WILDER, Ky. — Honeybee beehives are now buzzing about Frederick’s Landing in Wilder.
Two bee colonies were set up in the city by Cameron Holland, a Wilder police officer who became interested in the hobby through the Northern Kentucky Beekeepers Association. The hives are new to Wilder, having been set up on Saturday, March 30, and new to Holland as they are his first hives.
“If it weren’t for bees and flying insects or butterflies, birds, bats, we wouldn’t be able to have the continued production of trees and other flowers, food,” Holland said. “It’s all connected. It’s spring, so we’re seeing the blossoming of trees and tulips and daisies and other kinds of flowers popping up. That’s all because of these small things that help facilitate the pollination and fertilization of these beings.”
Holland said he was introduced to beekeeping after meeting Betsy Rossi, President of the Northern Kentucky Beekeepers Association, through mutual friends. She told him about her hives and invited him to check them out.
“I said, ‘I’m going to do this; what the heck, I’ll research a little bit,’” Holland said. “So, immediately picked up a couple books from Amazon and dove right in. I said, ‘I’m going to do this thing.’ After going to help Betsy with her hives last year, I was like, this seems like a really cool thing to do, and kind of fell in love with it.”
The NKY Beekeepers Association consists of beekeeping enthusiasts who gather to expand their collective knowledge of beekeeping.
“While some attendees at the monthly meeting don’t own any bees themselves,” Rossi told LINK nky earlier this year. “They attend to learn how to get started beekeeping, or just because they’re considering starting.”
Holland will be responsible for maintaining the Wilder hives.
He purchased two bee colonies consisting of a queen and five frames for each beehive. Each one also has bees, baby bees, pollen and honey, all the things needed for an established colony. Holland purchased the bees from a beekeeper in Boone County, and he said they are already acclimated to the NKY area.
To care for the bees, Holland feeds them sugar water and checks on them periodically until they become self-sustainable, which will take a month or two.
Holland said there is a good prospect for honey this year. Once the bees are self-sustaining, they will start producing honey. He plans to give it away to friends and possibly sell it.
“Honey can help mitigate a lot of seasonal allergies because you’re getting a lot of the local pollen from the honey,” Holland said. “You consume the honey because it’s coming from the local plants and trees in the area that trigger people’s allergies. It helps serve as a block or a way to become immune, so to speak.”
When it came time to settle on the location of the bee’s new home, Holland said he discussed putting them on city property with Wilder City Administrator Terry Vance, who Holland said was “all on board.”
“When Cameron asked if he could put a bee hive on city property, I told him the city would be happy to promote his endeavor by letting him put the hive near the city garden area,” Vance said. “I figured it would be beneficial to the garden area for pollination purposes. We are excited about his enthusiasm and wish him success.”
Holland said the spot at Frederick’s Landing is accessible but out of the way of heavy traffic. It also has many flowers for pollination.
To learn more about the NKY Beekeepers Association, click here.
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