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Workin' Together

for the Health of Land, Hive & Home

At a time when food and health systems are increasingly disconnected, we choose to work small, local, and hands-on.
Everything we do begins with the honey bee — and extends to healing, education and nourishment for people and the planet.
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Education & Events

Education Rooted in Practice 
Every course, gathering, and certification we offer grows from lived experience — production-scale beekeeping, medicinal hive products, and hands-on apitherapy practice.

Beekeeping & Apitherapy Courses

Bridging regenerative beekeeping and integrative health, our natural beekeeping and apitherapy courses invites a return to nature’s intelligence. Each program builds practical skill, ecological literacy, and a deeper connection to the healing systems of the hive. 

Beekeeping & Apitherapy

We believe beekeeping is an arm of apitherapy, and apitherapy is an arm of beekeeping. You cannot separate the quality of the medicine from the way the bees are kept. Strong, naturally stewarded colonies produce potent hive medicines, while weak or chemically dependent colonies do not. The strongest apitherapists understand the apiarian mindset: how to advocate for the integrity of the hive, protect both bees and beekeepers, and take responsibility for the medicines they offer.

Our goal is simple: to increase the number of natural beekeepers and responsible apitherapists in this modern world. After more than 25 years of working bees, following the bloom, making splits, crafting medicines, raising queens naturally, and building an agrarian life around the hive, we feel called to pass on what we have learned. Our Apitherapist Certification, Natural Beekeeping Level 1, and Natural Beekeeping Level 2 courses are designed to work together for those who want a deeper study of hive medicines, bee venom therapy, and natural beekeeping. The more deeply you understand and steward the hive, the more capable you become of offering medicinal-quality bee products to those seeking healing through the medicines of the hive.

Keep Reading
Comprehensive online learning designed to empower beekeepers at every level. Our courses blend practical skill with a deep understanding of bee behavior, natural systems, and regenerative land stewardship.

Natural Beekeeping 

Foundations (Level 1)

A self-paced online course for new and intermediate beekeepers.
Learn How To
What You'll Gain
Course Structure
  • Keep bees without synthetic treatments
  • Raise queens naturally
  • Understand hive cycles and seasonal flow
  • Practice observation-based beekeeping
  • Design sustainable apiary systems

This course is designed to transform the way you see and steward honey bees. You’ll walk away with:

  • A clear understanding of how to establish and maintain naturally resilient colonies
  • Confidence in choosing hive designs, frames, and configurations that support bee health and longevity
  • Step-by-step methods for Varroa management without chemicals
  • Knowledge of how to feed bees in alignment with their biology and seasonal rhythms
  • Skills for collecting and storing honey with integrity and care
  • An introduction to natural queen rearing — learning how to trust the hive’s own reproductive wisdom
  • Practical guidance for predator-proofing, swarm management, and combining colonies for overwintering success
Each lesson builds on the next, combining video lectures, quizzes, and real-world examples from our 25 years of natural beekeeping experience.
The course is offered twice yearly in live cohort format and is also available year-round as an evergreen program, with a personal 45-minute one-on-one mentorship call with Eric McEwen included.
enrollment open (next cohort is March 1)
Enroll in Level One
Next Cohort Begins April 2027

