tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57857115715815083252024-03-13T12:49:23.635-07:00Buzzing Across AmericaBuzzing across America with the American Honey Queen & Princess. Bee and honey facts from the sweetest spokespeople in America.Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.comBlogger239125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-25079797684633749252024-02-01T08:32:00.000-08:002024-02-21T06:39:48.779-08:00Honey from Coast to Coast<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Honey is produced in all 50 states, from Alaska to Florida and Maine to Hawaii. These honeys are all different. Honey varietals differ in color from almost clear to very dark brown. There are just as many flavors of honey as there are colors. The different colors and flavors are a result of the different flowers that the honeybees visit while they are out pollinating. <br /></span><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQcE9sEULiMO8uFtlfZZUcaH8KHSP5PHdYxxx3KynmQthSfIT3avaks8UC6JuRLHz-EiDGrxj_ZhoyV7fk8nuXFeGSTip88XuIRp9sPyFyPh9Cb8HcotYmbwRFdJZ-dOr0QuFZvTNzKzlJb4onUqATFRn03Jm0zsRH7IYxRodpU3pyK_SWVkOGE5gyg6oU/s381/Colors%20of%20Honey.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><img border="0" data-original-height="132" data-original-width="381" height="140" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQcE9sEULiMO8uFtlfZZUcaH8KHSP5PHdYxxx3KynmQthSfIT3avaks8UC6JuRLHz-EiDGrxj_ZhoyV7fk8nuXFeGSTip88XuIRp9sPyFyPh9Cb8HcotYmbwRFdJZ-dOr0QuFZvTNzKzlJb4onUqATFRn03Jm0zsRH7IYxRodpU3pyK_SWVkOGE5gyg6oU/w403-h140/Colors%20of%20Honey.jpg" width="403" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Some of the colors of honey produced in the United States<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: verdana;">The lighter colors of honey are usually lighter and more floral in flavor, and the darker colors of honey are more intense in their flavors. Honey doesn't just come in different colors and flavors, there are also different textures of honey!</span><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSEmZIE9k0mYrJ6gMPRLn7huvhcXpIN-Shwjkd2wen8kOcAT4mjXbLYEo1-147b8hGktufVnLhe8oMOldFzZp7biCoyn8QIN9F74oQkyHvqegD8RPoaNDLeYi5TnqZDiYsSTIGEdATyyMG1f2iJiVQ_yQxwHl9iP49zRQ3NKfdCG2z99SSq9WMYg9TFrea/s1080/Untitled%20design.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSEmZIE9k0mYrJ6gMPRLn7huvhcXpIN-Shwjkd2wen8kOcAT4mjXbLYEo1-147b8hGktufVnLhe8oMOldFzZp7biCoyn8QIN9F74oQkyHvqegD8RPoaNDLeYi5TnqZDiYsSTIGEdATyyMG1f2iJiVQ_yQxwHl9iP49zRQ3NKfdCG2z99SSq9WMYg9TFrea/w199-h198/Untitled%20design.png" width="199" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Different Forms of Honey<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: verdana;">Honey comes in many different forms. The form of honey most people are familiar with is liquid honey. Liquid honey can be used in many recipes to replace sugar (t<span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36); color: #202124;">o substitute honey for 1 cup of sugar, use 2/3 cup honey</span><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 36); color: #202124;">. Decrease other liquids in the recipe by 1/4 cup). Another form of honey </span>is cut comb honey. This is honey that comes straight from the hive like the honeybees store it. Cut comb honey can be eaten wax and all. Many people will put it on a charcuterie board with creamy cheeses. There is a mix between liquid honey and cut comb honey called chunk honey. Chunk honey is liquid honey surrounding a piece of cut comb honey. And the last form of honey is creamed honey. This honey is very smooth and spreads like butter. I encourage you to try a new honey color and form! You might find your new favorite flavor!</span><br /><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><p></p>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-92076461055731660522024-01-13T20:00:00.000-08:002024-02-21T06:28:16.646-08:002024 Representatives Crowned<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;">The American Beekeeping Federation held their 81st Annual Convention in New Orleans, Louisiana. The new American Honey Queen and Princess have been crowned!</span></p><div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-3454932499213007320" itemprop="description articleBody" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.4; position: relative; width: 686px;"><div style="line-height: 20px; text-align: center;"><div style="font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><i>2024 American Honey Queen</i></span></div><div><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 15px;">Kaelyn Sumner from Wisconsin</span></span></div><div style="font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><i>2024 American Honey Princess</i></span></div></div><div style="line-height: 20px; text-align: center;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 15px;">Lainey Bell from Maine</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 20px; text-align: center;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: 20px; text-align: center;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTiJjF0QKvnd9FDCvOGg1xsKHuK1eUetXTPZvRFmIb_ixIm2oA9KwcYdc1NABpq13rsl1h8BmvM6vsLfO__ru-n6yQI-SB7hwrjBl0IJpdnxuehx0EEi3uHnIahTH3G4RsZNiim1Y1MeSiDNCzWeV3bgpahhMrhyYuZ5htAY1AEQ6vKuh6lQq1Sbrxh1vi/s7430/2024American%20Honey%20Queen-Princess.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="7430" data-original-width="4956" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTiJjF0QKvnd9FDCvOGg1xsKHuK1eUetXTPZvRFmIb_ixIm2oA9KwcYdc1NABpq13rsl1h8BmvM6vsLfO__ru-n6yQI-SB7hwrjBl0IJpdnxuehx0EEi3uHnIahTH3G4RsZNiim1Y1MeSiDNCzWeV3bgpahhMrhyYuZ5htAY1AEQ6vKuh6lQq1Sbrxh1vi/w426-h640/2024American%20Honey%20Queen-Princess.jpg" width="426" /></a></div></span></div><div style="line-height: 20px; text-align: center;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif"><br /></span></div><span face="verdana, geneva, sans-serif" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"></span><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Congratulations ladies! They will travel the United States promoting honey and beekeeping and post interesting articles about bees and honey along the way. Keep an eye out for the sweetest representatives in America!</span></div>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-3518070574650292332024-01-01T05:00:00.001-08:002024-01-01T05:00:00.138-08:00How Honey Bees CommunicateHoney bees communicate through various ways since they do not have ears. They use two different ways to communicate which are movement and odor. <div><br /></div><div>Honey bees have a “waggle” dance that they show to one another to tell each other the direction and distance of floral sources outside of the hive. Scout bees will point their body in the direction of the food source and will move her body and wings to produce a buzzing sound. This dance is a figure-eight pattern, with the smaller the figure-eight the closer the food is to home and the bigger the figure-eight the farther it is. </div><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgpW6LGI3gbP3-yHqSbQLbQ6RuFMFQZFZhPogxpxKu7xRga-QnIWkRYG3SN7Hd6Vw2NbvPTEGrEte6B8GHDm6HHuM4ELZH6b__UGe6RuOxWNFAEIvknFmYSWl6la_3BL7jrL_0kk8meRZm5L18KjJpAe2LyR2L6bjvKDtzS36I64sCIUwJE4VMRuBrgHZeC" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" data-original-height="639" data-original-width="645" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgpW6LGI3gbP3-yHqSbQLbQ6RuFMFQZFZhPogxpxKu7xRga-QnIWkRYG3SN7Hd6Vw2NbvPTEGrEte6B8GHDm6HHuM4ELZH6b__UGe6RuOxWNFAEIvknFmYSWl6la_3BL7jrL_0kk8meRZm5L18KjJpAe2LyR2L6bjvKDtzS36I64sCIUwJE4VMRuBrgHZeC" width="242" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The honey bee in the center is doing the waggle dance to tell other <br />honey bees where the food sources are outside of the hive.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /></div><div>In addition to communicating through movement, honey bees also use odors. The queen honey bee lets off a special pheromone smell so that workers know where the queen is and that she is healthy. Bee stings also produces a pheromone that alerts other honey bees that there is a threat. They will also use alarm pheromones to tell other honey bees that they need help defend the hive from outside threats. Fun fact: the alarm pheromone is said to be similar in smell to bananas!
</div><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhU5Vjbr9YtfbVCNI0EFjujUZoM0epd1FVMclBbJQhNgVHZ7lnbl2Mvk18Eykdz9zC6e4WRrRRrKrUYZHkBTEke-omF7i83ocfyIPgEruUJK9ZKKPQkCLCu-goINrZlwXh331GsQxX5Ww2TSPyO7YPceLbEDiF2xTfvgWPtHqI8Qzng6Q4wmPPY5w2w0lV-" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="3008" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhU5Vjbr9YtfbVCNI0EFjujUZoM0epd1FVMclBbJQhNgVHZ7lnbl2Mvk18Eykdz9zC6e4WRrRRrKrUYZHkBTEke-omF7i83ocfyIPgEruUJK9ZKKPQkCLCu-goINrZlwXh331GsQxX5Ww2TSPyO7YPceLbEDiF2xTfvgWPtHqI8Qzng6Q4wmPPY5w2w0lV-" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Honey bees also use pheromones to communicate important information, <br />such as if there is a threat present.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /></div>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-690150092186384372023-12-01T12:10:00.006-08:002023-12-01T12:10:00.142-08:00Honey Bee Holiday<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">As the Holiday season approaches,
and snow starts to fall, honey bees embrace their Holiday by taking a break
from collecting pollen and nectar from flowers. In the chilly weather, they
choose to stay inside their hive and focus on two essential tasks: keeping warm
and conserving energy. This way they will be strong and energized to visit
flowers in spring time.<o:p></o:p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQPrTuv-C49wGv6zgVTrO8ED9vAdxGjYijQgBzzOV5JSnE07W0oOY7FAGnjarIhqDi1zeBf0jsU4vbSMpgSYR_uCpO9ilOgPqcnAlK0KnyQSEe-VcKZXAU7en0tjcxJWoEkb4I00zC4AWpYNeSVJ_RxsQ2W40lFmR6Waqvnfnzr8WNZmn5GMPuVz7Z5A/s1280/winter-g840a6eeaf_1280.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="850" data-original-width="1280" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQPrTuv-C49wGv6zgVTrO8ED9vAdxGjYijQgBzzOV5JSnE07W0oOY7FAGnjarIhqDi1zeBf0jsU4vbSMpgSYR_uCpO9ilOgPqcnAlK0KnyQSEe-VcKZXAU7en0tjcxJWoEkb4I00zC4AWpYNeSVJ_RxsQ2W40lFmR6Waqvnfnzr8WNZmn5GMPuVz7Z5A/s320/winter-g840a6eeaf_1280.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Honey bee hives during winter.<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">As we cozy up indoors with a
fireplace or heater creating warmth during the winter, honey bees have to create
their own heat to survive. By huddling together in a cluster, they generate
heat through the vibration of their wing muscles. This clustering technique
helps them maintain a cozy temperature inside the hive.<o:p></o:p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdE8Fv8Y2prenzCVePpuCO3RcLJQGatNsUGol1ACUUDzrB64ES4WV0vGg7A5FgExCwO2nfDutBu1XjgywDzrlLhcurAJ_u6M-ChHJOXrr8Yw0a3ywU7Z5MunZ38A8jpAaH5AlzjmMkRtrx-DpgjLWaw5zhvP0fR6qU-MTN_7BB_dmRF8FO8a8YCm1X6g/s1280/clustering.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="854" data-original-width="1280" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdE8Fv8Y2prenzCVePpuCO3RcLJQGatNsUGol1ACUUDzrB64ES4WV0vGg7A5FgExCwO2nfDutBu1XjgywDzrlLhcurAJ_u6M-ChHJOXrr8Yw0a3ywU7Z5MunZ38A8jpAaH5AlzjmMkRtrx-DpgjLWaw5zhvP0fR6qU-MTN_7BB_dmRF8FO8a8YCm1X6g/s320/clustering.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Honey bees clustering to keep warm.</td></tr></tbody></table>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">During wintertime, honey bees rely
on the honey reserves they had carefully stored within their hive weeks earlier
before it got too cold to fly. It serves as their nourishment and ensures they
have enough energy when the warmer days of spring arrive. While staying warm, all
the honey bees, including the worker bees, are resting to conserve energy.
