In March of 2010, after a protracted bureaucratic battle (that OnEarth covered blow by blow), New York City lifted a ban on beekeeping within city limits. With hives legalized, Big Apple beekeepers could start tending to rooftop and backyard apiaries without fear of hefty fines or prosecution.

A new documentary short takes a look at the now-legal practice of urban beekeeping in New York City. Produced by Adrian Bautista, Martha Glenn, and Brooke Tascona the video focused on Tim O'Neal, a Brooklyn beekeeper who also writes the cool and informative Borough Bees blog. The student filmmakers shot the piece for their "Design and Technology: Sound and Vision" course at Parsons The New School for Design. It's really well made and, whether you're interested in starting your own hive or are just curious about the practice, definitely worth six minutes of your time.

With 13 beekeeping seasons under his belt, O'Neal is a seasoned veteran, and his Fort Greene rooftop operation is a site to behold. He's also started teaching a Beekeeping 101 course at Brooklyn Brainery in Carroll Gardens, and one of his students is also featured in the video, providing some insightful perspective for the novices among us.

As our archives make clear, we're fascinated by bees here at OnEarth. Way back in 2006, we first covered colony colapse disorder -- or the mysterious die-off of bee populations -- in "The Vanishing," and have followed that story and the science ever since. Following the legalization, we covered the odd "red bees of Red Hook." (No word in the video short on whether O'Neal's hives were affected.) And just last week, our Species Watch expert examined the amazingly complex minds and emotions of Apis mellifera.

Photo: Tim O'Neal from BoroughBees.com