In the heart of Greenwich, NY you’ll find the showroom of the United States’ third-largest beekeeping supplier: Betterbee!
Far more than just beehives and honey, Betterbee has quickly grown into an invaluable educational and informational resource for individuals and businesses across the country. After all, not only do they sell live honey bees as well as beekeeping equipment, they also make honey and candles, answer customer questions, teach classes and offer tours of their facilities!
This multi-pronged experience, paired with their commitment to sharing their expertise, has steadily helped this business become one of the nation’s most trusted beekeeping brands.
So, let’s learn all about Betterbee, from selling bees and answering beekeepers’ questions to harvesting honey and making beeswax products!
What It Means to Be Betterbee
For over 45 years, Betterbee has been a trusted partner in beekeeping for enthusiasts nationwide. It began in 1979, when Greenwich resident Bob Stevens decided to transition from simply keeping bees and selling their honey to teaching classes about the art of beekeeping. Over time, he began to sell high-quality beekeeping supplies from his family farm’s great location, where he continued to build the business. Part of this involved deepening ties with the community, hiring local residents and even helping Cornell develop their famous master beekeeping program!
Today, Betterbee remains a Washington County company through and through! Together with its sister apiary woodenware company, Humble Abodes, are owned by 3 local beekeepers from various backgrounds, each with a deep commitment to further innovating the industry and providing a welcoming educational program to beekeepers near and far. And their efforts are appreciated! Each spring, hundreds of beekeepers come to Greenwich to collect their new bees, and more come throughout the year to pick up equipment, take classes and chat with the beekeeping experts.
Sharing Expertise Through Education and Customer Support
But how has Betterbee grown such a dedicated following of loyal customers? Largely, because their service center welcomes questions about all things bees! No matter your bee-related question, they’re willing to help, whether that’s managing your first apiary, dealing with a swarm, making beeswax cosmetics or rearing queen bees. With many of their staff beekeepers themselves, their Betterbee’s team is dedicated to providing individuals with helpful and accurate information to help them succeed.
So, if you want to learn more about these vital pollinators, Betterbee is a must-visit destination! With their knowledgeable staff, educational programs and commitment to sustainability, Betterbee retains their leading edge in the industry. Sign up for one of their classes to learn about the various aspects of bees, from core beekeeping classes to candle-making and hands-on, in-hive classes! Many of these classes are taught by either Betterbee’s Director of Research and Education, Dr. David Peck, or one of their on-staff artists skilled in working with beeswax. Can’t make it in-person quite yet? They also offer classes online!
Beekeeping, Honey-Making and Creating Beeswax Products
When you eat local honey, you’re not just eating a sweet treat – you’re tasting the very essence of the landscape around you. After all, bees often travel up to a mile to pollinate flowers near their hive, meaning each cell becomes a hyper-localized snapshot of the plants in bloom at that time! So, Washington County honey tastes like the best of Washington County, distilled by the bees.
The bees do most of the work: collecting plant nectar, dehydrating it down, adding enzymes to turn it into honey, and then capping it off with beeswax. To collect this honey, Betterbee carefully removes the bees from the combs, then brings the frames into their honey extracting house. Then, there are two options. In the first, you either run through a machine that uncaps the cells and another machine that extracts it. Or, you can do this process by hand: crush the combs and squeeze them through a cheese cloth, or uncap them by hand and run them through a hand-cranked extractor.
After it’s filtered and put into a jar, the honey is shelf-stable and ready to go! However, making a beeswax candle or skin cream requires a bit more work. With the right mixture of coconut oil, beeswax and essential oils, you can make a variety of natural, great-smelling products – most of which you can find in Betterbee’s showroom! If you’d like to learn how to do it yourself, learn from the experts and sign up for one of BetterBee’s crafting classes.
Visiting Betterbee: Online and In-Store
On top of exceptional products and an unwavering commitment to beekeeping education, Betterbee offers unique and immersive experiences for visitors.These immersive experiences allow visitors to learn about the beekeeping process from start to finish! Guided tours of the Betterbee facility provide an exclusive glimpse into the fascinating inner workings of a commercial beekeeping operation, shedding light on the intricate processes involved in managing and caring for bees on a large scale.
Plus, Betterbee’s comprehensive catalog of beekeeping supplies caters to keepers of all levels! In their Greenwich shop, you’ll not only find beeswax-based products, tools and locally-made honey, but also live bees and queens, protective clothing, beehives, harvesting equipment and more. Don’t miss their living hive inside the shop, which allows visitors an up-close look at honeybees in a safe and controlled environment! Whether you’re a seasoned professional or a new-bee, Betterbee ensures you have access to the resources and equipment necessary to excel.
Want to know more about Washington County, NY?
Naturally, there are many more unique businesses, attractions and activities dotting the countryside of this beautiful region!
Within the Greenwich area, you’ll also find tasty brews from Argyle Brewing Company, gifts from shops like The Country Peddler Shoppes, Idlenot Fibersmiths and Clutch Market, as well as deals on high-quality apparel and accessories from Faerydale, Whistles, Bells and Bottoms and The Pennywise Shoppes.
Or, learn more about honeybees from our article about another local beekeeper and blacksmith, Bee & Bramble.