After almost a year of their busy activities, the honey bees take a well-deserved
“stay-cation” in preparation for the upcoming spring season. <o:p></o:p></p><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"><br /></p>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-85366293041287263032023-11-01T05:00:00.000-07:002023-11-01T05:00:00.145-07:00Bee-Thankful Kid Friendly Recipes<p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and why not celebrate with some easy recipes that use delicious honey! </span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Below are some great recipes to try to show your appreciation for all the hard work honey bees provide for us.</span></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmKvfiULgzHUd1YHyZ41vlvn8bs5UxOUyOSYVRNOq_1nwP21YKgnsVH1wdM1_UYYi2NPbSHAd9s_P-eaw8pGN6Bwg4OVP2choYzW0GTCvZECaxI5ozhw5NIwsyKukBsHkKotOwbFZB5TzMYOwY7w2E8YfbwsQG8E1FlKMANXOJeJBHP7xY88hdOoBg8KyD/s887/honey%20thanksgiving.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="741" data-original-width="887" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmKvfiULgzHUd1YHyZ41vlvn8bs5UxOUyOSYVRNOq_1nwP21YKgnsVH1wdM1_UYYi2NPbSHAd9s_P-eaw8pGN6Bwg4OVP2choYzW0GTCvZECaxI5ozhw5NIwsyKukBsHkKotOwbFZB5TzMYOwY7w2E8YfbwsQG8E1FlKMANXOJeJBHP7xY88hdOoBg8KyD/s320/honey%20thanksgiving.jpeg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Honey Peanut Butter Yogurt Dip </b>from Sioux Honey</span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-872c8d38-7fff-888e-2580-54d6c6c7c80d" style="font-family: inherit;"><div><span>Instructions: </span></div><div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">2 tablespoons honey</span></li><li>1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt</li><li>1/4 cup peanut butter</li></ul></div>Directions:<br /><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px; text-align: left;"><li><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Combine and stir all ingredients in a small bowl until smooth.</span></li><li>Serve with fruit, pretzels, or any other food that you want! </li></ul><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><div><span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><b><div><span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div>Energy Balls </b>from 2023 American Honey Princess</span></span><div><span><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Ingredients:</span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px; text-align: left;"><li><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">1 cup oats</span></li><li>1/2 cup chocolate chips</li><li>1/2 cup flax seeds</li><li>1/2 cup peanut butter</li><li>1/3 cup honey</li><li>1 tsp vanilla extract</li></ul></span>Directions: combine all ingredients and form into a ball<span><br /></span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Honey Turkey Rollers</b> from National Honey Board</span><br /><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Ingredients:</span><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;">8 oz. cream cheese, softened</span></li><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">1/3 cup honey</span></li><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">1/4 cup mustard</span></li><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">1/2 tsp onion powder (optional)</span></li><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">6 (8-inch) whole wheat tortillas</span></li><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">1 cup colby jack cheese, shredded</span></li><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">12 thin slices turkey</span></li></ul><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Directions:</span><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px; text-align: left;"><li><span style="color: #3f2414; font-family: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;">In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add honey, mustard and onion powder; mix well.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Spread 1 to 2 tablespoons of honey cream cheese mixture out to the edge of each tortilla.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Sprinkle each tortilla with cheese, leaving about 1 inch around the edge.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Place 2 slices of turkey on each tortilla.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Roll up each tortilla tightly and wrap in plastic wrap.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Chill at least 30 minutes, then slice each tortilla log into eight 1-inch rounds and serve.</span></li></ul></div>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-76035630891356366022023-10-01T09:23:00.014-07:002023-10-01T09:23:00.147-07:00Don't BEE Scared<div style="text-align: left;">October is a month filled with festivities and a touch of fear, but honey bees outside their hive are nothing to be afraid of. While you're outdoors, enjoying the sight of flowers or sipping on sweet beverages, you might notice honey bees buzzing around. Don't panic! These foraging honey bees have one mission in mind—they're simply searching for food, not interested in bothering you.</div><div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: left;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4502" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCCZU5sWgbMAqJ76dmofVgQby6-Yj2i9TnxQT3uCnKIDcdwcDYzqp6cjrZKwYtekee57Rni1owym3DvmFtGZkdi0jZTBdHvEyNpT4-ENS2nkgP4UO9Zw3QJ5qF4wiMolsyAAB5MXEsPdLOY9rAU8-da-35Fv28btDGhHyMBYjLGIf_VTq9ekE-abq8mA/s320/anni-kat-zuGsHVXvPOg-unsplash.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Curious honey bee on a finger.</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;">Nectar is a part of a healthy honey bee diet, and they drink and collect it from flowers. Honey bee's sense of smell is remarkable, around 50 times stronger than a dog’s. This ability enables them to detect the aroma of the sugary liquids from flowers or even your soda, drawing them from distances of up to 5 miles away.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifl955bzJAZhmtwyNx9aCqjje9MjHywY0d4s7Hd90qYR1FrMgDwghsYYo1gboox1YOgy7wuVunmp64SfOKN86VGhYjhqRcdpFZbO8vpFlM2PgTJETktdhnA0EfjCMl4Ud_SAk64eeri79jBYBBr0jRx722wiKvXebYJBQz2G0aTu46wQ17rRnQD3HKJQ/s6000/fabian-kleiser-uAE7pdTXfkQ-unsplash.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 1em 0px;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="6000" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifl955bzJAZhmtwyNx9aCqjje9MjHywY0d4s7Hd90qYR1FrMgDwghsYYo1gboox1YOgy7wuVunmp64SfOKN86VGhYjhqRcdpFZbO8vpFlM2PgTJETktdhnA0EfjCMl4Ud_SAk64eeri79jBYBBr0jRx722wiKvXebYJBQz2G0aTu46wQ17rRnQD3HKJQ/s320/fabian-kleiser-uAE7pdTXfkQ-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Honey bee drinking honey from a hand.<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table></div></div><div><div><br /></div><div>Although they have a great sense of smell, the honey bees' vision has its limitations. They can perceive colors such as purples and blues from afar but need to be close to observe finer details. So, if a honey bee ever comes near you or lands on you, it's not an act of aggression—she simply mistook you for a flower. During such encounters, it's best to remain still and allow the honey bee to explore its surroundings. These gentle creatures pose no harm unless threatened. Attempting to swat them away may provoke them to defend themselves with a sting.</div><br /></div></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmiwdtiISuacs6qGnhHjMxCyIaWJgJL0NEZqp65OBy5Kj58iMaiFxZwUWI2wi7lHGEP99E_R8lR3drXOc_1ZD3u9tqBRnDDWqXqOq5OqqHUYoBQLkzRejo1zMZmR8KAlBpiS9oo62bNz3-1s__9xGs1tr56yuzaDXBGcsgwnGhG3CfKuKjn5ZE8O2JlA/s3591/eduardo-gorghetto-1m3QpFT2e2U-unsplash.jpg" style="display: inline; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: left;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3591" data-original-width="2394" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmiwdtiISuacs6qGnhHjMxCyIaWJgJL0NEZqp65OBy5Kj58iMaiFxZwUWI2wi7lHGEP99E_R8lR3drXOc_1ZD3u9tqBRnDDWqXqOq5OqqHUYoBQLkzRejo1zMZmR8KAlBpiS9oo62bNz3-1s__9xGs1tr56yuzaDXBGcsgwnGhG3CfKuKjn5ZE8O2JlA/w156-h235/eduardo-gorghetto-1m3QpFT2e2U-unsplash.jpg" width="156" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Curious honey bee in a hand.</td></tr></tbody></table></div>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-41232495518090035462023-09-01T05:00:00.000-07:002023-09-01T05:00:00.151-07:00Different Ways to Help Honey Bees<p><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;">Honey bees are vital for the pollination of many of our fruits and vegetables. Making sure we are all doing our part in helping them survive and grow is very important. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;">Honey bee population numbers in the United States have been decreasing over time until about 10 years ago, but the population numbers have remained fairly stable since then. However, there are several things we can do to help honey bee populations.</span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-0a0077df-7fff-ed59-9e2f-c1a985fde83e"><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px; text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;">Grow a bee friendly garden:</span></li><ul><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Planting garden flowers and native wildflowers are a great source of nectar for honey bees! Some key flowers to plant are bee balm, sunflowers, lavender, goldenrod, and many more! In addition, planting trees, such as maples or black cherries, provide many blooms that support honey bees.</span></li></ul><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Avoid pesticides and herbicides</span></li><ul><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Using pesticides and herbicides can be harmful to honey bees and other pollinators. Not using pesticides and herbicides can help honey bees, but if they need to be applied make sure to not apply them when flowers are blooming and do it at dusk or dawn when honey bees are not foraging.</span></li></ul><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Support beekeepers</span></li><ul><li><span style="font-family: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;">Buying honey and related products can be a great way to support honey bees. Another way to support both beekeepers and honey bees is to contact a beekeeper if you see a honey bee swarm. Beekeepers can help provide a safer home for honey bee swarms, which helps everyone out in the end.</span></li></ul><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Be an advocate for honey bees</span></li><ul><li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Teach others the importance of honey bees and other pollinators and ways they can help. Not everyone understands that honey bees are the number one pollinator in the world and their survival and success is so important!</span></li></ul></ol><div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit;">There are many other ways to help honey bees and other pollinators, but this is a great list to help you get started! Be sure to do your part in helping the survival of honey bees, as they are vital to the pollination of so many of our foods.</span></div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAaKjHp6DOk-KR9E2IqI7f1gX06qsI4bukXPVsG_a8QK7cuwTcECzwCys5UkSgmyqkdm79D-2mie9XZVZLBT2Z326SZWcFwZqUOWsHb0R57UMsLMZhTaRpUcE-oAfpb9ScCAfeUlHSV1tthKD0hMZCVKxIljvj-OZhSQ6ZFzrAa3TukJg1giQi33SBzaoV/s910/honeybees-beehive-bee-beekeeping.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="644" data-original-width="910" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAaKjHp6DOk-KR9E2IqI7f1gX06qsI4bukXPVsG_a8QK7cuwTcECzwCys5UkSgmyqkdm79D-2mie9XZVZLBT2Z326SZWcFwZqUOWsHb0R57UMsLMZhTaRpUcE-oAfpb9ScCAfeUlHSV1tthKD0hMZCVKxIljvj-OZhSQ6ZFzrAa3TukJg1giQi33SBzaoV/w432-h305/honeybees-beehive-bee-beekeeping.jpeg" width="432" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Calling a local beekeeper about honey bee swarms <br />is a great way to help out honey bee populations!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br /></div></span><span></span>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-59810833053397913022023-08-01T08:40:00.002-07:002023-08-01T08:40:00.147-07:00Home Sweet Home and The Beeswax Builders<p><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span> <span style="text-indent: 0.5in;">The houses we live in provide protection
from weather and the outdoor elements as well as a safe place for us to sleep. In contrast,
honey bees must put on their construction hats and build their own home. Once
honey bees find a safe spot to build their home such as inside a tree or in a
hive box, they start building their walls out of a special material called beeswax.
