Honey Production

Mark’s journey into beekeeping began after his frequent visits to Beaver Meadow Nature Center while growing up in Western New York. He remembers being fascinated by a bee demonstration whereby visitors could observe a colony build their hive around a plexiglass frame. 

In 2009, Mark met a beekeeper at a farmer’s market who encouraged him to take a $50 beginner’s class in beekeeping, arguing that it was the “Best deal on the planet”. 

During that same year, Mark set up his first two hives in his backyard. Even though he made a million mistakes, he persisted, adapted, and he was able to harvest honey during that first year!

By 2022, those two hives grew to a colony of twenty-four hives! Although a hive usually starts out with about 5,000 bees, they eventually grow to a colony of 80,000 by the end of summer. Needless to say, that is a lot of bees. In 2021, Mark harvested over 100 gallons of honey, whereas the average honey production in a given year is in the 15-20 gallon range. Mark attributes this incredibly successful honey harvest to Minnesota’s hot, dry summer in 2021. 

Although Mark has gotten pretty good at beekeeping, he still makes mistakes. He is currently grappling with the challenge of managing a mite called varroa destructor, which can devastate a bee population. Regardless, Mark will push forward to act as caretaker for his bees and produce great honey. 

Read more about Mark's beekeeping operation:

"Hear the Buzz Around Town with Local Beekeeper Mark Poppendeck" - From the Plymouth Magazine

The revenue produced from honey sales, in addition to that produced from maple syrup, is what Beez N Treez is all about: 100% of the proceeds will be donated to the Beez N Treez Charitable Fund to support the needs of rural communities in Minnesota and Wisconsin.