The Bees of the Arboretum
By Chloe Cannon
The Arboretum, also known as the hidden gem of Murray, is the home to over 12 beehives and thousands of bees. Students and residents of Murray love spending their afternoons there walking or running the beautiful landscape. Two years ago the bees started enjoying the Arboretum too. The students of Hutson School of Agriculture have nurtured many beehives and started harvesting and selling honey. Over 23 gallons of “MSU Racer Honey” sold out within 18 hours the first time it was made available to the public. The current beekeeper Sara Edwards, a Hutson School of Agriculture student, has tended to over 24 beehives in the past two years.
“The bees have served as an awesome opportunity for many students to earn an education, not just a degree,” student beekeeper Sara Edwards said. “We have done many educational outreach programs with young and old alike, and have entered bees and honey at the Kentucky State Fair in years past. Many have reaped the benefits of our amazing little honey bees.”
The fall batch for honey is currently being pulled and will be available to buy soon. The honey can be bought at the Apiary, which is located at the Arboretum.
The bee program isn’t just a great tool for Agriculture majors to work first hand with the bees, but it’s a great tool for business students as well. The Agribusiness students of the Hutson School of Agriculture handle the finances for the purchase of materials needed to take care of the bees and the profits from the honey.
“I love this program because I learn both the agriculture and the business side of taking care of the bees,” senior Agribusiness student Abagail Lanier said. “ Selling the honey has so far been a huge success, we can’t thank the community of Murray enough for supporting their local farmers and students. My favorite thing to do with our locally grown honey is put it in my coffee every morning. Honey is a natural way to fix your allergies, by putting it in my coffee everyday it helps my allergies regardless of what season we are in.”
The Arboretum is located at 300 Hickory Drive, visit to see the bees and what is known as the “Hidden Gem of Murray”.