These walls are not only their home but also a storage space for honey and
other important things.</span></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7nNPXQKDPmWr48__inDQoFL3XzUJopNLlox5r-3HOzLyk1NWdemLATV_SQPxlxaJcwEX3AFeSm8iWbzc2b9AfZ8zq-CXQ8nZbEnCqnZDiYMxdo-6p2mJGSL-ilR5WyDg9Esj0miYtJDQciKAqGsE1pVp7OzgxNexUEgHVmyN-_WBTSdsO_crF4gbE2A/s1280/bees-345628_1280.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="854" data-original-width="1280" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7nNPXQKDPmWr48__inDQoFL3XzUJopNLlox5r-3HOzLyk1NWdemLATV_SQPxlxaJcwEX3AFeSm8iWbzc2b9AfZ8zq-CXQ8nZbEnCqnZDiYMxdo-6p2mJGSL-ilR5WyDg9Esj0miYtJDQciKAqGsE1pVp7OzgxNexUEgHVmyN-_WBTSdsO_crF4gbE2A/s320/bees-345628_1280.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Honey bees storing honey in their hive made of beeswax.</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Worker bees that are 6-7 days old develop
their 8 wax glands within their abdomen. These glands allow them to produce and
secrete beeswax in the form of fragile flakes. Next, the worker bees peel off
these flakes and chew them using their mandibles. This allows them to stick the
beeswax to a surface and mold it into their favorite shape with six sides-- the
hexagon. Each individual hexagon is called a cell. Hexagons are honey bees’ favorite shape
because they use the least amount of beeswax to allow for the most amount of space
inside each cell. The hexagons collectively
serve important purposes within the hive.<o:p></o:p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="375" data-original-width="575" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRaW-0ldwczrlPNti3Pman0Mg4n76UsueaSV6mUlW8VNmbXChrq4HKNtg-cpKgIjoFVZcnsTJXYIO5heDdt-K4nF0Y2O5XntOSBrM7seiFiiSKftvBFEDfOzYQCLYeK9Ve-iX38mmDfIPZ-duDBbANlJTwVKpyT6ZZsbzhXy8uNVpbzilFUzp-AR6AEw/w251-h164/beeswax-bee1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="251" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Worker bee producing beeswax flakes from her abdomen.</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0ltCmNNUTgZYqcQurdDIv2wepcXuHqAiHIBFrGMaLH4Uyhsf9uetE8cKJtdMlP78Hm3iImp1Fq5BQ018Q6q39Mkdn9RGAqaRnff8x2Ne2GyFt0NMwnzrcK9IaE1E8TfGO-RqsgeYPJAyY_ZLt_FkY1rllb29T19-u8QD7gb8Brvq0NzKKVYRdqbB8HA/s630/hexagon.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="581" data-original-width="630" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0ltCmNNUTgZYqcQurdDIv2wepcXuHqAiHIBFrGMaLH4Uyhsf9uetE8cKJtdMlP78Hm3iImp1Fq5BQ018Q6q39Mkdn9RGAqaRnff8x2Ne2GyFt0NMwnzrcK9IaE1E8TfGO-RqsgeYPJAyY_ZLt_FkY1rllb29T19-u8QD7gb8Brvq0NzKKVYRdqbB8HA/w183-h168/hexagon.png" width="183" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The shape of a hexagon has 6 sides.</td></tr></tbody></table> <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRaW-0ldwczrlPNti3Pman0Mg4n76UsueaSV6mUlW8VNmbXChrq4HKNtg-cpKgIjoFVZcnsTJXYIO5heDdt-K4nF0Y2O5XntOSBrM7seiFiiSKftvBFEDfOzYQCLYeK9Ve-iX38mmDfIPZ-duDBbANlJTwVKpyT6ZZsbzhXy8uNVpbzilFUzp-AR6AEw/s575/beeswax-bee1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> </a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">This clever construction of hexagon
cells made of beeswax allows the honey bees to store their precious foods such
as nectar, honey, or pollen. Additionally, the queen bee lays a single egg in
each of these cells around 2,000 times a day, ensuring the growth of the colony.
The walls of a bee hive are super close together. They leave just enough space
for one or three bees to fit in between. This special arrangement helps the
honey bees control the temperature inside the hive easily. Ultimately, honey
bees are very resourceful and are remarkable mathematicians, engineers, and
scavengers!</p><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUoRFTWL1hnAS2zBcLJa9xLD1EdHv7Ln_71_TWxT4Rx6EoCG708-oIbO9TKvi9I1wHI-uPk5sXL2PT-GUdg-D42ZSq-DzHorN7x2UUz3IeKdkurvBFbC7GCfMP8DhRpHShcjLO7dBMjRQXUuONz3cjaRY4cjCOvzLCtz29-p4IBX6s0eTfA2gkZffiMA/s1024/pexels-ion-ceban-ionelceban-3194327-1024x683.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUoRFTWL1hnAS2zBcLJa9xLD1EdHv7Ln_71_TWxT4Rx6EoCG708-oIbO9TKvi9I1wHI-uPk5sXL2PT-GUdg-D42ZSq-DzHorN7x2UUz3IeKdkurvBFbC7GCfMP8DhRpHShcjLO7dBMjRQXUuONz3cjaRY4cjCOvzLCtz29-p4IBX6s0eTfA2gkZffiMA/s320/pexels-ion-ceban-ionelceban-3194327-1024x683.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beeswax walls close together help honey bees regulate the temperature of the hive.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></p><br />Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-81523580134443834112023-07-01T05:00:00.001-07:002023-07-01T05:36:57.485-07:00How Honey Bee Pollination Works<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">If it weren’t for honey bees and other pollinators, we would lose out on a lot of food that we eat on a daily basis, such as apples, oranges, and almonds. In fact, ⅓ of the food crops we eat are dependent on pollination and 80% of the pollination is done by honey bees. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Pollination of flowers and crops is accomplished by honey bees through a simple process. Honey bees land on flowers to primarily collect nectar to make into honey, but also collect pollen on the millions of hairs that they have. They then fly to other flowers of the same type and pollen is dropped off when the honey bees collect more nectar. This then pollinates the blooms so that fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds are able to grow into the food we eat. More specifically, the pollen from the anther of a flower sticks to honey bees which is then inadvertently carried to the stigma of the flower, which is shown in the picture below.</span></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRKcpv-I1RVDRptKy6Taw4lpVwgUEIf1mU_Fk_CMRr9eVkGVcbkWiqzyRCRfHfsCGixs90oOKMlv9yZV6mpMJXNHEnebEelSOFsVAAeTQS1djZHAuRrucVyuXDQ-Zy1xMtYLHPieawQH25JtvuAEjLzJiNMo3gUaUdMx0_ZNA7ZpS3VHFn7FREWexBxB_U/s580/honey%20bee%20pollination%20copy.tiff" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="397" data-original-width="580" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRKcpv-I1RVDRptKy6Taw4lpVwgUEIf1mU_Fk_CMRr9eVkGVcbkWiqzyRCRfHfsCGixs90oOKMlv9yZV6mpMJXNHEnebEelSOFsVAAeTQS1djZHAuRrucVyuXDQ-Zy1xMtYLHPieawQH25JtvuAEjLzJiNMo3gUaUdMx0_ZNA7ZpS3VHFn7FREWexBxB_U/w440-h301/honey%20bee%20pollination%20copy.tiff" width="440" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Honey bee pollination is done by carrying pollen from <br />the anther of one flower to the stigma of another flower.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /><p></p>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-24515793998535751212023-06-01T09:38:00.022-07:002023-06-01T09:38:00.143-07:00The Journey of Honey: from Flowers to your Kitchen<p>Have you ever wondered how that jar of honey ended up in
your kitchen? Honey bees are the incredible creatures behind the making of
honey, and their process is quite fascinating. Let's take a closer look!</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To make honey, honey bees start with an important
ingredient: nectar. Flowers produce nectar, and honey bees collect it and bring
it back to their hive. Inside the hive, they store the nectar in hexagonal
cells made of beeswax.</p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHAF-fMMrbk5gd2oJyEpjm3mmtXA0MLgW6PFRgL4YQReOwCCsy6vfhD_ys8tUNSVS8EfaoOBP4oSNQ3gpG4LSxD4Nitjw8Xv0AQgvj584Fji4RXdm8XBoK-WSn2k284L8B8RTu9h9_l7g-iVp9u8IZnqbErX1IRo1MB8DsoAehTRuq7m7WJV7vNbJJpg/s4032/pexels-meo-600643.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHAF-fMMrbk5gd2oJyEpjm3mmtXA0MLgW6PFRgL4YQReOwCCsy6vfhD_ys8tUNSVS8EfaoOBP4oSNQ3gpG4LSxD4Nitjw8Xv0AQgvj584Fji4RXdm8XBoK-WSn2k284L8B8RTu9h9_l7g-iVp9u8IZnqbErX1IRo1MB8DsoAehTRuq7m7WJV7vNbJJpg/w273-h205/pexels-meo-600643.jpg" width="273" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Honey bee collecting nectar from a flower.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7tZMS5KydCrdqm98PdTlOzWs4D6PLYcTA2XZhGha_rVK9sdSH9ejGtLru-2_Ybg5IQwz-ly5yQY7FVEYsy5dXeFRrc_9PkX7W5zw21rDQqrTrbnS4h5nvURS0x4s7vtXh_mRMSC6xypFgPH5ZqP7WRm131OVRWlB7P8mFY49gVkwAStwQPl5wC2bzPw/s6000/pexels-pixabay-56876.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4004" data-original-width="6000" height="166" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7tZMS5KydCrdqm98PdTlOzWs4D6PLYcTA2XZhGha_rVK9sdSH9ejGtLru-2_Ybg5IQwz-ly5yQY7FVEYsy5dXeFRrc_9PkX7W5zw21rDQqrTrbnS4h5nvURS0x4s7vtXh_mRMSC6xypFgPH5ZqP7WRm131OVRWlB7P8mFY49gVkwAStwQPl5wC2bzPw/w248-h166/pexels-pixabay-56876.jpg" width="248" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nectar in beeswax cells inside a honey bee hive.</td></tr></tbody></table><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Next comes a special step called "fanning." Honey
bees fan their wings over the nectar-filled cells, creating a gentle breeze.