Natural Beekeeping Level 1

Beginner & Intermediate 

Level 1 is for anyone ready to keep bees naturally, whether you are starting your first hives or moving away from conventional management. Rooted in the teachings of Raising Resilient Bees, this course offers a grounded introduction to hive biology, seasonal rhythms, natural queen dynamics, swarm management, feeding, overwintering, and building resilient colonies through observation and stewardship rather than constant intervention.
Learn How To
Course Curriculum
Course Structure
What You'll Gain
  • Understand the foundations of natural beekeeping and why it differs from conventional management
  • Read the hive with more confidence by understanding colony roles, seasonal rhythm, and queen function
  • Set up and manage hives using Natural Nest Beekeeping principles
  • Make better equipment and frame choices that support bee biology and long-term resilience
  • Approach varroa through a natural-beekeeping lens
  • Feed, harvest, and handle honey more thoughtfully and sustainably
  • Recognize and respond to common challenges like robbing, swarming, queenlessness, and colony stress
  • Module 1: Getting Started — orientation, philosophy, and practical setup
  • Module 2: Inside the Hive — colony roles, queen basics, inspections, and seasonal rhythm
  • Module 3: Natural Nest Beekeeping — hive setup, frame choices, transitions, and varroa foundations
  • Module 4: Sustainable Practices — feeding, honey handling, and managing robbing
  • Module 5: Natural Queen Rearing — swarms, queen events, colony continuity, and common challenge

Cohort Model (Community-Based)
Next Cohort Begins April 2027

The annual cohort is a guided 5-module / 5-live-class experience.

The course includes:

  • 5 modules released every other week, giving students time to learn each lesson, interact with the cohort, and move through the season
  • 5 live teaching and Q&A calls with Joy and Eric, 90 minutes each
  • Guided learning to help students and colonies get off to a strong start
  • Real teachers to learn from, so students are not just people who have bees, but people growing into the practice of beekeeping
  • Encouragement to use and foster the community space for questions, discussion, troubleshooting, and shared learning
  • Access to all course materials and video replays for 1 year
  • Certificate of completion

Students will also be invited to opt into small study groups based on time zone, availability, and geographic region whenever possible. These groups will be encouraged to meet during the course to deepen learning, share experiences, and build lasting relationships within the natural beekeeping community.

We are intentionally building this model to strengthen connection among natural beekeepers — because agrarian knowledge is best passed through relationship, conversation, and shared experience.

Cohort Price
$475


Self-Paced Model 

This format is ideal for independent learners who prefer flexibility but still want direct guidance.

The self-paced course includes:

  • Full access to all modules and materials
  • Access to all past live Q&A calls
  • Downloadable worksheets and assignments
  • Knowledge checks to reinforce learning
  • One-year access to course recordings
  • One year to finish the course for certificate of completion
  • One 50-minute one-on-one mentorship call via Zoom with Eric

Self-Paced Price
$350

  • A strong foundation in natural, resilience-based beekeeping
  • More confidence during hive inspections and seasonal decision-making
  • A practical understanding of natural nest structure, queen events, and colony behavior
  • Clearer thinking around varroa, feeding, robbing, swarming, and other common stressors
  • A more grounded, observation-based relationship with your bees
$475(cohort) / $350(self paced)
☝🏼 $50 OFF when you purchase level 1 & 2 together 
(See "Bundle Offer" on the enrollment options page)
See Enrollment Options
Next Cohort Begins July 2027

Natural Beekeeping Level 2

Intermediate & Advanced

Level 2 is for beekeepers ready to deepen their natural beekeeping practice and grow their apiary with more intention. Rooted in the advanced teachings of Raising Resilient Bees, this course explores natural queen rearing, genetics, locally adapted bees, overwintering, honey production, medicinal hive products, and building stronger colonies through observation, timing, and working with the biology of the hive.
Learn How To
Course Curriculum
Course Structure
Who This Is For
  • Read hive behavior through a deeper strategic lens
  • Utilize advanced natural hive management for growth, strength, and continuity
  • Use biodynamic principles like foundationless comb management with greater confidence
  • Make splits, colony divides, and natural queen rearing
  • Breed for resistance and long-term stock resilience
  • Manage varroa and brood health through a natural-beekeeping framework
  • Pollinate, use biodynamic principles, and produce honey
  • Build Natural Nest equipment and woodenware
  • Consider value-added products and broader land-based stewardship

  • Module 1: Hive Wisdom
  • Module 2: Growing the Apiary
  • Module 3: Splits & Queens
  • Module 4: Colony Health
  • Module 5: Gifts of the Hive

Cohort Model (Community-Based)
Next Cohort Begins July 2027

The annual cohort is a guided 5-module / 5-live-class experience.

