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  • 12 December 201820 May 2019
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Headbutt. . Slow motion bees are still my favorite Headbutt. . Slow motion bees are still my favorite bees.
Still four for four on hive survival! The bees we Still four for four on hive survival! The bees were all buzzing in the sunshine and warmth today after a long stretch of snow and cold. The snow was spotted with orange, proof they've been out pooping *everywhere* today. I even spot checked a frame since it was warm enough and found capped brood, so the queen has been laying for about two weeks at least, if not more. I also noticed the Maple trees starting to form buds, so even though it feels like this is the longest winter ever, Spring really is right around the corner. . Tomorrow (Thursday) we'll be at the Eagleview Farmers Market in Exton from 11a-1p. We're completely sold out of our own honey, but we do have a stock of honey from beekeeper friends in Chester County. It's a lighter honey from June 2020 and is exactly the same as our own June honey, plus the beekeepers are friends and mentors and I know they're following the same practices as I do and have the same level of care for their bees. . More later - it was so delightful to see the bees stretching their wings, cleaning up the hive, and returning to activity after so many quiet months! . #phoenixvillepa #phoenixville #phoenixvillehoney #beekeeping
We're prepping for our next few weeks of markets a We're prepping for our next few weeks of markets and Downingtown is up first on Saturday from 10a-noon! Pre-orders for Downingtown are open on the site (link in profile) and we'll be there in person as well.
Hard to believe we're only about 4 weeks away from Hard to believe we're only about 4 weeks away from Maple tree bloom time when the hives look like this! All are showing activity and it's pretty likely that our queens have started laying eggs already in anticipation of Spring. It takes 3 weeks to go from egg to adult bee emerging from her cell for a worker bee, so in order to have a new set of worker bees ready to forage on Spring pollen and nectar, the queen usually starts laying about now. It can also be the most tricky part of the winter - hive population is going to start building and stored honey is going to be at it's lowest point, so we have to be sure to monitor the weather and supplemental feed. One long cold snap can sometimes mean that it's too cold for the cluster can't move to a new area of stored honey in the hive, so they can starve even though they're just a few inches from honey. Glad to see sunny days like today to give the bees a break and shift the winter hibernation cluster if need be! #beekeeping #phoenixvillepa #phoenixville #phoenixvillehoney
Salted Honey Caramels, or also, how beekeepers hib Salted Honey Caramels, or also, how beekeepers hibernate. . I'm always looking for different ways to use honey and this is a perfect way to use up crystallized honey (if you're not stirring it into tea and spreading it on crackers with cheese like we do). To be fair, there's nothing at all wrong with crystallized honey - it's a natural process of the sugars in raw honey separating over time. I prefer using crystallized honey in recipes where I need to measure out a specific amount because it's a little easier to coax out of the jar and measuring cup without dripping honey everywhere. . The recipe is really easy to follow with some great tips, but you do need a good thermometer and need to carefully watch the temperatures since that boiling sugar can get away from you pretty quickly. The hardest part of the process is trying to wrap all the caramels while you've got a sugar high from periodic quality assurance testing! . Recipe from @wholefedhomestead, used cream from @seven_stars_farm and butter from @milkhousecheese to keep it mostly local. Also used two different varieties of our honey - a lighter Spring honey for the lighter caramel and a darker Fall honey for the other. There is a taste difference, and unsurprisingly, I like the darker one more since that's also my favorite honey. I read elsewhere that once wrapped, they can be frozen in a bag for up to a year which makes for a pretty delicious year if they manage to last that long! . Recipe: https://wholefedhomestead.com/salted-honey-caramels/ . #honeycaramels #honey #phoenixvillepa #phoenixville #phoenixvillehoney