This breeze helps to dry out the nectar. This drying process is what transforms
the nectar into honey. When the nectar's moisture level drops below 18%, it
officially becomes honey.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Once the honey is ready, the honey bees seal the cells with
beeswax. This ensures that the honey is stored safely for a long time because honey
has a low water content and a high sugar content, making it difficult for
bacteria to grow. That's why honey never spoils as long as it remains sealed,
just like the jar of honey in your kitchen.<o:p></o:p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF8uZRZcsDXmDhQD1wQshZu-38fKWrJGW-IKbFjkZKAPjqu00SkcNVRPK_-q-WCJLacimOLpBodQhNR00ZShn-auKoVc8J6xqwdsktxgte4aQYrswl2K8PdBADdCpb6kgH_zncBA-wh14UZBzHwc2PVD0VIWpx_4ZmX2UDQIjFsB2vHuPOx_TQY7bKyA/s612/istockphoto-485477970-612x612.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="408" data-original-width="612" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF8uZRZcsDXmDhQD1wQshZu-38fKWrJGW-IKbFjkZKAPjqu00SkcNVRPK_-q-WCJLacimOLpBodQhNR00ZShn-auKoVc8J6xqwdsktxgte4aQYrswl2K8PdBADdCpb6kgH_zncBA-wh14UZBzHwc2PVD0VIWpx_4ZmX2UDQIjFsB2vHuPOx_TQY7bKyA/s320/istockphoto-485477970-612x612.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Capped honey cells inside a honey bee hive.<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table>
<p class="MsoNormal">When beekeepers harvest honey, they take frames filled with
capped honey cells. They carefully scrape off the beeswax caps using a bread
knife or an uncapping tool, revealing the honey inside. These frames are then placed in a machine
called a honey extractor. The centrifuge spins the frames rapidly, and the honey is
separated from the cells. It collects at the bottom of the machine and is drained
into a bucket. Once in the bucket, it's ready to be bottled.<o:p></o:p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVAhbcWnruzBulwgJFMRPsLAB3Y_BRV2EivN44aniwNS62kSr6yg1iSZBU2g2xalF3iZ8UJMGTRJ1vjZ5ZXnl36q4J58prQ65w5v_vwsvFh8ssGI0CY4ZHGBnA7GB299quMuIvklTs1C9M5BfqO_pX-OnBrJj1X6hxejY9QFz5uHfMooKtDIgQm_i9-w/s1000/bee-2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="773" data-original-width="1000" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVAhbcWnruzBulwgJFMRPsLAB3Y_BRV2EivN44aniwNS62kSr6yg1iSZBU2g2xalF3iZ8UJMGTRJ1vjZ5ZXnl36q4J58prQ65w5v_vwsvFh8ssGI0CY4ZHGBnA7GB299quMuIvklTs1C9M5BfqO_pX-OnBrJj1X6hxejY9QFz5uHfMooKtDIgQm_i9-w/w278-h215/bee-2.jpg" width="278" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beekeeper using a tool to scrape off beeswax cappings.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRmGnBhA81NUJnl4mcaaVBDAut74Xkn9M6kG-NmC1d6oAukKXgGv3zE1bbu95-eJfur0xVEWprMvOVV7EjAMhnRh3ddjPw0pF-s-rFL_6cM7Ly2sX4JbwDTxNdsoB8iVi0_TXwRSGb3DATusP5AtLUiuBN-hzaS7aSTXx7b6idG_-vgSsu31SlRk_ruQ/s600/Extractor-Maja-Dumat.webp" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="395" data-original-width="600" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRmGnBhA81NUJnl4mcaaVBDAut74Xkn9M6kG-NmC1d6oAukKXgGv3zE1bbu95-eJfur0xVEWprMvOVV7EjAMhnRh3ddjPw0pF-s-rFL_6cM7Ly2sX4JbwDTxNdsoB8iVi0_TXwRSGb3DATusP5AtLUiuBN-hzaS7aSTXx7b6idG_-vgSsu31SlRk_ruQ/s320/Extractor-Maja-Dumat.webp" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Honey frames in a honey extractor.<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table>Did you know that there are more than 300 varieties of honey
in the United States? The only difference between them is the flowers the honey
bees choose to visit. Depending on where you live, you may have different honey
varieties to choose from. For example, orange blossom honey, made from the
nectar of orange blossoms on orange trees, is popular in Florida and
California.<o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Honey is not only delicious but also precious. It takes the
entire lifespan of 12 honey bees to produce just one teaspoon of honey. So when
you enjoy honey, make sure to savor every drop and appreciate the hard work of
those amazing honey bees.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9fmRtSqcWtzPfW92TaYIJFiksQL7Ids4xgv9sEM-Ai7AVS9K1wsoiPWQFnIK7L8XokOhJXEx3FWYX2Vappw4D3HwBenQpf6lszsWUJHoCJNfhbf8Hj2F0B511dkLoiqfqTjU72lJc5pBEDg-FRXzM4rWwvFgF6VkjXm-DdlJ0gvo9rotLQ_ZMgJTTdw/s600/pexels-photo-1638280.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="417" data-original-width="600" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9fmRtSqcWtzPfW92TaYIJFiksQL7Ids4xgv9sEM-Ai7AVS9K1wsoiPWQFnIK7L8XokOhJXEx3FWYX2Vappw4D3HwBenQpf6lszsWUJHoCJNfhbf8Hj2F0B511dkLoiqfqTjU72lJc5pBEDg-FRXzM4rWwvFgF6VkjXm-DdlJ0gvo9rotLQ_ZMgJTTdw/s320/pexels-photo-1638280.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><br />Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-39465162367606456542023-05-01T11:28:00.000-07:002023-05-27T05:03:42.383-07:00Top Flowers & Plants Honey Bees Like<p style="text-align: left;">Honey bees collect nectar and pollen from the flowers and plants they visit. However, there are certain flowers and plants that they tend to visit more than others. Knowing which flowers and plants that better attract honey bees can allow you to plant the right ones in your garden. Each type of flower has a different blooming season, length of life, and how tall they are. Knowing these details allows to you pick the perfect ones based on your needs.</p><p style="text-align: left;">Some of the top flowers that honey bees like are:</p><p style="text-align: left;"><b>Bee Balm</b></p><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Blooms in the Spring, grows back every year, and grows to 1-4 feet tall.</li></ul><p style="text-align: left;"></p><b>Black-Eyed Susan</b><br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li> Bloom in the Summer and Fall starting the 2nd year, grows back every year, and grow to be 1-3 feet tall.</li></ul><b>Purple Coneflower</b><br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li> Bloom in the Summer and Fall, grows back every year, and grows to 2-4 feet tall.</li></ul><b>Sunflower</b><br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li> Bloom in the Summer and Fall, only grow/live for one season, and can range in height from 1-15 feet tall.</li></ul><b>Wrinkle-Leaf Goldenrod</b><br /><ul style="text-align: left;"><li> Blooms from late Summer to Fall, grows back every year, and is about 3-4 feet tall.</li></ul><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEivv2L0E2Ww1lMLjmmyhuUXb8DyxOnthchzZUmI6F2JJXOBCsret-wR-2v5SeRoeFhkAEv1CigSkw8m1kiZQtJCeI88qVNsUuxxbp7j04iG1DxfhGZ2jlIXPvNJRUzt_QOwTgum7svB12kYJr15ydJh3vIRNAVM668iNPtMRMUYdCheIPA5Ng44FhiVtg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="520" data-original-width="780" height="361" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEivv2L0E2Ww1lMLjmmyhuUXb8DyxOnthchzZUmI6F2JJXOBCsret-wR-2v5SeRoeFhkAEv1CigSkw8m1kiZQtJCeI88qVNsUuxxbp7j04iG1DxfhGZ2jlIXPvNJRUzt_QOwTgum7svB12kYJr15ydJh3vIRNAVM668iNPtMRMUYdCheIPA5Ng44FhiVtg=w543-h361" width="543" /></a></div><br /><br /></div>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-30474136289479933252023-04-01T05:00:00.000-07:002023-05-27T05:03:22.419-07:00The Inside Scoop on Beekeeping Tools<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Happy Spring! As beekeepers are opening up their honeybee hives to prepare for another year of pollination and honey making, let's learn about the handy everyday tools that beekeepers use to check on their hives. Beekeepers across the United States utilize different methods of hive maintenance. Some of which have existed for centuries! There are a variety of ways to keep bees, but generally all beekeepers would agree that there are three vital tools required for going into a beehive. Let's explore the inside scoop on the essential tools of a beekeeper!</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><b><u>Hive Tool</u></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyvLKOFrE4zuW5aa_LP-YfuWjRjUw6Y-N1gJOjf_l2JmoWGyRJ3IMy8Lp4ryINpnREy4PtKlR75JcdwidAfUuxHZn8-JTT2hoJp7pRaPXZip94Kona2h4tmmBWz0oDwcPhTzvyEWOWx5mMIRfo-qmDrrHJnmCDHlv6nWo3Lhi2T6ZfE0DoqSanp6ma2A/s900/better%20hive%20tool%20in%20action.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyvLKOFrE4zuW5aa_LP-YfuWjRjUw6Y-N1gJOjf_l2JmoWGyRJ3IMy8Lp4ryINpnREy4PtKlR75JcdwidAfUuxHZn8-JTT2hoJp7pRaPXZip94Kona2h4tmmBWz0oDwcPhTzvyEWOWx5mMIRfo-qmDrrHJnmCDHlv6nWo3Lhi2T6ZfE0DoqSanp6ma2A/s320/better%20hive%20tool%20in%20action.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A hive tool is used to separate frames inside a honeybee hive.<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRWxXdktuwuMxv_H7cmFFEH4tv7zLIgp_9eMFg7HukFvFb3Vw_Ff1h9QLCbATV2CQLDCTYSyLbHy6CQn0V7j8guLIUugl58zbp0G-sK_qjq9WoFJ5xlM-d8l0r96awPWtzF-jNutbkn294TSgtRJ3k_0IZjhfm0ufLhwIPoahlNoHAQMFr3ViLkwBYzw/s612/hive%20tool.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="408" data-original-width="612" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRWxXdktuwuMxv_H7cmFFEH4tv7zLIgp_9eMFg7HukFvFb3Vw_Ff1h9QLCbATV2CQLDCTYSyLbHy6CQn0V7j8guLIUugl58zbp0G-sK_qjq9WoFJ5xlM-d8l0r96awPWtzF-jNutbkn294TSgtRJ3k_0IZjhfm0ufLhwIPoahlNoHAQMFr3ViLkwBYzw/s320/hive%20tool.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hive tools come in different styles. This is one of the most common.<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>First, is one of the most essential tools,
