This morning Dan and I met up with our informal beekeeping teacher, also named Dan, out at his hives. He keeps four hives out at John Porterfield's place (where the hundreds of cherry trees were just planted). It's a great place to keep hives because of John's large garden and all of his flowering plants, plenty of pollinating opportunities for the bees!
Dan and I are complete novice beekeepers but are very interested in the craft. So this year we're shadowing Beekeeper Dan to learn first-hand how to properly care for hives. We are planning on starting our own hives next season, I can't wait for the honey... mmmm. Dan snagged a hunk of beeswax from the hives today to rosin his bow with, there are so many uses for the honey and beeswax..... and I think the smell of beeswax is my favorite smell in the whole world.
Today Beekeeper Dan had to check on his hives and spray a sugar-water concoction on some of the newer trays in the hives because the bees aren't producing honeycomb as quickly as they should be at this point (apparently the sugar-water expedites honeycomb production). He also took out a drone tray to take home and freeze (this is a tray with smaller than normal honeycombs, apparently if there are mites they are attracted to this tray, you then remove the tray and freeze it to kill the mites if they're present).
Also, while we were out there, Daisy had a grand time running free through the country. When we were ready to leave, she came up to us with an oddly soaking wet head and dry body.... oh, the life of a dog!
Dan and I are complete novice beekeepers but are very interested in the craft. So this year we're shadowing Beekeeper Dan to learn first-hand how to properly care for hives. We are planning on starting our own hives next season, I can't wait for the honey... mmmm. Dan snagged a hunk of beeswax from the hives today to rosin his bow with, there are so many uses for the honey and beeswax..... and I think the smell of beeswax is my favorite smell in the whole world.
Today Beekeeper Dan had to check on his hives and spray a sugar-water concoction on some of the newer trays in the hives because the bees aren't producing honeycomb as quickly as they should be at this point (apparently the sugar-water expedites honeycomb production). He also took out a drone tray to take home and freeze (this is a tray with smaller than normal honeycombs, apparently if there are mites they are attracted to this tray, you then remove the tray and freeze it to kill the mites if they're present).
Also, while we were out there, Daisy had a grand time running free through the country. When we were ready to leave, she came up to us with an oddly soaking wet head and dry body.... oh, the life of a dog!
Later in the day I attended a workshop on medicinal herbs at Angel's place in town, she's an active Transition Northfield member and local food activist. Transition Northfield sponsored this event, it was led by Angel and two other women who were herbal experts. We planted many medicinal herbs in a large raised bed in her front yard and discussed their properties. This raised bed is going to become a communal medicinal herb garden with the hopes that many folks will harvest, share, and create medicinal herb remedies and ointments from the plants. We're planning on having more sessions to follow all over town, I'm going to have one of the expert herbalists over to my place later this week so she can point out all of the "weeds" I have in my yard and how I can take advantage of their healing properties. Very cool stuff. We also sipped on nettle tea, mint and honey tea, and a surprisingly delicious tonic made from steeping horseradish, garlic, and cayenne peppers in raw apple cider vinegar.