Checked on the hives today and all four are still Checked on the hives today and all four are still buzzing! For winter, I use a screened inner cover, layered with a towel or old t-shirt, insulation board, and the the outer cover. In the video, you can see the towel lifted away to show the cluster of bees eagerly awaiting a sugar restock! Throughout the winter, on milder days like today, I add fondant or candy sugar chunks to provide supplemental food. The purpose of the setup is to absorb the condensation produced from bee respiration as well as the temperature difference, and make it easy to add sugar without disturbing the bees too much. It takes me all of two minutes to lift the towel, slap on some fondant (yes, just like cake fondant!) and cover them back up which keeps them from losing too much heat. . I'm in the hives once a week in the Spring and Summer, and about every other week in the Fall, but it's only about once a month in the winter. They're busy keeping warm and it's better to not disturb them any more than is necessary to add extra sugar if needed. Mid-January means we're only about 6-8 weeks off from our first Spring flowers which are usually in early March, starting with Maple trees. Hard to believe we're already this close! #beekeeping #phoenixvillepa #phoenixville #phoenixvillehoney
It's National Hot Toddy day! Grab a mug of tea, a It's National Hot Toddy day! Grab a mug of tea, add your favorite honey 🍯, some lemon and spices, maybe a little whisky too, and enjoy a warm winter beverage on this grey Monday. Apparently the traditional recipe calls for plain hot water instead of tea, but an informal polling showed tea is the preferred base for a hot toddy. How do you make your hot toddy? Do you have a favorite mug or a favorite whisk(e)y? Let us know all about it! . #nationalhottoddyday #hottoddy #hottoddyday #phoenixvillehoney
New year, new schedule! Eagleview and Downingtown New year, new schedule! Eagleview and Downingtown for this week are already open for pre-orders and we're looking forward to bringing our full stock including candles, dippers, and tea towels to markets (also available for pre-ordering convenience!). Pre-order link is through our website (link in profile). . #phoenixvillepa #phoenixville #phoenixvillehoney #downingtownpa #eagleviewtowncenter #extonpa
Tomorrow (Tuesday) is our last market of the year Tomorrow (Tuesday) is our last market of the year at Eagleview Town Center from 11a-1p! . We'll do a final round of local deliveries on Thursday for all your last minute gifting, and we'll be back with markets and Friday local deliveries in January. A jar of local, raw honey and a handmade dipper make a perfect under $25 gift! A full market schedule is available on our website (link in profile). #phoenixvillepa #phoenixville #phoenixvillehoney
Weather-related schedule change for this week, but Weather-related schedule change for this week, but don't worry, Eagleview, there's a pop-up holiday market on Tuesday! Pre-orders are open on the website for both Malvern and Eagleview (link in profile), and I'll have a table at both markets as well. . #phoenixvillehoney #malvern #malvernpa #eagleview #extonpa #eagleviewtowncenter
Found one hive had a couple of drones still linger Found one hive had a couple of drones still lingering around, much to the agitation of the worker bees. The male drones are rather violently kicked out of the hives in October since they don't contribute to hive survival and are a drain on precious winter resources. The worker bee (female, right) was chewing on this drone's wings in an effort to remove him from the hive and make sure he doesn't come back. . We also saw quite a bit of pollen coming in! Shades of dark orange and even a lemon yellow which makes me think some sort of willow has gotten confused about what season it is.. we even saw forsythia blooming, and while the bees don't touch forsythia, it means it's entirely likely some of our other early spring pollen producing plants have been tricked into blooming as well. This sort of bizarre winter makes it extra challenging for a beekeeper! If there's an abundance of pollen coming in, the queen may start to lay eggs again which would put their honey supply in jeopardy of running out early. Having a normal, cold winter just doesn't seem to be in the cards this year! . #phoenixville #phoenixvillepa #phoenixvillehoney #beekeeping #droneeviction
We've for a few winter markets coming up! All of We've for a few winter markets coming up! All of our outdoor markets with @growingrootsfarmersmarkets allow for pre-orders so you can grab your order and go as a safe, outdoors, no-contact option. Pre-orders are already open for Downingtown on Saturday morning! #phoenixville #downingtown #phoenixvillehoney #downingtownpa