the hive tool. The name and current common designs of a hive tool have been utilized for at least a century, which demonstrates the desirability of its' multifunctional use across generations. The main reason beekeepers use a hive tool is because honeybees create a substance called propolis, made from tree resin and beeswax. Honeybees use this to seal up their hive to keep it safe from bad weather and pests. The hive tool allows beekeepers to pry open the hive's lid and separated the frames for inspection. The generic hive tool has other functions as well. Personally, I find new uses for it every day. It may be used as a hammer, a shovel, a nail remover, a crowbar, and of course, a hive beetle squasher. When the tool becomes coated in propolis, it is easy to clean by using another hive tool to scrape it off. Remarkably, this instrument is so useful that there are even travel-sized versions available for beekeeping on-the-go.<p></p><b> <u>Bee Veil or Suit</u></b><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrEVic8uQqCddi1KJO_pPCFlR0oZjRw8J32gHBIQ5o4kE1bbUFBmLbVdv3_5YjGSPxjKpLzgZ49OG3UuzSxxyzykuyh330PIHt4Fd7z_EZ0qPwUQUU_v5TaBgKL0lZG8iUni8ntZKRVeqNCRV7G7lGCs_SdzOHg90GwhWGqrh7hHziwT3jY-Qd3SGXyg/s612/bee%20suit.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="408" data-original-width="612" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrEVic8uQqCddi1KJO_pPCFlR0oZjRw8J32gHBIQ5o4kE1bbUFBmLbVdv3_5YjGSPxjKpLzgZ49OG3UuzSxxyzykuyh330PIHt4Fd7z_EZ0qPwUQUU_v5TaBgKL0lZG8iUni8ntZKRVeqNCRV7G7lGCs_SdzOHg90GwhWGqrh7hHziwT3jY-Qd3SGXyg/s320/bee%20suit.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beekeepers wearing a full-body bee suit which protects them from potential stings.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">The next essential tool provides protection from stings. Some beekeepers use a cap and vail, which protects the face, along with long-sleeved and pants when working with a colony that they are familiar with. Other beekeepers wear a full body suit with thick layers of mesh that prevent bee stingers from reaching their skin. This is great for inspecting unfamiliar colonies. The downside to this full-body bee suit is that you could be mistaken for a giant marshmallow. However, during the hot summer, the hot weather may have you feeling more like a s'more in these bee suits. To complete the picture, all we need is a campfire, which brings us to the last tool of this inside scoop.</p><b> <u>Smoker</u></b><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZYoOo7jDPA1qPLqfUA5QOFvyAuSkqXrTe1KsJEoZw9sX77VhDeBiHPgCreJl_fe49CmsV3ID_C51niC4OSC22xhONk8BlzQsRCtzOphijLSayo2Wei4wKergAA6KkyA52yHqSaeJctX60HU4rsbKAuGRFusJKQCTcm3WONM861uSWF7iAwCOYRsLFAQ/s612/bee%20smoker%20in%20action.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="408" data-original-width="612" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZYoOo7jDPA1qPLqfUA5QOFvyAuSkqXrTe1KsJEoZw9sX77VhDeBiHPgCreJl_fe49CmsV3ID_C51niC4OSC22xhONk8BlzQsRCtzOphijLSayo2Wei4wKergAA6KkyA52yHqSaeJctX60HU4rsbKAuGRFusJKQCTcm3WONM861uSWF7iAwCOYRsLFAQ/s320/bee%20smoker%20in%20action.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A smoker puffs smoke on the hive to mask alert pheromones.<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span> </span>The smoker, or as I like to call it, the travel-sized campfire, is used to puff smoke onto the beehive to mask the alert pheromones (which smells like bananas) honeybees may produce when their hive is opened. This way they are more likely to behave calmly, allowing for an easier hive inspection. The smoker requires a flame and some fuel such as grass clippings, cotton, hay, pine needles, or other kinds of fuel that do the trick without harming the bees. It's very important that beekeepers ensure the smoke remains cool to prevent hurting the honeybee's wings. Once you're finished using the smoker, you'll need to scoop out the remaining fuel. Scooping out the remaining fuel can be challenging without the proper tool. That's where the hive tool also comes in handy, with its long, metal stick perfectly suited to the task. Ultimately, a beekeeper's toolkit would be incomplete without the hive tool, protective attire, and a smok<span style="height: 196px; left: 0px; margin-left: 163px; margin-top: 544px; position: absolute; width: 135px; z-index: 251661312;"><br /></span>er.<br /><br /><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Can you spot all three essential beekeeping tools mentioned earlier in the photo below?</b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjq3TkxUeY6RlkVZw5mx-VvXiAXOj7REtgpH0lWskef_z5z608P9eULKjU7oN9HbK6pLvBZLRr8L0kvWPuVYgwn5oibIX7EJ2mg3VdC2TN7I8kgGeyK-mlX9-fD3oj86Ej_JtA-B23AYg0IMolZyktdnH_Ijgq-kVHeb2V6iDTnDgPh9yCdEjm5WDp9Q/s612/Beesuit%20photo%20stock.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="612" data-original-width="422" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjq3TkxUeY6RlkVZw5mx-VvXiAXOj7REtgpH0lWskef_z5z608P9eULKjU7oN9HbK6pLvBZLRr8L0kvWPuVYgwn5oibIX7EJ2mg3VdC2TN7I8kgGeyK-mlX9-fD3oj86Ej_JtA-B23AYg0IMolZyktdnH_Ijgq-kVHeb2V6iDTnDgPh9yCdEjm5WDp9Q/s320/Beesuit%20photo%20stock.jpg" width="221" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spot the tools of a beekeeper! </td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-35859555670681644052023-03-01T07:23:00.000-08:002023-03-09T07:23:50.092-08:00Benefits of Honey<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl27dfZVwLe8JlMNmuuWIQGFgQystem6As4J22BHlAx5iwXF1lRIbc9a5EoFkOvFwtg4Sttb8ni5--1Ckgny5JiZpV1GKiJE9KwaAzgAnIGYDEOI5opxw94KpUaYxb3EpA-mMVILptsgvZ-Dc1uf8FgF0f313HC3qNSiM70XtjmOU_xprnAIPF7xThGg/s1024/honey.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="683" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl27dfZVwLe8JlMNmuuWIQGFgQystem6As4J22BHlAx5iwXF1lRIbc9a5EoFkOvFwtg4Sttb8ni5--1Ckgny5JiZpV1GKiJE9KwaAzgAnIGYDEOI5opxw94KpUaYxb3EpA-mMVILptsgvZ-Dc1uf8FgF0f313HC3qNSiM70XtjmOU_xprnAIPF7xThGg/s320/honey.jpeg" width="213" /></a></div>Honey is a great food that both honey bees and humans consume. Honey bees collect pollen and nectar from flowers that they visit during pollination which they take back to their hive to turn into honey. Honey is primarily made up of sugars and water, with trace amounts of vitamins and minerals. Some of the key vitamins and minerals are: calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, zinc and more!<p></p><p>One way to use honey in addition to consuming it, is using it for wound care. Honey has been shown to speed up the process of wound healing, particularly burn wounds. </p><p></p>Honey can also be used as a cough suppressant. This is because honey helps thin mucus and loosen coughs. Just taking two teaspoons of honey can help relive nighttime coughs for better sleep and more comfortability. <p></p><p>Honey also can help various diseases by reducing heart risks, lowering memory loss, and even boosting one's mental health. In addition, honey contains antioxidants, which helps protect the body from inflammation. </p><br />Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-59233964601242492792023-02-06T05:52:00.001-08:002023-02-06T06:33:49.627-08:00Will You BEE My Valentine?<div><span style="font-family: verdana;">The world around us is full of amazing relationships between living things that help each other to survive and thrive. One of the most special relationships is between honeybees, flowers, and humans. Honeybees and flowers have a symbiotic relationship, which means they depend on each other to survive and grow. Honeybees help pollinate the flowers by transferring pollen from one flower to another, which helps the flowers grow into fruit and vegetables. In return for pollination, the flowers provide food for the honeybees in the form of nectar, which they make into honey. The health of us humans is dependent on this relationship between honeybees and flowers because pollination is responsible for 1/3 of the food we eat. That is why beekeepers help facilitate this relationship by bringing thousands of honeybee colonies to plants that need pollination. </span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiAgCdwGGgDW9jUo5qwK25tuIaoNRVjsz0aN_G5qg3s0nc1nEbjeEVWgciFfKPCiQYsyE6ZQt6Yj7uDS9o0ddB1xKnQVvThKWBC5LxiSHCtww9PKaoQ3ERdgi53xHSBMkuD7Swj6p7QQ_wSCIrMF9vv6kOTW5fPw0VzeEK2dneQqWY0ljOa6TLZn9GVw/s898/image1.