The course includes:

  • 5 modules released every other week, giving students time to learn each lesson, interact with the cohort, and move through the season
  • 5 live teaching and Q&A calls with Joy and Eric, 90 minutes each
  • Guided learning to help students and colonies get off to a strong start
  • Real teachers to learn from, so students are not just people who have bees, but people growing into the practice of beekeeping
  • Encouragement to use and foster the community space for questions, discussion, troubleshooting, and shared learning
  • Access to all course materials and video replays for 1 year
  • Certificate of completion

Students will also be invited to opt into small study groups based on time zone, availability, and geographic region whenever possible. These groups will be encouraged to meet during the course to deepen learning, share experiences, and build lasting relationships within the natural beekeeping community.

We are intentionally building this model to strengthen connection among natural beekeepers — because agrarian knowledge is best passed through relationship, conversation, and shared experience.

Cohort Price
$475


Self-Paced Model 

This format is ideal for independent learners who prefer flexibility but still want direct guidance.

The self-paced course includes:

  • Full access to all modules and materials
  • Access to all past live Q&A calls
  • Downloadable worksheets and assignments
  • Knowledge checks to reinforce learning
  • One-year access to course recordings
  • One year to finish the course for certificate of completion
  • One 50-minute one-on-one mentorship call via Zoom with Eric

Self-Paced Price
$350

This course if for beekeepers who:

  • Already manage healthy colonies with confidence
  • Want to expand their apiary sustainably
  • Are considering market-level production
  • Care about genetic strength and medicinal quality
  • Want systems that hold up year after year

$475(cohort) / $350(self paced)
☝🏼 $50 OFF when you purchase level 1 & 2 together 
(See "Bundle Offer" on the enrollment options page)
See Enrollment Options
Next Cohort Begins November 2026

Apitherapist Certification

For beekeepers, apitherapeutic medicine makers, and health care practitioners

This training is for people who want to practice apitherapy with depth, responsibility, and a real relationship to the hive. Rooted in Joy’s 16 years of practice and Diggin’ Livin’s medicinal beekeeping tradition, the certification is designed for beekeepers, apitherapeutic medicine makers, and health professionals seeking a rigorous, experience-based education.
Course Overview
Course Curriculum
Course Structure
Who This Is For
Across 80 video lessons, students are guided through the foundations of apitherapy, bee venom therapy, hive medicines, safety and contraindications, test stings, protocol progression, medicinal beekeeping, and responsible integration into practice. The course is both practical and deeply rooted in the apiarian mindset that shapes Joy and Eric’s work.
  • Pre Module: Welcome to the Course
  • Module 1: Introduction to Apitherapy
  • Module 2: Tenets of Medicinal Beekeeping
  • Module 3: Medicinal Properties of Honey
  • Module 4: Medicinal Properties of Propolis
  • Module 5: Medicinal Properties of Other Hive Products
  • Module 6: Fermented Hive Products & Medicine Making
  • Module 7: Introduction to Bee Venom Therapy — Benefits & Healing Effects
  • Module 8: How We Work With Bees — Relationship, Handling, Safety
  • Module 9: How We Apply Bee Venom — Technique, Progression, Reading Reactions
  • Module 10: How We Practice Apitherapy — Case Studies & Clinical Decision Making
  • Module 11: Becoming an Apitherapist Coach
  • Module 12: Completion & Continuation

Cohort Certification (Community-Based)
Next Cohort Begins November 2026

12-week guided learning experience

An immersive, structured training experience including:

  • 13 real-time Q&A calls with Joy and Eric
  • Community page dialogue and discussion
  • Quizzes, assignments, and knowledge checks after every module
  • Final exam and two written essay requirements
  • Full access to all course materials while progressing with the cohort
  • Optional small study groups and guided discussion prompts

Cohort Price
$1750


Self-Paced Certification 

This format is ideal for independent learners who prefer flexibility but still want direct guidance.

