2025 Beekeeping Mentorship

For those interested in more intensive mentorship, join Onyx’s 2025 beekeeping cohort!

This program is designed to hold your hand through the entire beekeeping season (Feb-October)

What Will You Learn??

  • What is conservation beekeeping? How does this differ from conventional methods?

  • How do bees live in the wild? What makes a good bee habitat?

  • Basic honeybee biology + behavior

  • Selecting the right hive for you

  • How to modify conventional hive styles to make them more bee-centric

  • Preparing for bees

  • Sourcing your bees/how to collect a swarm

  • How + when/if to feed your bees

  • Bee-Centric management throughout the seasons (winter, spring, summer, late summer/fall).

  • In depth teachings about all the hive medicines (propolis, pollen, honey, royal jelly, venom, wax). We will go over their importance to the hive, how humans have used them throughout history, as well as how to harvest and utilize them for medicinal purposes.

  • How to develop intuitive communication with your bees

  • History of bees in mythology

  • Shamanic practices to commune with the spirit of the bees

A BALANCE OF COMMUNITY + ONE-ON-ONE LEARNING

  • - We will have 4 group immersions throughout the bee season (Sundays from 10am-2PM)

  • Dates: Feb 23rd, April 6th, June 29th, August 3rd

  • - 2 one-on-one visits to be scheduled directly with Onyx (sometime in the window of Jan/Feb, Sept/Oct). These are intended to help you get set up in time for bees to arrive, and to assist in the winterizing process.

  • - you’ll be part of an intimate cohort of 10 students (open to all genders), giving you the support of a community of like-minded bee tenders! There will be a designated telegram group to help you stay connected in between immersions.

  • - At minimum, monthly personal check ins with Onyx via voice notes/text - this way she can provide you with consistent personalized support!

  • - 25% discount on additional one-on-one visits if needed

    - Priority for swarms (Onyx’s preferred way to source bees)

  • - Swarm Call opportunities (you’ll be part of a cohort group chat where you’ll have the opportunity to come along on swarm calls and get hands on experience)

    $3000

  • Getting Ready (Feb)

    We’ll be going over all of the basics (hive styles, habitat, + basic bee biology) to get you ready to welcome bees in the Spring.

  • Swarm Season (April)

    Swarm season kicks off in April, which means bees are arriving soon! We’ll be focusing this lesson on why bees swarm and how to collect them safely and with reverence. Swarm season is a building time for the bees, so we’ll also be working with the medicine of Wax. We’ll also be doing hive checks on bees that have successfully overwintered.

  • Honey Season (June)

    June is peak summer for the bees, and they’re focusing most of their energy on producing honey stores that will carry them through winter. We’ll be doing hive checks/maintenance and diving deeper into the medicine of honey!

  • Venom Season (August)

    Late summer/fall is the season of boundaries for the hive! This is when resources become more scarce, and it’s extra important to keep a closer eye on your bees. We’ll be learning about the pressures the bees are up against and how you can support them during this time.

THE HEALTHY HIVE ADD-ON

This package can be added on to the mentorship and is highly recommended (though not required)! Your bees have the highest likelihood of survival if sourced in this way, and housed in the most bee-centric hive available on the market.

Package includes:

  • 1 Locally Made Bee-Centric Warre Hive ($400)

  • Onyx will collect + deliver a healthy feral swarm, which is the healthiest/most ethical way to source your bees ($300)

  • Includes all winterizing supplies ($150)

    $850

FAQs

Do you offer payment plans?

Yes! We now have Klarna enabled as a payment option on our website! If choosing a payment plan, the tuition raises to $3200 (the $200 just covers additional fees) - you can select Klarna upon checkout and choose whatever payment plan best fits your needs!

(See the products + classes tab on our website to select this option. Contact Onyx to pay $3000 in full)

Where will the immersions be held?

All of the group immersions will be held at my home apiary in SE Portland. This will give you the opportunity to see a variety of different hive styles and hive personalities over an entire bee season! These will also be important experiences for the cohort to bond as a group.

What if I don’t live locally?

If you are able to travel to PDX and attend at least 2/4 of the in person group immersions, we can do 4 one-on-one mentorship calls (done virtually). The more group immersions you can attend, the better!

Who is this program for?

This mentorship program is for anyone that wishes to approach the bees from a bee-centric lens. All genders and experience levels are welcome!

What if I already have bees?

No problem! Onyx can support you with an already established hive that you’re wishing to approach from a more regenerative space, or can help you get started from the ground up. Wherever you are at in your bee journey is absolutely perfect!