive the honey from their hives, and can also purchase other beeswax products such as candles, soap, and lip balm.

Q: Where can people buy your honey and products? A: We don’t retail our honey, but you can get more information about our services at www.alveole.buzz

Q: What are you happiest doing when you are not working? A: Making things (knitting, sewing, dyeing, etc.), hiking or riding my bike, having a beer with friends!