This class is designed to stimulate the interest in and answer the questions of those interested in starting beekeeping as a hobby or to help pollinate their crops. It covers what is needed, where to locate bees hives, where to buy them, what it costs and how to care for bees so they survive the winter. Many join the class because they are aware of the huge importance and decline of honeybees and other pollinators and just want to help. Learn about the fascinating hobby of beekeeping, pollinate your garden and grow your own honey!

Peter Cowin (aka The Bee Whisperer) is President of the Penobscot County Beekeepers Association and is part of the Maine State beekeepers Association Swarm Team with a specialization in the removal and safe relocation of honeybee colonies which have become established in the walls of people’s homes and out buildings. Keeping honeybees on and off since the age of 11, he has grown his hobby into a cottage business known as “Hampden Honey.”