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"><img border="0" data-original-height="508" data-original-width="898" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiAgCdwGGgDW9jUo5qwK25tuIaoNRVjsz0aN_G5qg3s0nc1nEbjeEVWgciFfKPCiQYsyE6ZQt6Yj7uDS9o0ddB1xKnQVvThKWBC5LxiSHCtww9PKaoQ3ERdgi53xHSBMkuD7Swj6p7QQ_wSCIrMF9vv6kOTW5fPw0VzeEK2dneQqWY0ljOa6TLZn9GVw/w400-h226/image1.png" width="400" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span><br /></span><span>Just like how honeybees and flowers help each other, we can also help others in our own way. On Valentine's Day, people often exchange gifts to show their love and appreciation for others. This is a great opportunity for you to think about how you can give to others, just like how the flowers give food to the bees and the bees give pollination to the flowers. For example, you can make a special card or craft for someone you love, give a helping hand to a neighbor or friend, or even donate to a charity that helps people in need. By giving to others, we can help make the world a better place, just like how the relationship between honeybees, flowers, and humans helps us all to thrive. So let's be like honeybees and flowers, and give to others whenever we can! </span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span><br /></span><a href="https://youtu.be/ei6vyBVrbX4" target="_blank">Click here</a><span> to learn how to craft a charming paper bee with this video below. It's a thoughtful gesture to show appreciation for someone special. You could even write a nice note on the back!</span></span></div>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-34549324992130073202023-01-08T08:21:00.016-08:002023-01-16T08:28:55.665-08:002023 Representatives Crowned in Jacksonville<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 15px;">The new American Honey Queen and Princess were selected at the 80th Anniversary </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 15px;">American Beekeeping Federation Convention in Jacksonville, Florida.</span></p><div style="line-height: 20px; text-align: center;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="background-color: white;"><i>2023 American Honey Queen</i></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: 15px;">Selena Rampolla from Florida</span></span></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="background-color: white;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="background-color: white;"><i>2023 American Honey Princess</i></span></div></div><div style="line-height: 20px; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: 15px;">Allison Hager from Iowa</span></span></span></div><div style="line-height: 20px; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="line-height: 20px; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #333333;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqON0o0yk7Zxcy0BYDhWVHxBryes8FyHZVU6r8_M9oyT1oC5CWePAkXOENiPsVh7nXN9x3YX8U-SLvomEiXzr5gnYBXG-Obru3UHOC0nrT8D9SjoZxQXuyjHBxA4zIwKMy-H2RxZkgLN8nVQDb8NfAtF2XjCvsXcLWBoSO0xSd8eCK3FP1HkQkukWEVw/s2048/IMG_3018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqON0o0yk7Zxcy0BYDhWVHxBryes8FyHZVU6r8_M9oyT1oC5CWePAkXOENiPsVh7nXN9x3YX8U-SLvomEiXzr5gnYBXG-Obru3UHOC0nrT8D9SjoZxQXuyjHBxA4zIwKMy-H2RxZkgLN8nVQDb8NfAtF2XjCvsXcLWBoSO0xSd8eCK3FP1HkQkukWEVw/w480-h640/IMG_3018.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /></span></span></div><span face="verdana, geneva, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"></span><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Congratulations ladies! They will travel the United States promoting honey and beekeeping and post interesting articles about bees and honey along the way. Keep an eye out for the sweetest representatives in America!</span>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-679489311694257512023-01-01T03:09:00.005-08:002023-01-01T03:09:00.192-08:00Counting for Honey Bee Anatomy <p><br /></p><p>My favorite way to remember the basic anatomy of a honey bee is to count to six!</p><p><b>1. Proboscis</b></p><p>A honey bee has one proboscis! The proboscis is the tongue of the honey bee. It is shaped like a straw, and specialized to allow easy access to the center of a flower to collect nectar. A honey bee will use their tongue in two ways. One of the ways is like a straw. The other is with a lapping motion, like how a dog drinks water.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs0BKTckFy8LB74G5JAXK_tCGol2ayII-J8-BJlOM8Ckm5I0fjvb04lfbvzaxrdGdyuaMTsthFyZlr37Vcq6S3YX9Y6pa6gpu1aDx95b6eyOTq5g_XWX6ASm3pqDC9tFJZZjCMvuTLgu7zY3_ke2I5ZW9Ck60pRYo66ZzmnXHqFwBA9abjQZQvHU5g3w/s1600/proboscis.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs0BKTckFy8LB74G5JAXK_tCGol2ayII-J8-BJlOM8Ckm5I0fjvb04lfbvzaxrdGdyuaMTsthFyZlr37Vcq6S3YX9Y6pa6gpu1aDx95b6eyOTq5g_XWX6ASm3pqDC9tFJZZjCMvuTLgu7zY3_ke2I5ZW9Ck60pRYo66ZzmnXHqFwBA9abjQZQvHU5g3w/s320/proboscis.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A worker bee using her proboscis to collect nectar from the center of a flower.</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p><b>2. Antennae</b></p><p>You will find two antennae on top of a honey bee's head. A honey bee will use their antennae for data collection. This includes touch, taste, and smell. Honey bees have some of the most complex pheromone systems in the world. Pheromones are chemicals bees excrete that are used to communicate with other bees. These antennae allow the honey bee to smell the pheromones and act accordingly. Did you know? a honey bee has four muscles that are used to control antenna movement.</p><p><b>3. Segments of the Body</b></p><p>The head, thorax, and abdomen are the three segments of the body that make up a honey bee. The head is used for sensory input. The eyes, proboscis, and antennae are all located on the head of a honey bee. </p><p>The thorax anchors the wings and the legs of a honey bee. The muscles found on the thorax allow the honey bee to rapidly move their wings.</p><p>The abdomen of a honey bee is where they digest their food, as well as store nectar during flight. Wax glands, where honey bees excrete flecks of beeswax, are located on the underside of the abdomen. For a worker bee and a queen, the end of the abdomen is where you can find a stinger. A queen bee's abdomen is much longer than a worker or drone's. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg89CO3wPokPZEDSyk7ruSubjSsEvfg3U693N8hyUrM2XsnWPsOoQQGnG8IeIpAU6-j8RHNQ3W36pJpVAv0oy3KrUqiAcspyEq6KVmKhV1e-SJJfZPdXTaZmAiVlR4eGqIsdE6Cz9Z3x63okJ1uwb1HtSb9_2thr5SbMQgxMw0nz3Mn0c7NQnwN2lOzSw/s1334/honey%20bee%20anatomy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1334" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg89CO3wPokPZEDSyk7ruSubjSsEvfg3U693N8hyUrM2XsnWPsOoQQGnG8IeIpAU6-j8RHNQ3W36pJpVAv0oy3KrUqiAcspyEq6KVmKhV1e-SJJfZPdXTaZmAiVlR4eGqIsdE6Cz9Z3x63okJ1uwb1HtSb9_2thr5SbMQgxMw0nz3Mn0c7NQnwN2lOzSw/s320/honey%20bee%20anatomy.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A diagram showing the anatomy of a honeybee</td></tr></tbody></table><p><b>4. Wings</b></p><p>A honey bee has two pairs of wings. These four wings are incredibly fast. A honey bee can beat their wings 230 times per second. These wings allow the bees to fly three miles away from their hive at up to 13 miles per hour. A hive of bees will fly 40, 000 miles to collect enough nectar to produce a pound of honey.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyoylRQ88S1qClOi8xwjBRUgWEj-CK0t55Lo9Xz-lRq1yYspbJP-xc-wmRISz2IDqI1C8o-dNKI2a_ZANe6N5i6gn66ALIU6UVMjPdaqmtynE1832YdqJJOxWbql5AQjjOn-mbnaLgDuC0Z57oL284kmDaKIfYn8fqmrRWH0A_oiLoGVY4FXlX2q5vCw/s800/in%20flight.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyoylRQ88S1qClOi8xwjBRUgWEj-CK0t55Lo9Xz-lRq1yYspbJP-xc-wmRISz2IDqI1C8o-dNKI2a_ZANe6N5i6gn66ALIU6UVMjPdaqmtynE1832YdqJJOxWbql5AQjjOn-mbnaLgDuC0Z57oL284kmDaKIfYn8fqmrRWH0A_oiLoGVY4FXlX2q5vCw/s320/in%20flight.webp" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A honey bee in flight.</td></tr></tbody></table><p><b>5. Eyes</b></p><p>A honey bee has two large compound eyes on the side of their head and three smaller eyes known as ocelli on the very front of their head, five eyes in total. The smaller three eyes on the front of the bee's head primarily allows them to perceive light. The large compound eyes on the side of their head allows them to see in all directions. Drone bees have especially large eyes so that they can find the queen during flight. Bees are attracted to yellow, purple, and blue the most. Honey bees have hair on their eyes.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKaTJZEkz8IP1VjIAtso2sz5vKwCTe22pun3pnPvhB5OQWsxlhO9yonW0ppo2TeDW2Zqy4rABj3KFXh8mWifkQ6NOxG9y0Rnh7wDqVYUdABxbSNuDq3LROpqdx_I1XWoIy4GKIghg-8G8B7NA907W36goZtLNGoGUmbPMY5RiqeoRxWml0Gy2RV_JvFQ/s612/eyes.