In 2003, I received my first colony of honeybees as a gift I had begged for in my early teenage years. At the time, my interest in honeybees was only subdued by an extreme discomfort adjacent to terror at the threat of being stung. I believe I wore two, long-sleeved, cotton shirts the day I installed my first package with no less than a quarter roll of duct tape securing any loose fabric.
Presently, Raptors Roost boasts 17 colonies between two apiaries in the Florida counties of Pinellas and Gilchrist. My passion and experience has been in beekeeping, but with the acquisition of a startup property in Gilchrist county, we’ve begun construction of a sustainable farm, specializing in crops adapted to our region, non-irrigated methods such as hugelkultur, and farming practices which reduce erosion. It’s been an exercise in patience and practicality, which we intend to both share and document, as both reference and entertainment.
Raptors Roost Farm 