Honey, I'm home: How the Carolina Beekeeping Club generates buzz and helps bees
Honey, I'm home: How the Carolina Beekeeping Club generates buzz and helps bees
The Carolina Beekeeping Club is buzzing on UNC's campus amidst the prevailing necessity of bees. From harvesting jars of fresh honey to suiting up for weekly hive tours, this student-built community thrives on the principles of sustainability, curiosity and of course, bees.
With over 200 members, the Carolina Beekeeping Club does a plethora of work across campus, and during the spring and summer months, you can see the results.
UNC's group is a chapter of Bee Campus USA, which is committed to improving the pollinator habitat, encouraging the conservation of bees and working to expand the abundance of native plants on campus.
The club houses between four and six hives on campus, which can be found atBattle Grove, UNC’s environmentally friendly outdoor space located just off Country Club Road.
These hives are home to hundreds of bees, which can pollinate as far asCoker Arboretum.
“It really contributes to the students’ mental health,” Caroline Corvin, a UNC graduate student, said. “Just being around so much nature all the time is really important for us, and we have bees to thank for that.”
The Carolina Beekeeping Club also serves as a living classroom, making efforts to educate the community through special events and tours. The club has hosted “Bee School,” a hands-on learning program to teach the basics of beekeeping and the importance of honeybees to interested community members.
Similarly, each week individuals are welcomed into the hive for a tour, giving anyone the chance to suit up and get hands-on experience. These tours are accessible through a form found on the club’s Instagram.
“The hive tour is super fun, informative and engaging for everybody, no matter their level of skill or understanding of beehives,” Emmaline Phillips, a beekeeping club member, said.
However, the beekeepers do not just limit themselves to tending and touring the hives.
Over the summer, they harvested and jarred honey for a Carolina Cupboard Community Food Pantryfundraiser. This school year, the club is working on cultivating pollinator-friendly plants to attract more bees.
Beekeeping in general creates a niche community, helping students and visitors gain a deeper appreciation for the black-and-yellow creatures at the heart of our ecosystem.
“Part of what makes UNC so special is the plants and nature we have," UNC student Will Lewis said. “And bees go hand-in-hand there.”
On-campus hives are an essential practice in keeping this at-risk species alive, which is exactly what the beekeeping club is trying to promote.
“Beekeeping is becoming more of a thing in popular culture,” Phillips said. “And because of that, we're seeing an expansion of the community.”
However, while this hobby is important, it is not as simple as it seems.
Phillips said she encourages anyone interested in beekeeping to first take a class before getting started, so they are not going in completely inexperienced.
"I would say it's super fun, but it's not easy," she said. "You have to understand that your bees very well might die [at first]. I would just say getting educated, trying to have firsthand experiences before you really dive deep."
From harvests to hive tours, the Carolina Beekeeping Club proves that it really does take a hive to keep campus buzzing.
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