Boulder County Land Use Code 4-516.D permits accessory beekeeping by right in the F, A, RR, ER, SR, LI, GI, and MI zones. It is an Open Agricultural use. In the Suburban Residential (SR) zone, two colonies are allowed per building lot (a queen and her workers count as one
Under BCLUC Article 4-516.D, 'Accessory Beekeeping' means raising domestic honey bees to collect honey and is permitted by right across the agricultural and residential-agricultural districts, with no parking or loading requirements. It is classified as an Open Agricultural use. The only explicit numeric cap is in the Suburban Residential (SR) zone, where each building lot may keep two colonies; a queen and her worker bees are one colony. In the larger agricultural zones (F, A, RR, ER) beekeeping is by right without a stated hive count. The zoning-district table confirms SR residents may keep 'up to 8 hens and 2 bee colonies for their own use.' This is unincorporated-county code; cities regulate hives separately.
Exceeding the two-colony SR cap or keeping bees in a district where the use is not permitted is a Land Use Code zoning violation enforced by Boulder County Community Planning & Permitting, which can order removal or require Special Review.
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