Our Story
Welcome to Grandpa's Bees! We are passionate about beekeeping and dedicated to providing top-notch services to our North Texas neighbors. My journey started in our family’s basement in South Portland, Maine in the mid-1970’s, when my father started his beekeeping journey. He kept the hives in our backyard, right where all the neighborhood kids would come to play baseball. Back then, we used one of his hives for 3rd base, until one summer a buddy finally got stung. But what I loved most, was spending time in the cellar, just me and my dad, extracting honey, melting wax, dipping candles and making memories. Not long after I moved to Decatur, TX in 2017 and finally having space of my own, I started reminiscing about those days in the basement with my dad. I started doing some research online and talking to my dad about how to get started. He made a deal with me, if I bought the bees, he would buy the hive. So, October of 2019, I went to my first Bee Club meeting. I was hooked again! That winter I prepared my hive stand, assembled and painted my hive, ordered my bees, and read the Beekeepers Handbook, by Diana Sammataro. I got my nuc in April of 2020. It was quite the unusual colony, as it swarmed 5 times before it was 2 months old. I was forced to learn about swarm prevention and swarm capture. But the good news was, I had caught 4 of those swarms. Like most new beekeepers, my apiary expanded quickly. I offered to help other beekeepers in any way I could and learned about doing cutouts with my mentors, Jim and Sheri Nielson of Nielson Honey Farm Texas Store. That first year was full of learning opportunities and I took advantage of every one of them. But, it was also the beginning of my grandson’s experience with bees. So, when the time came to come up with a name, and I wasn’t able to come up with something catchy, the grandson came over and asked to see Grandpa’s Bees. The name was born!
Here at Grandpa's Bees, we offer a range of services including hive management, hive leasing, swarm removals, colony cutouts, honey extraction, Nucleus Colony sales, and honey sales.
Our mission here at Grandpa’s Bees is to be dedicated to strengthening the future of beekeeping through professional hive management, sustainable stewardship, and the production of pure, responsibly harvested bee products. We serve landowners and beekeepers with integrity, expertise, and a commitment to healthy pollinators for generations to come.
