John Knapstein started the apiary in 1999. At that time, John had a medium sized garden and wanted to add beekeeping to his hobbies to help with pollination and possibly harvest some honey. The more that he learned, the more enthusiastic he became about bees and beekeeping. You might say that John got stung big time and kept going back for more! He now has a smaller garden and many more bees. John keeps six hives. He now harvests honey and makes bee products to sell locally.

The honey from Top of the Hill Apiary is raw from the hive, collected, filtered and bottled by hand. It is not pasteurized, so none of the nutrients or health benefits are removed from it. It is relatively rare, but you might find occasional minute specks of wax, pollen or propolis in the honey. They are harmless. The honey is produced from nectar that the bees gather from Black Locust, Tulip Poplar, Clover, Alfalfa, and various wildflower sources. No chemicals are ever added to Top of the Hill's honey.

The apiary is located in Forest Hill, Maryland, and makes other products related to wax and honey.

John Knapstein, the owner of Top of the Hill Apiary, is a Life Member of the Maryland State Beekeepers' Association.

John Knapstein is President of the Susquehanna Beekeepers Association.