We are a married couple that loves beekeeping. Travis Bolton grew up on a farm in Northern Minnesota. He got his undergraduate degree in Fisheries and Wildlife from the U of M. He has owned his own remodeling company (Bolton Construction) since 2007. He plays lead guitar in a popular original Twin Cities band called Tree Party. Chiara Bolton has her Masters in Public Healthcare Administration and Policy from the U of M and a Masters in International Relations from the University of San Francisco. She has lived in China for over 5 years and can speak Mandarin, Chinese. She has done extensive work with the aging population in Minnesota and continues to stay involved.

Bees develop traits according to their surroundings. In Minnesota, non-migratory beekeepers need their bees to survive the long cold winters. The bees we sell have undergone a rigorous selection process-- 

Beekeeping is both uniquely local and absolutely global. Chiara worked on a rural economic development beekeeping project near the Tibetan Plateau in rural Yunnan, China. We have worked with bees in the mountain jungles of Guerrero on the Southwestern edge of Mexico. We worked with a commercial Queen Breeder in Southeast Texas during the Minnesota winter. We have seen first-hand how location can dramatically affect bees' genetics. Although each location where we have worked involves the same species of bees (Apis Malifera), the unique climate, flora, and fauna cause the bees to adapt, creating different characteristics in each. Our MN-Hardy bees are winter-hardy Minnesota bees, bred specifically for the conditions of the upper Midwest. Our TX-Made hives are selected for the same desirable characteristics (besides being able to withstand our long cold northern winters).