Sunday, July 31, 2011

Thanks & a Honey Harvest Update

Hi friends!

Thanks for sharing your comments about our honey, and welcome to the new blog followers!  When Mark went to the dentist, he said, "It's the best honey I've ever had. My dad stole my jar when he came to visit!" Mark was so pleased!

The good news is, while we were gone on our epic adventure to Alaska, the cotton blooms kept the bees very busy and the grass grew like crazy. Mark and Andrew spent 3 days clearing the bee yards -- mowing, weed eating -- and today Mark is building special frames to see if the bees will make us some "comb honey" -- we can cut it into squares so you can have your honey and the comb it rode in on!

The challenging news is that we can't yet harvest because of the rain.  Honey is hygroscopic, which is great when it comes to healing wounds and moisturizing your skin. However, if you harvest honey while there's a lot of moisture in the air, you end up with honey that could ferment. (Some great tips for beginners on harvesting honey are here.)  We want our honey to be top quality, so we have to wait for sunnier weather. We may get a break next week, but it's hard to tell. Here's a photo of what we're going to get when we can:

Honey at Mayhew, Sunday, July 31st.
For more on our assessments at each yard Saturday and Sunday afternoons, check the separate blog entry.

Celeste and Missy, I can ship to you -- we'll talk after the harvest, but I'll put you on the list.  Margaret and Jacky, I'll put you on the list too!

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