Honeybees indicate sustainability of Goat Hill Park

2021

At Goat Hill Park in Oceanside, CA, golfers aren’t the only species that are enjoying the golf course landscape. The Goat has a thriving apiary in order to protect their pollinator friends and keep golfers safe. Several natural colonies of honeybees were removed from unwanted locations on the course (irrigation boxes and old squirrel dens) and placed in an apiary where they are managed safely. The apiary provides protection from ants and other pests (and golfers as well). Additionally, the team at Goat Hill has converted several acres of the property to pollinator-friendly native flower meadows to provide forage for the bees. Honeybees are an indicator species, meaning healthy bees in an area indicate a healthy environment, so beekeeping is a great short-hand way of describing the sustainability and environmental stewardship of a golf course. With thriving bees, comes the occasional sharing of honey that they produce, a wonderful gift from a mutually beneficial interspecies collaboration.