Our beekeepers have been hard at work at Zestiny this week. The Bee Brothers now have over 50 hives across the farm—producing incredible honey from our citrus blossoms (just to name a few). Yet the most important work is quietly doing one of the most important jobs on the farm: pollinating our fruit and vegetables.
These tiny workers are the backbone of everything we grow.
A Longstanding Fascination
My own fascination with bees started back in Year 7 agriculture—a compulsory subject when you grow up in the bush. We were introduced to the world of apiarists, and from the moment I put on the suit and opened my first hive, I was hooked.
Not long after, I bought my own hive in Hornsby. On the drive home, I’d already done the maths—27kg of honey per hive per year… this was going to be a goldmine.
Unfortunately, Creel’s “killer bees” (as anyone who helped me would attest) didn’t quite deliver on the business plan. After a few years—and a few too many run-ins—they swarmed and disappeared, bringing my first beekeeping chapter to a close.
Passing the Baton
Fast forward to today, and everything old is new again.
When my youngest turned 10, it felt like the perfect time to pass on the apiarist baton. We bought him a flow hive and a nucleus colony for Christmas (not one for under the tree).
After a couple of months of letting them bee, we suited up—father and son—and opened the hive to inspect progress. Everything looked healthy… but no honey just yet.
What we hadn’t factored in was where we were standing.
As we closed the hive, the bees made it very clear they didn’t appreciate us blocking their front door. Within seconds, we had an open hive and two very fast-moving humans sprinting across the yard, swatting at helmets and hair.
I ended up semi-conscious in bed on antihistamines. Wilbur ended up questioning my expertise.
A Tough End (and a New Beginning)
Before we had a chance to redeem ourselves, we received a call from the Department of Primary Industries.
Due to a Varroa mite outbreak at the Port of Newcastle, all hives within a 100km radius were being destroyed—including ours. Through no fault of their own, our new colony was gone.
And so, our second chapter in beekeeping came to an abrupt end.
These days, we leave it to the professionals—The Bee Brothers—who are doing an incredible job managing our hives and supporting the health of the farm.
Why Our Honey is Different
If you’ve tried our honey, you’ll notice something straight away—it’s thicker, richer, and naturally crystallises faster than supermarket varieties.
That’s because it’s pure, unprocessed honey. No added water, no shortcuts.
It’s honey as nature intended.
And while it might “candy” a little more quickly, that’s actually part of what makes it special—nutrient-dense, flavour-packed, and pleasantly less messy when you’re adding a spoonful to your cereal or smoothie.
From Hive to Health
At Zestiny, everything we do comes back to one idea: working with nature, not against it.
And there’s no better example than bees—quietly doing the heavy lifting that allows everything else to thrive.
