Twin Cities Metro Growers Network

What's a Growers Network?

A Networking Group of the Sustainable Farming Association, the Twin Cities Metro Growers Network aims to connect anyone who grows produce seriously and seeks education, networking and fellowship. Whether you grow for market, personal or community use, or to rediscover indigenous and ethnic roots, if you want to network with like-minded people in the metro, this group is for you.

The Twin Cities Metro Growers Network is a collaboration between SFA and the University of Minnesota Extension.

Info: Lia Spaniolo, University of Minnesota Extension, spaniolo@umn.edu

Learn about Lia here.

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Upcoming Events

Urban Beekeeping

Tuesday, June 24 4:00-6:00 PM

The Bakken Muesum
3537 Zenith Ave S Minneapolis, MN 55416

Learn the ins and outs of urban beekeeping from professionals!

Beekeeper Kristy Allen (Beez Kneez) will give us a tour of her two working hives at The Bakken. We’ll get up close to learn about hive care and honey production in an urban context. Katie Lee (UMN Extension; SARE) will teach us about honey bee biology and the valuable role these pollinators can play as an integrated part of your farm or garden.

This event is limited to 30 participants, ages 15 and up. Advance registration is required.

Additional details: Water and light refreshments will be provided. Parking is available in The Bakken’s lot and on the street.

Warning about working with honey bees:

Bee veils and bee jackets will be provided for participants to wear during workshops. Participants are required to wear face protection (bee veil or jacket), long pants, light-colored socks, and closed-toe shoes in the apiary. We cannot guarantee that participants will not be stung during our workshops. If you experience adverse reactions to bee stings, please consult with your doctor before attending a workshop. Please do not attend if you are allergic to honey bees.

About the Speakers:

Kristy Allen Established in 2010, The Beez Kneez was built from the ground up in Minneapolis, MN. Owner Kristy Lynn Allen started from humble beginnings delivering her aunt and uncle’s honey on bicycle. As she gained skills and knowledge in beekeeping and grew her hive numbers, she established her own independent supply of honey. At the same time, her and her team managed over a hundred colonies, sold honey to several retail locations, online and at farmers markets, and built a pedal-powered,community honey house – centered around the bicycle-powered honey extractor she invented, the Beez Kneez Honeycycle.

Katie Lee is the University of Minnesota Apiculture Extension Educator and MN Co-coordinator for the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program. Katie received a MS and PhD specializing in honey bees. She traveled the U.S. assessing beekeeper colonies, and kept >200 colonies for a project on the benefits of pollinator plantings. Katie works with the University of Minnesota Bee Lab to develop beekeeper education. For SARE, she helps connect people with SARE grants and educational resources.

This event is funded through the Minnesota Department of Agriculture AGRI Urban Agriculture grant.

Stay tuned for more 2025 event announcements!

We just kicked off our season of programming with a Spring Social at Broken Clock Brewing cooperative on May 6. We look forward to an educational event/farm tour each month through September! Specific details to be announced.

July - Cut Flowers

August - Tour of the Black Radish

September - TBA

October - Fall Social