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="408" data-original-width="612" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKaTJZEkz8IP1VjIAtso2sz5vKwCTe22pun3pnPvhB5OQWsxlhO9yonW0ppo2TeDW2Zqy4rABj3KFXh8mWifkQ6NOxG9y0Rnh7wDqVYUdABxbSNuDq3LROpqdx_I1XWoIy4GKIghg-8G8B7NA907W36goZtLNGoGUmbPMY5RiqeoRxWml0Gy2RV_JvFQ/s320/eyes.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Notice the three ocelli eyes that form the shape of a triangle in between the bee's antennae.</td></tr></tbody></table><p><b>6. Legs</b></p><p>Honey bees have six legs. The front legs have hooks on them, specially designed to help the honey bee clean antennae, so that they can smell, hear, and see better. The hind legs have an incredible body part called a corbicula, also known as a pollen basket. The pollen basket has a dip in the leg, surrounded by a ring course hairs that allow the bee to pack pollen. The bee can hold a lot of pollen during flight, making it easier to bring back to the hive for food. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-5V9qxK1bAVFHva7APCDkqFFDyEyCntNKhpcVBCB9WHtKD66rQR3ZTFSuUjqCeArK4P8EFEuViy-35KYCwf0Y0-lo37EbDX8K3j6QX6tuT2inepzseza-VlT_yKJpOJWgedQ2hbl8EjA_84FYYDPcF4FCTaiiPJBg5KRfGv0r9yFzkiaupLpKagFlWA/s225/corbicula.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-5V9qxK1bAVFHva7APCDkqFFDyEyCntNKhpcVBCB9WHtKD66rQR3ZTFSuUjqCeArK4P8EFEuViy-35KYCwf0Y0-lo37EbDX8K3j6QX6tuT2inepzseza-VlT_yKJpOJWgedQ2hbl8EjA_84FYYDPcF4FCTaiiPJBg5KRfGv0r9yFzkiaupLpKagFlWA/s1600/corbicula.jpeg" width="225" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Honey bee with a full pollen basket.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-9364809811124490402022-11-01T02:57:00.004-07:002022-11-01T02:57:00.182-07:00Medicinal Uses of Honey<p> Has a loved one ever made you a hot cup of tea with honey when you were sick? That drink was doing much more for you than being a comfort. Honey has many health benefits, and has been used for medicine since the time of Ancient Egyptians. </p><p>Honey is an anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and antioxidant. If you have a sore throat, the anti-inflammatory properties of honey will work to immediately calm it down.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYc55xSKzcnUEzXN2jL1WLV9my-xQtQtvgz5vopv2nf7cuf31JP8elVjvZwO2uqkzwBtWA16mNcsNIpuv5kHKfSlEsLd4lvKaNxUUsYmDNGacbm7is1FqUFjezleuuWnx76_Nmh7YtiWffuTb-5i_E9AmkQbwwwmek4_d6EwAg5-7GuSzXyIUeBtbkwA/s263/honey%20cough%20drops.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="263" data-original-width="192" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYc55xSKzcnUEzXN2jL1WLV9my-xQtQtvgz5vopv2nf7cuf31JP8elVjvZwO2uqkzwBtWA16mNcsNIpuv5kHKfSlEsLd4lvKaNxUUsYmDNGacbm7is1FqUFjezleuuWnx76_Nmh7YtiWffuTb-5i_E9AmkQbwwwmek4_d6EwAg5-7GuSzXyIUeBtbkwA/s1600/honey%20cough%20drops.jpeg" width="192" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Due to its anti-inflammatory properties, honey is a common ingredient in cough drops.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Honey is also a humectant, which means that is preserves moisture. Many people put honey on burns to help heal the skin faster. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwXaFXB36I1A5lXjTFi6G4K8tLPf6HO85hIzgE2oB7ZZ-mfpFysnpH5M1GWsC87LatJIM3aOObxUE7WKQZ8TU2F_q2NalkwGNGCF_cnxU1AQ81kG_bYcpKPO3tzFY_W2OrdbpW3eoQdYGZZfxkrQOFKpYeA29L3eDN3_V426GSL2xrOCsA1Hz9KnA2FA/s604/honey%20colors%202.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="604" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwXaFXB36I1A5lXjTFi6G4K8tLPf6HO85hIzgE2oB7ZZ-mfpFysnpH5M1GWsC87LatJIM3aOObxUE7WKQZ8TU2F_q2NalkwGNGCF_cnxU1AQ81kG_bYcpKPO3tzFY_W2OrdbpW3eoQdYGZZfxkrQOFKpYeA29L3eDN3_V426GSL2xrOCsA1Hz9KnA2FA/s320/honey%20colors%202.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look for a darker honey when seeking out honey for its medicinal properties. </td></tr></tbody></table><p>A good rule of thumb when looking to honey for its medicinal uses is the darker the honey, the better it is to use for medicine. Darker honey typically contains less water and more nutrients such as antioxidants. Some varieties of dark honey include: buckwheat, chestnut, and dandelion. Ask your local beekeeper about darker varieties, and consider honey as your health aid next time you are sick!</p>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-79770672643016385002022-09-01T09:32:00.003-07:002022-09-01T09:32:00.169-07:00Hive Talk: Communication Between Honey BeesPersonally, my favorite part about beekeeping is watching the bees interact with each other in the hive. <div><br /></div><div>From building comb, feeding brood, protecting the hive, and making food, a bee hive operates like a well oiled and very efficient machine. This cannot occur without proper communication.<br /><div><br /></div><div>Honey bees have two main ways of communicating to the other bees in the hive. </div><div><br /></div><div>The Waggle Dance is the way bees tell their fellow foragers about food sources nearby. The worker bee will walk in a straight line angled in the same way the food source is in relation to the sun. The distance of the nectar source is communicated by how long the worker walks in that line. The excitedness of the dance is related to how plentiful the food source is. The full dance makes a figure eight. </div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH0L6SxKX_y5oYP5uxiVnXSU9ykXalxFUHKU14HDYlgPRuRkXhL0leS8vmjOrQ_WgJGrHcoe3NoEiMKi6lJ2opozggwhwGNYILYagGXPciubJdVa8K2wTr5oe5FaK6WxvW1wgWllFXpmVqJ6QlCZe1DSL2NebczBPJIS-Bib1xINz2hEWxTYmorXcqXQ/s1200/waggle%20.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1121" data-original-width="1200" height="299" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH0L6SxKX_y5oYP5uxiVnXSU9ykXalxFUHKU14HDYlgPRuRkXhL0leS8vmjOrQ_WgJGrHcoe3NoEiMKi6lJ2opozggwhwGNYILYagGXPciubJdVa8K2wTr5oe5FaK6WxvW1wgWllFXpmVqJ6QlCZe1DSL2NebczBPJIS-Bib1xINz2hEWxTYmorXcqXQ/s320/waggle%20.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Example of the waggle dance</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Honey bees also communicate through pheromones. Pheromones are natural chemicals that are excreted to evoke a response within the same species. Honey bees have one of the most complex pheromone systems in nature. Honey bees use pheromone communication in every aspect of their life. For example. the alarm pheromone is used to tell guardian bees that the hive is being threatened, and needs to be protected. It is said that the alarm pheromone smells like bananas. <br /><br /></div></div><div>Could you imagine communicating solely through movement and scent? Honey bee communication is just one of the few things that make the insect absolutely amazing. </div>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-50298118802003851902022-07-01T02:56:00.003-07:002022-07-01T02:56:00.264-07:00Beeswax Bonanza<p> It is a well known fact that honey bees make honey. Did you know that there are other commodities produced by the very useful honey bee that can be utilized in many different ways? The goods produced by honey bees that people can use are called products of the hive. Let's look at another product of the hive, beeswax, and what people do with it. </p><p>A worker bee produces beeswax from her wax glands, located on the underside of her abdomen, the third segment of the body. The bee will then chew the wax, to make it moldable, and form it in the hexagons seen on a honeycomb.</p><p>Did you know that a hive of bees has to eat eight pounds of honey to have enough energy to produce one pound of beeswax?<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_rPfO1rN2eCYa0rxiFsZfF7Y56_qchgLb7YFb7NWlXvA7vzBGkCuU4ew9f-APsw3j9N_KCDiRPeNzzvYrz4Gav721F7Uktl_ObCphoxPyLC0pxUPehmInz_8LmjD5HoneP9vJyEWbseLB-l6Fw3TCK23o1qDxEHRDwY3HTfRxDbKH9idzQMvSOwzQbg/s225/Wax%20Glands.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="224" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_rPfO1rN2eCYa0rxiFsZfF7Y56_qchgLb7YFb7NWlXvA7vzBGkCuU4ew9f-APsw3j9N_KCDiRPeNzzvYrz4Gav721F7Uktl_ObCphoxPyLC0pxUPehmInz_8LmjD5HoneP9vJyEWbseLB-l6Fw3TCK23o1qDxEHRDwY3HTfRxDbKH9idzQMvSOwzQbg/s1600/Wax%20Glands.jpeg" width="224" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Worker bee producing beeswax from her wax glands.</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p>People use beeswax in many different ways, from candles to furniture polish. Beeswax is also a common ingredient found in beauty products, such as lip balm or soap. Beeswax is used along with rosin to treat string instruments to be able to play.</p><p>Encaustic painting is the art form in which artists use colored beeswax on canvas or board to create beautiful works of art. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizD6CLI7qmSoYDnczSBRE00lXjWtwuQ0ZSl2SMDVCDrj-jpnMCJjenE4hD-1GGqdiEnwPq1c-K9T3qfUmp-dlNnHJKmsSNwQ0i6ZJIyPMrJkg2S-lO65plenX1DwJ6GfkJGeVaP1w2HtZ3tUIqyAUrtjJcVmMmEguYEHzpF_6GCuETtjdZcWyRSxxHbA/s1000/Encaustic.