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About us

Hello and Welcome and Thank you for Visiting Apricot Apiaries

 a beekeeping family in the apple blossoms, Kimberly, OR

(A beekeeping family in the apple blossoms, Kimberly, OR - April 2019)

Apricot Apiaries is a small family business started in 2012 by Matt Allen and Liz Lovelock.  Moving to Kimberly in 2009, Matt picked up two beehives as an extension of his fascination with insects and biology.  Sharing his excitement with Liz, the hobby turned into an obsession and grew itself into a business. 

Loading a semi-truck of bees  

(Liz on top of a semi as Matt loads pallets of bees for almond pollination.) 

We now manage over 500 hives, providing honey in the John Day Basin, Nucs Packages and Queens for sale, and pollination service for fruits and nuts.  Our season begins in late winter and early spring when we rent our hives in California for Almond pollination and then at home in Kimberly Oregon for mixed fruit.  As the hives grow, we make splits, selling nucleus hives and packages to beginning beekeepers and others.  We also raise queens for our own requeening and to sell. 

    

After the fruit orchards, we scatter our hives around Kimberly and neighboring ranches in Grant and Wheeler counties, taking advantage of the rich bottomland.  Our harvest begins in June with a very light wildflower and black locust honey, followed by a mild but slightly darker clover/wildflower honey.  In July, areas with large stands of thistles and knapweed produce a richer, stronger honey.  Our main crop comes in August from white sweet clover and alfalfa. As the harvest comes in, we can start rendering beeswax into candles, lotions, and lip balm. 

  

  August marks the beginning of the beekeepers fall; we pull the last of our crop and focus on getting the bees ready for winter.  The next few months are spent monitoring hive health and status.  Small hives are combined, weak hives are re-queened, and light hives are fed.  By diligent monitoring and calculated action, we hope to successfully winter and do it all again next  year.

 

 

Beekeeping is a team effort.  We would not succeed without some exceptional mentorship.  To return the service, we periodically lead hands on beekeeper workshops.  We have also toured several schools in Grant, Wheeler, and Gilliam counties with an observation hive and other lessons on bees and pollination.

 

In September 2015 we opened our honey stand in Kimberly, Oregon, next to the Thomas Orchards.  This website and online store launched in February 2016.  

Our son Teddy joined the team in October 2015 and has already demonstrated his enthusiasm for bees and honey.  Our younger son, Leo, was born in April 2017, and the bees swarmed while the beekeepers were busy with their newborn.  Nowadays we all get out in the bees together as a family.

 

Apricot Apiaries - family beekeeping business

 beekeeping family

(Bee beards photoshoot April 28, 2019)

 

 

Matt the bee man Liz with a bee beard

 (Bee Beards! - circa 2012)

 See our article in Ruralite Magazine!  Queen Bees of Kimberly 

 Liz the bee lady

Liz serves up a swarm trap

(Family Photo - November 2018, John Day River, Cottonwood State Park)

 

 

(Family Photo - December 2017, Home - Kimberly, OR)

 

 (Family Photo - December 2017, San Diego, CA)

(Teddy, Liz, and Leo - Condon Fall Festival November 2017)

Apricot Apiaries family

(Family Photo - May 2017)

Teddy - January 2017

In the bee yard with baby Teddy on Mother's Day 2016

(Family Photo - May 2016)