When Larry Theurer’s garden in Old Brooklyn wasn’t yielding as many vegetables as it used to, Larry and his wife Brenda recalled a PBS television special that showed an elderly Asian man hand-pollinating his pear trees in Japan. The area had lost all its honeybees from pollution.
The next day, Larry tried his hand at pollinating his own garden with a cotton-tipped swab dipped in water; the result was amazing.
“My garden exploded,” Larry says. “The big difference was in the yields. So my wife and I decided to find out more about honeybees. We checked out various beekeeper organizations in Medina County, Lorain County and a few more counties. That year, 2009, we also went to the Cuyahoga County Fair and met people from the Greater Cleveland Beekeepers Association. The association was only about six months old at the time.”
Larry and Brenda began attending beekeeper meetings at the Rocky River Nature Center. “The club was very warm and receptive,” he says. “And nobody wanted your annual dues up front until you were sure this was something you’d like to do. They genuinely wanted to see you succeed as a beekeeper.”
Larry is now president of the GCBA, one of the youngest and largest clubs in Northeast Ohio. Members meet the second Wednesday of the month with educational and networking sessions. The association holds an annual bee conference. This year’s event featured nationally known naturalist beekeeper Ross Conrad, a feature writer for Bee Culture Magazine, which is published in part by A.I. Root Company in Medina.
A POST-RETIREMENT HOBBY
Larry, 60, who retired in 2015 after 31 years with Cleveland Public Power, considers himself nearly a full-time beekeeper. Hives can require constant attention to keep up with the ever-producing honey yields, to protect hives from predators and to prevent colony collapse from pests such as varroa mites and hive beetles.
“There are a lot of backyard gardeners in the city, and the honeybees help tremendously with pollination,” he says. “If you get 20 pounds of honey during your first year as a beekeeper, you are doing exceptionally well. You have to leave 75 to 100 pounds of honey for the honeybees in this climate so they can get through the winter. After the bees have loaded up their pantry, then we’re able to take some of their excess.”
“This is a very interesting hobby that takes a lot of dedication,” Larry says. “It is a very family-oriented club, and we encourage families to get involved. We seem to draw a very good character of people who really seem to care about the environment. We average 120 to 150 people attending per meeting. The clubs all have a really good working relationship which I really enjoy. Membership numbers are up in all the clubs this year.”
Larry says he believes that Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson is staying ahead of the curve in preserving the environment through sustainability.
“We are being a leader among large cities,” he says. “Mayor Jackson is allowing beekeeping in urban neighborhoods along with keeping chickens, and I think that speaks well of his vision. I give him a lot of credit to go after the urban farming initiative.”
URBAN FARMING GROWING IN NORTHEAST OHIO
For generations, Greater Cleveland’s history has been one of sustainability. With encouragement from the government, people fed themselves and their families with Victory Gardens during World War II. Today, residents increasingly are interested in where their food comes from. They are reaching out to their local neighborhoods for fresh, healthy and affordable food.
Growing numbers of urban citizens are joining urban community farms, such as Rising Harvest Farms in Old Brooklyn.
Since 2013, this urban initiative has hosted a community garden, chickens and beehives, welcomed volunteers and held regular business hours to sell eggs and produce, all free of chemicals, preservatives or genetically modified organisms.
The farm follows the principles of Good Agricultural Practices set by the Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Collaborating with local organizations, universities, schools and neighbors, farms such as Rising Harvest offer educational opportunities involving plant biology, animal anatomy and composting. Lessons being taught by local educators in the classroom are brought to life close to home.