Small Business Saturday! Still working on gift id Small Business Saturday! Still working on gift ideas? Grab a mug from a local potter and add some honey and a handmade dipper for a perfect gift. Website (link in profile) is open for orders for local delivery (now open for up to a 5 mile radius for this week!) and we hope to have at least one more market on the calendar before the end of December. Also, tell us about your favorite ceramicists and potters in the comments! I've got a small obsession with handmade mugs and I'm always looking for new artists to support. . Did you know? Our lightest honey, Batches A-D, are perfect for infusing with herbs like lavender or even dried peppers for a spicy honey that's great for cheese boards or for adding a kick to meat and veggies. Need to separate your order separately in our hand-printed gift bags? Let us know in the comments at checkout! . #phoenixvillepa #phoenixville #phoenixvillehoney #shoplocal #shopsmall #smallbusinesssaturday
A HUGE thank you to everyone who stopped by at one A HUGE thank you to everyone who stopped by at one of our markets over the last three days! It's been a busy week, but every minute of it has been delightful. I've thoroughly enjoyed conversations about bees and honey and hearing about how you use honey for baking, cooking, in tea, cocktails, and hot toddies, or as a gift for someone special. From our hive to yours, we hope you have a very happy Thanksgiving! . Delivery is still available for Friday for our locals in Phoenixville, link in profile to order! . (photo of our hives from September) #phoenixvillepa #phoenixville #phoenixvillehoney
Tomorrow at @pinecreekhayloft from 10a-5p, we'll b Tomorrow at @pinecreekhayloft from 10a-5p, we'll be selling honey, beeswax candles and a new batch of handmade honey dippers from @stewartwoodstudio! Build the perfect handmade holiday. #phoenixvillepa #phoenixville #phoenixvillehoney
More Fall Market dates for the week leading up to More Fall Market dates for the week leading up to Thanksgiving. Hope to see you there! Pre-orders are open for Devon and Eagleview, more details available on the website, link in profile! #phoenixvillepa #phoenixville #phoenixvillehoney
A bee foraging on the last couple marigolds still A bee foraging on the last couple marigolds still blooming. The weather the past few days has been delightful, especially when we're usually talking about the first snow this time of year. However, the longer warm period can either good or bad - bees that are more active when it's warm use more food, and when nectar and pollen are getting scarce after a hard frost, it means beekeepers need to add supplemental sugar feed and monitor hive weights to ensure they're not getting behind before it gets REALLY cold. Alternatively, the warmth can give them extra time to stock up if there are enough food sources remaining. It takes a lot of monitoring and a bit of intuition to find the right balance and keep the bees healthy and alive through winter. . Hope you're all finding time to enjoy the sunshine today! . #honeybee #phoenixvillepa #phoenixville #phoenixvillehoney
A bee foraging on a purple aster flower. These fl A bee foraging on a purple aster flower. These flowers are over 6 ft fall and in a wildflower patch next to the hives. They're just so pretty (and so tall) and it looks like the bees are enjoying them just as much as I am. #phoenixvillepa #phoenixville #phoenixvillehoney #aster #honeybee
Queen spotting, answer edition! Original photo on Queen spotting, answer edition! Original photo on top, swipe to see the answer and a close-up. Did you get it right? Some beekeepers mark their queens with colored paint pens (non-toxic) to make it easier to find the queen on a busy frame of bees. I've never marked my queens but it does get a little tricky to find her at peak population in the summer! #phoenixvillepa #phoenixville #phoenixvillehoney #queenspotting
Queen spotting! Leave me a 🐝 if you see her an Queen spotting! Leave me a 🐝 if you see her and I'll reveal the answer this weekend. . Queens are longer than worker bees and our queens don't have any stripes. Can you spot her on this frame? Please don't spoil it for others, just drop a 🐝 for now (or a "bee")! . #phoenixvillepa #phoenixville #phoenixvillehoney #queenspotting
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