Self-Paced Certification — Available Year-Round

A flexible format including:

  • Complete access to all video modules
  • Access to past live lecture recordings
  • Two private 60-minute video calls via Zoom with Joy
  • Quizzes, assignments, and knowledge checks after every module
  • Final exam and two written essay requirements
  • Full access to all course materials
  • Self-paced progression with a one-year maximum duration for completion

Self-Paced Price
$1550

Both pathways require coursework completion and assessment for certification eligibility.

This course is for beekeepers, herbalists, wellness practitioners, homesteaders, and curious students who feel called to deepen their relationship with the healing gifts of the hive.

It is especially supportive for those who want to understand apitherapy in a grounded, responsible, and relational way — learning not only what hive medicines are, but how to work with them safely, ethically, and with respect for the bees.

This course is for you if you are interested in:

  • Learning how honey, propolis, pollen, royal jelly, beeswax, hive air, and bee venom are used in apitherapy
  • Deepening your understanding of medicinal beekeeping
  • Bringing hive medicines into your home, practice, or community
  • Building confidence around safety, sourcing, client care, and protocols
  • Studying in a guided container with live support and community discussion
  • Approaching apitherapy as a relationship with the bees, rather than a collection of products

No previous apitherapy experience is required, though a love for the bees and a willingness to learn with care are essential.

$1,750(cohort) / $1,550(self paced)
See Enrollment Page

Our Book

The Seminal Guide to a New Era of Beekeeping

Raising Resilient Bees

By Joy & Eric McEwen

Our comprehensive guide to natural beekeeping, combining decades of experience with practical, actionable strategies for keeping healthy hives without synthetic treatments. This book serves as both a philosophical foundation and a practical manual for anyone committed to working with bees in harmony with their natural behaviors.

What You'll Learn:

  • Natural approaches to hive health and resilience
  • Queen rearing and working with locally adapted genetics
  • Seasonal hive management rooted in natural rhythms
  • Swarm management, splitting, and apiary expansion
  • Building resilient colonies and long-lasting equipment
  • Ethical honey harvesting and medicinal hive products
  • Observation-based beekeeping and learning to read the hive
  • Integrating bees into regenerative agriculture and land stewardship
Recognition & Impact
Rooted in 25+ years of commercial-scale, treatment-conscious beekeeping
Used by beekeepers, homesteaders, and natural-beekeeping learners across North America
Praised by leaders in regenerative agriculture, pollinator education, and sustainable beekeeping
Reaching international audiences through translated editions

Community Events & Gatherings

Our events bring people together around the living classroom of the hive — combining education, wellness, and connection.
Each offering is designed to meet you where you are: whether you’re a new beekeeper, a practitioner in training, or simply someone who feels called to the bees.

First Saturdays at the Apiary at the farm at SOU (Ashland, OR)

Held the first Saturday of each month at the Southern Oregon University Apiary, this free public gathering is open to all bee lovers.
Join Joy McEwen for a morning of hands-on learning, where we explore seasonal hive care, soil health research, and regenerative beekeeping philosophy in action.

🕙 10 AM – Noon

📍 Thadius Pavilion, The Farm at SOU

RSVP Here

Let’s Talk Bees (Monthly Online Gathering w/Joy & Eric)

A 90-minute live Zoom gathering rooted in agrarian empowerment, medicinal beekeeping, and food and medicine sovereignty.

Each call begins with a 30-minute lecture-style talk from Joy and Eric, followed by an open hour of conversation, questions, and shared experience.

Topics range from natural beekeeping and queen rearing to medicinal hive production, bee venom therapy, and medicine making. We also explore health for the individual through apitherapy products, how supporting small family farms strengthens local economies, and how the apiarian mindset contributes to greater health for land, bees, and people alike.

We believe resilience and sovereignty grow from agrarian community — from people who know how to produce and source their own food and medicine, and who invest in strong local systems. These calls are a space to strengthen that mindset together.

