Have you ever thought that you would like to keep bees but do not have the time or are afraid of getting stung? Do you dream of having your own brand of honey to spread on toast or give to friends as gifts? If you have a rooftop, community garden, or sunny private backyard you could be just like Martha with your very own apiary!

Megan Paska, a Brooklyn rooftop beekeeper, is offering a great service to honeybee lovers in NYC. For a modest monthly rate and the cost of start up, you can have a hive of your very own maintained for you on approved premises. Through the spring and summer, you will get to bask in the golden amber glow of your very own honey harvests.

A healthy honeybee colony can produce anywhere from 75-125 lbs of surplus honey in a season. Though harvests in the first season are generally smaller than that, the successive year will show an increase in harvest size. That being said, many beekeepers break even in the first season.

Honey bees provide a valuable service to communities by pollinating gardens and helping increase yields of fruits and vegetables. When eaten, their honey also does wonders for allergy sufferers. Keeping honeybees also gives city dwellers a way to commune with nature in a small but profound way. Bees have a very complex and fascinating social structure and manage to be both relaxing and stimulating to watch coming and going from the hive on a clear summer day.

If you are interested in hiring Megan to maintain a hive for you, her rates are as follows:

For the cost of $550.00, Megan will set up one painted and assembled hive, which includes a hive body, honey supers/frames, hive top feeder and bees. From May-November she will come to do bi-weekly inspections of your hive to make sure that the Queen is performing well and the colony is healthy and has plenty of room to grow. This service is $75 monthly for one hive, and extra $25 a month for each additional hive. 70% of any surplus honey harvested from the hive would be yours keep in your own pantry or sell and give to friends and family. The remaining 30% would be kept by the beekeeper.

If you have questions or would like to see if your site is appropriate for beekeeping, please email beekeeper@brooklynhoney.com