Backyard Honeybees and Living Big in a Small Space

Justin Maness of Buddha Bee Apiary talks about bees, the bus life, and his new cookbook, Tiny Home, Big Flava’

In a broadcast that originally aired live on The Food Garden Life Radio Show, we head to North Carolina to chat with beekeeper Justin Maness.

Backyard Honeybees

Maness began working with honey bees after finishing college, when he joined a research team studying the links of neonicotinoid pesticides and honey bee mortality. After that, he worked in for-profit and non-profit ventures with bees, and eventually founded Buddha Bee Apiary.

He says that at Buddha Bee Apiary his goal is to spark curiosity about bees, educate people about bees — and grow a crop of pollinator advocates.

Buddha Bee Apiary places honeybee hives in urban and suburban backyards through its Host-a-Hive program. It also offers a mentorship program for those interested in one-on-one learning.

Living Big in a Small Space

We also hear about the life that Maness and his family live in their converted school bus.

Maness says that their interest in the school-bus lifestyle started after his wife, Juby, bought a small school bus to ferry merchandise for her business to events. After a couple of nights on the road, they realized that they liked the mobility — and eventually bought a larger bus to convert into a home.

Maness says that having a small home means they spend more time outside, whether working in the garden, eating, or hanging out.

He and Juby share their approach to life and food in their new cookbook, Tiny Home, Big Flava’.

In the book, Maness says, “If we could ask for anything at all to come from this cookbook it would for you to have as much fun as we did putting this together. Crank up that music, bust a move, and share you kitchen slam down parties with us…”