Are you feeling ready to learn how to keep bees?  And thereby, harvest your own honey and provide meaningful health for you and your loved ones?

Beekeeping is a wonderful way to slow down and connect with the natural world.  We’re excited to share with you about the way we keep bees at Diggin’ Livin’.  We use a series of techniques in accordance with organic and biodynamic principles, as well as, our own design beekeeping woodenware, to care for our honey bees.  Our classes are offered on our land in Southwestern Oregon outside of Cave Junction, nestled nearby the Siskiyou wilderness and Oregon Caves National Monument. 

We launched our book, Raising Resilient Bees: Heritage Techniques to Mitigate Mites, Preserve Locally Adapted Genetics, and Grow Your Apiary, in late July of 2023. Since then we have been putting together some videography containing content on some of the main topics of our book. We’d like to offer some on-site courses and online engagement this next Spring. Whether you are interested in on-site classes in Takilma Oregon or group Zoom classes, please contact us here.

If you are interested in learning more about what classes and internships we plan to offer, we hope you will sign up for our e-newsletter, where we will be giving updates in our process and sending out enrollment specials.  

Private lessons and beekeeping consultations 

We are available to help you with your beehives and beekeeping needs.  We are well-versed in lots of types of beekeeping. Absolutely no judgment here about the how or why you made the beekeeping decisions you did.  You are here now and we are so glad that you are on your journey in keeping bees and wanting to keep caring for them.   

We can help you tend and care for your beehives.  Our family beekeeping network employs 4 beekeepers: two of whom share time in the Illinois Valley and Ashland, and two of whom share time in the Illinois Valley and the Williams/Applegate area.  Between the four of us we feel that we can offer our services within the Illinois valley, within 5 miles from the 238, and the general Ashland region.  If you are outside of this region, we will add a mileage charge.  

Our rates are as follows:

Private lessons are a minimum of one hour, and are billed to the nearest 20 minutes after the first hour.

• $95/hour for the first hour for 1 person
• $60/each additional hour for 1 person
• $20/each additional student per hour

Contact us to schedule. Please note that we are unable to give any beekeeping advice via email.

Are you thinking about beekeeping as part of your career or livelihood? Congratulations, you are well on your way for a life full of purpose and meaning. We offer a beekeeping internship & apprenticeship program for the dedicated agrarian. The internship will include the price of one of our Natural Nest beehives, which you will care for on our land for roughly 6 months. During which time, you will learn to grow your colony from one box to two boxes, and prepare for how to make splits from your colony. We provide scheduled time periods for twice a month visits to your beehive full of instruction and guidance. Please send us your resume and informal cover letter sharing why you would like to be part of our program.