🕕 First Wednesday of each month

💻 Free and open to all

COMING SOON!

One-Day Apitherapy Immersions (In Development) 
 (Ashland, Oregon)

We are developing one-day apitherapy retreats in Oregon and Northern California for those seeking deeper, hands-on learning.

Each immersion will be divided into two parts:

Morning Session — The Full Pharmacy of the Hive
An in-depth exploration of honey, propolis, pollen, royal jelly, wax, and hive air as medicine — including sourcing, formulation, safety, and practical application.

Afternoon Session — Bee Venom Therapy
Foundations of BVT, safety and contraindications, supervised test sting demonstrations, and instruction in the techniques taught in our Apitherapy Certification program.

These gatherings are designed for serious students, beekeepers, practitioners, and homesteaders who want practical, responsible training.

We anticipate offering these at our farm in Takilma and in Ashland, Oregon. We are also open to partnering with organizers in Oregon or Northern California who would like to host an event in their region.

If you are interested in attending or hosting, please reach out.

🌿 Fall 2026 (save the date coming soon)

📍 Ashland, Oregon

Inquire For Details

Farmer's Market Season 

Come see us each week at our local farmers markets, May through October.

📍 Ashland — Tuesdays 
1500 E Main St, Ashland, OR 97520

📍 Medford — Thursdays
501 E Main St, Medford, OR 97501

This is the best place to find our seasonal, super small-batch hive products — fresh honey varietals, oxymels, infused honeys, and propolis extracts — along with our Jun on tap. We always pour two rotating Jun varieties.

Favorites include Fern Waters, Clarysage Mountain, Tulsi Joy, Bee Happy, Ginger Me, Golden Moon, Immune-I-Mint, and We Bee One. Stop by, taste what’s fermenting, and connect with the hive in real time.
Learn More

Speaking & Educational Outreach

With more than 25 years working bees at scale, producing hive medicines, and teaching natural beekeeping, they bring practical, experience-backed insight to conferences, universities, farms, and regenerative agriculture gatherings. Their talks are grounded in lived work — commercial beekeeping, medicinal production, and apitherapy practice — not trends or theory.
Speaking Topics
Beekeeping
Medicinal Beekeeping
Apitherapy
Queen Rearing
Apiarian Mindset
Power Economics

Natural Beekeeping at Scale

Managing resilient colonies for strength, productivity, and longevity using organically managed, Steiner-inspired, and medicinal beekeeping principles.

Introduction to Natural Beekeeping (for Beginner Audiences)

A clear, practical overview of strength-based, chemical-conscious hive management for those beginning their journey with bees.

Medicinal Beekeeping & Hive Product Integrity

How hive management directly determines the potency, purity, and therapeutic value of honey, propolis, pollen, and venom.

Bee Venom Therapy & the Practical Use of Hive Medicines for Optimal Health

Foundations of BVT and the responsible integration of hive medicines into modern wellness for beekeepers, homesteaders, medicine makers, and health professionals.

Queen Rearing & Matrilineal Resilience

Natural queen selection, genetic tracking, and building long-lived, high-vitality colonies through lineage stewardship.

Apiarian Mindset: Building Strong Local Economies Through Bees

How resilient colonies, small farms, and hive medicines strengthen community health and economic independence.

Power to the Producer: Food & Medicine Sovereignty

Reclaiming the ability to grow, craft, and distribute our own food and medicine through small-scale agrarian systems.

Request a Speaking Engagement
Joy and Eric tailor each presentation to the audience — from introductory workshops to advanced practitioner training.

In Development

Stay tuned for future offerings designed to deepen your connection to the hive:
Advanced Medicinal Beekeeping Workshops
Mentorship Programs for Beekeepers & Practitioners
Collaborative Research Opportunities
Weekend Apitherapy Retreat
Join  our Mailing List (below!)

Join The Hive!

Join our community for reflections on natural beekeeping, apitherapy, and regenerative living.
“Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.” 
– Seneca, letters from a Stoic