No joke. Northville Township Police Lt. Christopher Rowley finds beekeeping relaxing.

Professionally trained to work the most hair-raising cases, he finds some positive symbiosis between policing and beekeeping.

Responsibilities that come with wearing a badge apparently helped him understand the patience needed for hive tending, and curiosity about his bee colonies deflates any carryover job issues.

“It’s a calming experience to know that they all work toward one common goal,” Rowley said of his two hives and approximately 10,000 bees.  “Everything is done for the group. It’s a very humbling experience because, if one gets into your suit, it can cause a lot of havoc.

“You just gotta be careful, calm, patient and let them do their thing.”

He’s lost hives and suffered few bee stings, including one that swelled his thigh so severely he could barely fit into a pair of work pants. And there’s the fact that he’s allergic to the busy, buzzy critters, requiring trips to urgent care when he agitates a colony member just enough.

And, at this point, some of his traffic stops and pursuits as a police officer may seem like cakewalk compared to the traffic hazards that go with his pastime.

“It was very nerve-racking the first time I drove home with bees in my car because I literally had packages in the back seat,” Rowley said.

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Rowley joined the Northville Township Police Department nearly a decade ago, after getting a degree in criminal justice from Grand Valley State University and graduating from the police academy.

The Salem High School graduate had spent some years keeping the township safe when his parents – retired Southfield Deputy Chief Shawn Riley and his wife Beth Rowley, a landscape designer – bought him a bee kit for Christmas.

He’d always been curious about bees, and colleagues eventually began finding out about the garden, wildflowers and hives on his Fenton-area homestead.

Word got around the department like, you know, a bee in a bonnet. Rowley’s honey began sweetening township law enforcers’ teas, salad dressings and whatnots.

"It’s natural," he said. "I don’t add anything to it. I take it right from the bees.Yeah. That's it. It's all straight from the comb." 

Rowley still has about four gallons of honey in his basement. His 3-year-old daughter likes to put the gooey stuff on her toast, and he likes to experiment with making mead.   

He’s committed to the hobby that can be comparatively pricey, requiring, according to The Old Farmer’s Almanac, about $150 for a new hive, $160 for clothing and gear and $125 to $150 for a package of new bees.

There’s a few given jokes at work, but the asides barely sting. 

“People like to tell me that they’re a beekeeper, where, if they see a bee, they keep it,” he said before starting to laugh. “It’s not the best joke in the world but numerous people have told me that.”

He shares hive-tending duties with his mom. Beth Rowley has shared her middle child’s fascination with bees and told him she’d love to help.

They both have their humbling bee suits and are in the hives once every two weeks, or maybe just once a month, depending on the time of year.

Temperature and moisture are persistent challenges.

During the harsh Michigan winters, bees mainly cluster around the queen to keep her warm and only leave the hive on warmer days to remove dirt from their home. The Rowleys supply them with honey for those colder months. 

“It’s very tricky and you have a pretty high loss rate here in Michigan,” Beth Rowley said. “We are at about 60% right now for hives that we’ve lost in the winter months. But, you know, we invest and start again. We have all the equipment. We enjoy doing it, so we keep investing and keep doing it.

"The way they survive, take care of each other, (and) cooperate with each other to do what they need to do is amazing. Oddly, it's relaxing. I just find it really fascinating." 

Because of their busy schedules, they’ve taken a year off. Otherwise, they are experienced beekeepers. While beekeeping isn’t for everyone, they urge those who can afford the hobby to give it a try.

“It’s a very calming hobby once you figure out that they’re not out there to hurt you,” the police lieutenant said. “They want their home. They want to be left alone. As long as you do everything right and you take the time, use patience, it can be very rewarding.”

Contact reporter Susan Vela at svela@hometownlife.com or 248-303-8432. Follow her on Twitter @susanvela.