Carpinteria beekeeping operation opens up public tours

Mission Beekeeping – which has operations in Ojai, Oxnard and Carpinteria – will offer the first public tour of its Carpinteria apiary on June 29, 10 a.m. to noon, led by co-owner and Carpinteria native Steve Nimmer, who will guide guests through the journey of honey-making and raising bees. 

Mission Beekeeping has been in operation since 2015, run by Nimmer – son of Coastal View News’ Man on the Street Larry Nimmer – and Steve’s wife and Mission Beekeeping co-owner Kelly. 

The organization operates out of Ojai Valley, which was the first location of hives created by Nimmer, a UC Santa Cruz graduate. He told CVN he began with a small hive in his parents’ backyard, which eventually became 700 hives held on private farms throughout Ojai Valley, Oxnard and Carpinteria. 

After more than 10 years working with bees, Nimmer said he couldn’t imagine a life indoors, enjoying his time outside, working with his hands. “This is my gym,” he told CVN. “It keeps me fit and going outside.”

Nimmer, who has been keeping bees since 2012, said his wife Kelly came up with the idea to offer tours as another revenue source and to address local’s curiosity. Nimmer told CVN that whenever he and his wife would bring up where they work, they “noticed lots of people asking questions.” They decided tours were a good way to introduce locals to the pollinators. “It’s nice to introduce people to bees,” Nimmer said. 

A tour of the Mission Beekeeping apiary will include a demonstration on how to smoke bees, as well as how to manipulate the frames inside a hive, regulate the temperature, treat for pests, pull honey and feed the bees. Attendees of all ages are welcome, and protective beekeeping suits will be provided.

The colder months from October to January are slow, with bees mostly focusing on keeping warm, but a boom comes between March and August, Nimmer said, with huge demand for bees to pollinate local crops. From February to March, bees from all over the country come to California to pollinate almond trees. The majority of Mission Beekeeping’s income, Nimmer said, comes from farmers paying for bees to pollinate their crops. 

Another revenue source for Mission Beekeeping is its honey, which comes in several varieties, including orange, wildflower, raspberry, sage and avocado; the avocado variety is created after the bees pollinate Carpinteria’s avocado trees. The honey is available for purchase online or at local stores such as Pacific Health Foods.

A tour of the Oxnard apiary will take place on Saturday, Feb. 24  from 10 a.m. to noon. Because the farms are private, Nimmer will meet attendees at a public location before guiding them to the apiary for the tour. Dates and times for public tours are posted on missionbeekeeping.com, but private tours can be arranged by reaching out at missionbeekeeping@gmail.com or (805) 636-4426.