Dennis Riggs was born and raised in Southwest Florida. He became interested in bees when he was about 11 or 12 years old when he was introduced to beekeeping by George Curtis of the Harold P. Curtis Honey Company in LaBelle, Florida.
Dennis is currently a natural treatment and foundationless beekeeper who keeps gentle bees... and is retired and teaching (training) beekeepers, lecturing (speaking and honey tastings with help of his wife Virginia). He is currently enjoying time with his own bees and hanging out with his beekeeping friends, rescuing (removing/relocating) bees, mentoring, and doing about everything honey bee related. Sometimes takes very short breaks to garden and to camp.
He was PREVIOUSLY a structural steel detailer (ACAD & Engineering) and website designer... and was the webmaster for the Florida State Beekeepers, Beekeepers Association of Southwest Florida as well as couple other well-known beekeeping websites in Southwest Florida.
He was instrumental in the formation of the Beekeeping Association of Southwest Florida (BASF) and was their President (2010-11including 2023-24) and their Vice President (2008-09 including 2025-26).
He has demonstrated conventional hive management in the club's apiary, as well as the very simplest of the Kenya Top Bar Hive (KTBH). He has twice demonstrated and spoke on the KTBH for ECHO Agricultural Annual Conferences in Fort Myers, FL due to the simplicity and adaptability of the KTBH for countries not having power tools and resources common to us. The simple KTBH demonstrated can be built with all square cuts, no bevel cuts, no diagonal cuts, and assembled using only a hammer and nails.
Dennis and his wife, Virginia have provided honey tastings, educational lectures and/or demonstrations on basic beekeeping for schools and summer/day camps, events, etc. in Florida and Georgia... more
Dennis is currently a natural treatment and foundationless beekeeper who keeps gentle bees... and is retired and teaching (training) beekeepers, lecturing (speaking and honey tastings with help of his wife Virginia). He is currently enjoying time with his own bees and hanging out with his beekeeping friends, rescuing (removing/relocating) bees, mentoring, and doing about everything honey bee related. Sometimes takes very short breaks to garden and to camp.
He was PREVIOUSLY a structural steel detailer (ACAD & Engineering) and website designer... and was the webmaster for the Florida State Beekeepers, Beekeepers Association of Southwest Florida as well as couple other well-known beekeeping websites in Southwest Florida.
He was instrumental in the formation of the Beekeeping Association of Southwest Florida (BASF) and was their President (2010-11including 2023-24) and their Vice President (2008-09 including 2025-26).
He has demonstrated conventional hive management in the club's apiary, as well as the very simplest of the Kenya Top Bar Hive (KTBH). He has twice demonstrated and spoke on the KTBH for ECHO Agricultural Annual Conferences in Fort Myers, FL due to the simplicity and adaptability of the KTBH for countries not having power tools and resources common to us. The simple KTBH demonstrated can be built with all square cuts, no bevel cuts, no diagonal cuts, and assembled using only a hammer and nails.
Dennis and his wife, Virginia have provided honey tastings, educational lectures and/or demonstrations on basic beekeeping for schools and summer/day camps, events, etc. in Florida and Georgia... more