Kickstarter Pick: Brooklyn Grange Apiary Project

Locals might be familiar with Brooklyn Grange, a 40,000 square-foot rooftop farm (that's actually located in Long Island City, Queens) and holds open markets and supplies Brooklyn restaurants like Roberta's, Marlow & Sons, Fatty 'Cue and Juliette. Brooklyn Grange has sought funding on Kickstarter before, but this time it's for a completely new venture: bees. They already have a few apiaries on the roof to pollinate their produce, but this new initiative would add 20-30 new hives, enough to pollinate 60,000 acres. 

People get excited about bee byproducts like raw honey (anyone who's licked a fresh honeycomb knows what we're talking about), but pollination is the chief goal here--and with more frequent reports of colony collapse disorder, keeping up the bee population is a legitimate concern. As Brooklyn Grange is a community-based organization, the Kickstarter funds won't go exclusively towards buying bees and equipment--they'll also help fund an apprenticeship program training "aspiring urban beekeepers." And if these future beekeepers agree to mentor the next apprenticeship in line, they'll be given their very own hive to tend.

Furthermore, Brooklyn Grange's master beekeepers are attempting to breed a local line of bees and queens specially adapted to NYC conditions. Pledge $50 or more by Thursday, April 19th and get a jar of what we'll bet is the tastiest honey in town.