New Honey Bees at Pitney Meadows!

If you’ve visited Pitney Meadows in the past couple of weeks, you may have noticed a new buzz in the air!

On May 17th, three colonies of honey bees arrived at our Farm. The first colony was installed in an Observation Hive located in the newly revived Welcome Center.

This hive is a fully enclosed structure that allows visitors to safely observe the inner workings of a honey bee colony through plexiglass walls. The Pitney observation hive was made possible by a grant from the Whole Kids Foundation in partnership with The Bee Cause Project.

Please take a moment to stop in to introduce yourself to these pollinator pals and take a peek under the Observation Hive’s cover to see what they are up to!

The other two honey bee colonies were installed in traditional Langstroth hive boxes and can be spotted from a distance in the farm’s pollinator pathway nestled in the agriculture fields. These bees made an arduous relocation journey from a rooftop apiary in Downtown Albany and were generously donated by Hive of Hope (HOH)*, a sober active community focused on enhancing the lives of people in recovery from substance use disorder.

As these colonies are adjusting to their new neighborhood, we ask that you "bee" kind and keep your distance from the hive boxes. Pitney Meadows is fortunate to have an active community of beekeepers committed to keeping these new pollinator friends healthy and safe.

If you have questions, please reach out to us and stay tuned for opportunities to get a closer look at these amazing buzz-worthy friends in action!

Let’s give a warm buzz of gratitude to the bees for making our farm their home! A huge Pitney thanks to Anna Knapp, Lori Bellingham, Brian Oligny, Susan Bradford, Gregory Stoddard, and Nate Writer, founder of Hive of Hope for their knowledge, time, and commitment to bringing the the bees to our Community Farm. Beekeepers unite!

* The Hive of Hope community center on Central Ave in Albany offers a gym, recreation room, computer workstation, café and much more and is completely free to anyone with 48 hours of continuous sobriety. By providing a safe space for like minded people to support one another and adapt to a life in sobriety, HOH gives individuals the resources they need to live happy, healthy lives.