A Bit About Redbird’s Beehives + Beekeeper Max Wong
1 – Redbird has two hives on the rooftop.
2 – The honey from the hives is open foraged, meaning the bees can collect nectar and pollen from any flower. The bees collect local nectar from the Garden at Redbird, succulents growing on the rooftop of the LAPD Headquarters, and from plants in Little Tokyo, Koreatown, Elysian Park, and the University of Southern California.
3 – Max studied with Kirk Anderson of Backwards Beekeepers, the godfather of Los Angeles urban beekeeping.
4 – The bees at Redbird were rescued from LADWP water meter boxes. The bees swarm the boxes and are typically exterminated.
5 – According to Max, the best way to learn about the health of a beehive is through observation – how they act, what noises they make, how they smell, and what their house looks like.
6 – The Garden at Redbird benefits from increased pollination from the beehive.
7 – Redbird’s honey is Millefiori, also called wildflower honey. Like wine, Millefiori honey has a terroir — the type of nectar the bees collect impacts the flavor, color, and texture of the honey.
8 – The honey is used in Bar Director Tobin Shea’s Honeysuckle cocktail.
9 – To learn about beekeeping, Max recommends reading The Queen Must Die and The Complete Idiots Guide to Beekeeping.
10 – Max and her husband are both beekeepers and co-hosts of The Molotov Cocktail Hour radio show on 88.9 KXLU.
