Did you know that Fullerton Arboretum is home to an apiary? As you take a stroll through this 26-acre botanical garden located on the Cal State Fullerton campus, you may come across an area where bees and their hives are stored. You might even spot a team in beekeeping suits doing general hive inspections!
This apiary has served as an invaluable resource for student research and projects. All supplies and bees were provided by U-ACRE (Urban Agriculture Community-Based Research Experience), a project at Cal State Fullerton that provides experiential learning opportunities in sustainable agriculture as a window into issues of environmental justice and food equity.
There is a team of five working in Fullerton Arboretum’s apiary: Anna Baier (a Fullerton Arboretum Horticulturist), Steve Anticona (U-ACRE graduate student in Environmental Studies), Gabriella Funes (CSU ARI-HSI Science Fellow), Delia Arevalo Estrada and Caitlin Moser (U-ACRE undergraduate students). The team is led by Dr. Sara Johnson, who serves on the advisory board of the UC California Master Beekeeper Program (CAMBP), based at UC Davis. U-ACRE is one of nine satellite hubs of the program across the state.
“The apiary provides a great opportunity for graduate and undergraduate students from different majors and backgrounds to come together as a team to learn about honeybee colony management and develop research skills,” says Dr. Johnson. “Our status as a satellite hub adds opportunities for students to take advanced classes and certification through CAMPB.”
To learn more about Fullerton Arboretum’s apiary and U-ACRE, visit: https://fullertonarboretum.org/u-acre.aspx