The Art of Beekeeping: An Illustrated Journey Into the Craft of Beekeeping

Click here to see some photos from the event!

The following beekeepers are available to remove swarms anywhere in the city or suburbs.  They are listed with their contact information as well as area and neighborhood of residence.

Jeff Eckel
We Bee Brothers
215-350-7846
beeboy84@gmail.com
Based in: Northwest/Germantown
Will catch swarms: All over the region

Joel Eckel
We Bee Brothers
215-298-2365
webeebrothers@gmail.com
Based in: Northwest/Germantown
Will catch swarms: All over the region

Adam Schreiber
215-275-9705
phillybees@gmail.com
Based in: North/Francisville
Will catch swarms: All over the region

Daniel Duffy
Woodlands Community Apiary
814-777-3710
danielmduffy@gmail.com
Based in: Cedar Park, West Philadelphia
Will catch swarms: All over the region

Chad Carnahan
215-704-2063
Based in: South/Italian Market
Will catch swarms: All over the region

Norman Matlock
215-694-6952
Based in: Northwest
Will catch swarms in: Lincoln Drive, Kelly Drive, Fairmount Park (Strawberry Mansion, Smith Playground area), Germantown, Mt.Airy, Chestnut Hill, West Oak Lane, Erdenheim, Wyndmoor, Glenside, Flourtown.

Trey Flemming
Two Gander Farm
Office: (610) 987-0055
Cell: (610) 812-2582
Based in: East Falls
Will catch swarms: All over the region

Chris Mendel
MendelC@andropogon.com
Cell: 267.939.0537
Based in: Germantown
Will catch swarms: All over the region

See a video about : 2010 Honey Fest  

Beekeepers, Sell Your Honey on Consignment or man your own booth at the Honey Festival - for more information, contact honeyfest@phillybeekeepers.org 

Volunteers who are knowledgeable about beekeeping are needed to answer bee questions from the Honey Fest attendees at Wyck and Bartram's Garden. contact: honeyfest@phillybeekeepers.org 

Vendors of Hive Products and Healthy Foods are welcomed. For more information, contact honeyfest@phillybeekeepers.org 

 

Have honey that needs extracting?

The Guild owns a 9-frame Maxant motorized extractor with the goal of making it available to Guild members to use. The extractor will be available for members to rent at times and dates TBA this year. We will also have a 2-frame hand-crank extractor available for use. There will be a Guild member with extraction experience present at the event to assist you if you need help. You must be a Guild member in order to rent one of the extractors (if you are not a member and would like to become one, see the Guild website). One hour should be enough for most people, if you think you will need more, let us know. In addition to a small fee for using the motorized extractor, we are asking for a donation of one pound of honey (you can donate more if you wish!). This honey will be used for Guild educational events (like honey tastings, yum!). The fee is as follows:

Motorized extractor – $10 / hour + minimum of 1 pound of honey

Hand-operated extractor – No money, just a 1 pound jar of honey

We plan on having a few dates later this year when the extractor will be available for rent.  Stay tuned for more info about using the extractor.

Here's how it works...

1. Sign up for an extraction timeslot via the Guild’s “info” email address. When you email us, specify at least 2 one-hour time slots that would work for you and let us know which extractor you'd like to use and we'll let you know what is available. Time slots will be given away on a first-emailed, first-served basis.


2. Arrive 15 – 30 minutes ahead of your scheduled time, in order to uncap your honey for extraction.  The facilitator will teach you how to uncap your honey if you need guidance.  FOR UNCAPPING BRING: Serrated breadknife with a blade of 7 inches or longer, a cookie tray, a strainer or colander and a container into which the strainer fits. You will also need to bring some kind of container(s) for your honey. You can bring a bunch of small jars or larger containers.


3. Enter your name and all requested information in the Extractor log book (only the motorized extractor has a logbook).


4. Check the extractor for damage or missing parts; report any discrepancies to the facilitator.  After resolving any issues, go ahead and extract your honey as described in the instruction manual (only the motorized extractor has an instruction manual).


5. Drain extracted honey through strainer(s) into the collection bucket, provided by the Guild.  This bucket has a “gate” (like a spigot or tap) at the bottom for dispensing the honey into smaller containers.


6. If another person is extracting after you, ask them if they want you to fully clean the extractor before they begin.  Most people will not mind if there is a small amount of your leftover honey in the extractor.  However, each person is entitled to begin with a clean extractor if they prefer it.


7. If you are the last person to extract, thoroughly clean the extractor and its parts with warm water. Do not use hot water as this can melt any wax that is present and make for a much more difficult clean-up. Rinse until all honey residue is gone and allow the extractor and its parts to dry.  The facilitator will properly store the extractor after it has dried.


8. Clearly label a 1-pound jar with your name, the zip code of your hives, the year and the season in which your bees made the honey. This is the jar to be donated to the Guild.


9. Dispense the remainder of your honey from the bucket into your personal containers.  If another person will use the bucket after you, ask them if they want you to fully clean the bucket before they use it. Most people will not mind if there is a small amount of your leftover honey in the bucket.  However, each person is entitled to begin with a clean bucket if they prefer it.


10. If you are the last person to use the bucket, thoroughly clean and rinse it with warm water until all honey residue is gone.  The facilitator will properly store the bucket after it has dried.


11. Last but not least, enjoy that delicious honey and share some with friends and family!

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The Guild is about a year-and-a-half old and we have grown faster than we could have imagined. Many of you know that we have been holding our monthly meetings at a few different places including Wyck Historic House, The Unitarian Church in Mt. Airy and the Francisville Rec Center. While all of these are great places and we are extremely thankful that they have extended us the privilege of meeting in their spaces, none of them really meet all of the long-term needs of the Guild.

So this is where you come in - if you know of a place where the Guild can meet once a month, send us an email about it and we will look into it as an option. The following is a "wish list" for the Guild's ideal meeting place:

1. A central location that is easily accessible to residents from all areas of the city (we have members from the Northwest to the Northeast, from West Philly to Center City to South Philly and everywhere in between!)


2. A location where parking is easy


3. A location that can comfortably fit 50 people


4. A location that does not charge for the use of the space


5. A location that is available on the 3rd Thursday of the month from 7-9:00 pm


6. A location where we can keep a few hives!

Now there is probably some flexibility with these criteria, but these describe the ideal place. Send us your ideas - no idea is too crazy! Thanks for your help!