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizD6CLI7qmSoYDnczSBRE00lXjWtwuQ0ZSl2SMDVCDrj-jpnMCJjenE4hD-1GGqdiEnwPq1c-K9T3qfUmp-dlNnHJKmsSNwQ0i6ZJIyPMrJkg2S-lO65plenX1DwJ6GfkJGeVaP1w2HtZ3tUIqyAUrtjJcVmMmEguYEHzpF_6GCuETtjdZcWyRSxxHbA/s320/Encaustic.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Encaustic art titled "The Iris" by American Beekeeping Federation member George Hansen</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Some people use beeswax as a chewing gum, others coat cloth with the wax and make a sustainable plastic wrap alternative.</p><p>How do you use beeswax? Below is a link by Good Housekeeping to make your own beeswax wraps.</p><p>https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/home/craft-ideas/g25642328/diy-beeswax-reusuable-wraps/</p><p>Consider this for an eco-friendly and cost saving substitute for plastic wrap!</p>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-90365727869201422972022-05-01T05:00:00.001-07:002022-05-07T17:02:13.718-07:00Background of the Bee Suit<p>A fundamental piece in a beekeeper's toolkit is the bee suit. The classic all-white jumpsuit with mesh veil is the first thing someone thinks of when the word beekeeper is mentioned. The bee suit has been optimally fitted for beekeeping. Let's take a look at some of the different elements of the bee suit and the purpose of the design. </p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgJ9oB17aRRQWtjUF1cPT0vJp4ISwR0Huv1eOOz1lA3ao6FI1mlGVjbIgU80Dg6Yq2AQpn5f1Hlf3lxI-oiEE-hhyp9c4oGcWHGUD1-YrkXrkQc3LrblqWfjRbdqiOBGdK7Sfyp95kbJ85MhszB0D7ZyHNxzNycK88UBK4g1TpoIdeBrKbsVZDKK4Ch1Q" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" data-original-height="930" data-original-width="1400" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgJ9oB17aRRQWtjUF1cPT0vJp4ISwR0Huv1eOOz1lA3ao6FI1mlGVjbIgU80Dg6Yq2AQpn5f1Hlf3lxI-oiEE-hhyp9c4oGcWHGUD1-YrkXrkQc3LrblqWfjRbdqiOBGdK7Sfyp95kbJ85MhszB0D7ZyHNxzNycK88UBK4g1TpoIdeBrKbsVZDKK4Ch1Q" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">beekeepers working in the hives while wearing their bee suits</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Bee suits are light in color, most commonly seen in white. Predators of the hive such as bears, raccoons, and skunks all have dark fur. Because of this, darker colors alarm bees more than very light colors do. <p></p>
Bee suits can be made in a thick canvas material. The canvas suit is effective in keeping bees out and preventing stings, but can get extremely hot. Spending hours a day working in hives during the spring and summer months can be a very physically taxing job. Now, the popularity of mesh suits has risen. These new suits have layered mesh, which allow airflow while also protecting the beekeeper from a potential sting.
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLZTKxKO35x7t2SXzlVHQsvWglnhFhKuqTzGaTCksmYgPG7MctD6FjF3Rx9B6NnrxTVRkORJV7Q8w-e_xxWdoEpfW0irM9Ods9FzVjfndl3kp1-oPwRuuTU0KH5MEhVZB_0RBcRlkrjF4hd8ZOlpG49YPEUMr-PDjSQHqupKbjt8EndreOLHZ6FudBTw/s370/suit%203.jpeg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="234" data-original-width="370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLZTKxKO35x7t2SXzlVHQsvWglnhFhKuqTzGaTCksmYgPG7MctD6FjF3Rx9B6NnrxTVRkORJV7Q8w-e_xxWdoEpfW0irM9Ods9FzVjfndl3kp1-oPwRuuTU0KH5MEhVZB_0RBcRlkrjF4hd8ZOlpG49YPEUMr-PDSQHqupKbjt8EndreOLHZ6FudBTw/s320/suit%203.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
Another facet of the bee suit are gloves, in order to avoid stinging in the hand. A beekeeper's gloves are typically made out of goat leather. Goat leather is not as inpenetrable as leather from cows, but it is softer and thinner, giving the beekeeper more ability to move. Beekeeping can be incredibly delicate work, so free range of motion is important.
Bee suits are specially designed for being in beehives and around honeybees. They are useful for any beekeeper!
Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-83661017047496209632022-03-01T05:00:00.041-08:002022-03-01T11:34:05.944-08:00Honey Across America<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Across the United States, from California to Maine, honey is produced. There are more than 300 different varieties of honey that can be found in America. Honey comes in many different colors and flavors. The type and taste of honey is determined by the nectar source that honeybees find in different flowers. As a guideline, the darker the honey, the more intense the flavor. Lighter honeys typically have a more floral and sweet taste to them.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhkmsd1Npb8iUKkXMKrIi-cHK-XSOgrv-7JyzTA9o2DcbdQBvSP5azwBO1n8YCRSypDDxWroeHnu3yie5gI7Pm0l3yv_PqCtBWO6kXOtC42HKlNUw7U3kbVTyGO7xQ4FuSJdgfXGKnbHmKeVD2d00LlM1uXcdzvHzQ39hjfhYmCIotg1sWrtCY5RE45mQ=s233" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="233" data-original-width="197" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhkmsd1Npb8iUKkXMKrIi-cHK-XSOgrv-7JyzTA9o2DcbdQBvSP5azwBO1n8YCRSypDDxWroeHnu3yie5gI7Pm0l3yv_PqCtBWO6kXOtC42HKlNUw7U3kbVTyGO7xQ4FuSJdgfXGKnbHmKeVD2d00LlM1uXcdzvHzQ39hjfhYmCIotg1sWrtCY5RE45mQ=w169-h200" title="Colors of Honey" width="169" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A few of the different colors of honey.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Buckwheat honey is a darker variety of honey, known for its powerful and potent taste. It is produced by honeybees from a buckwheat plant. It can be found in the northern half of the United States.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Avocado honey is produced predominately in California. Avocado honey has a smooth yet bold flavor, similar in color, thickness and flavor to molasses.</span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgb86LRAAbaZ8Bpa6WgiRjFY7Og5owbuQDzaLFFbBP2Ds5jyHacCu3hLy_ISDBYiix4-VPTCtfBGrOqYQcRpfxiOKOlxLg3uHqS0l95uxgl7KlNw-XtfRLB7ZUtbliCW7g8SXe40ktC6Jr8LR4gHJB7aYqzYI1HFiKCWNPxGNoLTCg3c-nLWr7hJMxvLw=s1600" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgb86LRAAbaZ8Bpa6WgiRjFY7Og5owbuQDzaLFFbBP2Ds5jyHacCu3hLy_ISDBYiix4-VPTCtfBGrOqYQcRpfxiOKOlxLg3uHqS0l95uxgl7KlNw-XtfRLB7ZUtbliCW7g8SXe40ktC6Jr8LR4gHJB7aYqzYI1HFiKCWNPxGNoLTCg3c-nLWr7hJMxvLw=w400-h300" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An avocado tree where honeybees collect the nectar needed to make avocado honey. </td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">Orange blossom honey is made by honeybees mainly in Florida. Something that is unique about orange blossom honey is that it has a slight orange flavor to it. This is completely natural, as the flavor of orange is not artificially added. Most honeys that come from fruit producing flowers do not have the taste of that fruit, but orange blossom honey is unique. This honey is light amber in color.</span></div><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiryg_CyJJffO4ITQvrENagAmXAcaw7NZMPrUZ9ISbY1W2W4YqJ0hhYiAHqB4f7pgK6-GAyusBULXtf8Lj3i943KmtVzdFahjChurCxLH15VZ-I45X74In1rGvyzu-S0mmTFhzWnRRBg6XVpSmN2R60RA24aLJfpYQ0XNarawjIMQfJ-6yD__qruH5DTQ=s500" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="257" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiryg_CyJJffO4ITQvrENagAmXAcaw7NZMPrUZ9ISbY1W2W4YqJ0hhYiAHqB4f7pgK6-GAyusBULXtf8Lj3i943KmtVzdFahjChurCxLH15VZ-I45X74In1rGvyzu-S0mmTFhzWnRRBg6XVpSmN2R60RA24aLJfpYQ0XNarawjIMQfJ-6yD__qruH5DTQ=w257-h257" width="257" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Orange blossom honey with a sprig of orange blossom.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: verdana;">It is important to support the American honey industry. Honeybees have a vital role in agriculture, and the best thing a person can do to help the honeybees is to support the people who take care of them, the beekeepers!</span></div>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-9381238643502960962022-01-09T12:22:00.004-08:002022-01-17T12:42:23.824-08:002022 Representative Crowned in Las Vegas<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 15px;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">The new American Honey Queen was selected at the 2022 American Beekeeping Federation Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada.</span></span></p><div style="color: #333333; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgTOxov9GFU3sbzkm7oJNl1aZNlnu4apYsjrG2R6BYGPxk0TXpYENFz97kZ_6z1uI3T16zNKFPKj2dI43CgKU_1LpR3C2n5ZNS7Py4ilIgfVNEvBWefX87nJm7YUHhKuXd29lIJtndbkKQfzOzEm-AoJSZ2FmSgvGjPD8nsVW0FyT1Iv07QcScnU3ES7w=s5320" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5320" data-original-width="3796" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgTOxov9GFU3sbzkm7oJNl1aZNlnu4apYsjrG2R6BYGPxk0TXpYENFz97kZ_6z1uI3T16zNKFPKj2dI43CgKU_1LpR3C2n5ZNS7Py4ilIgfVNEvBWefX87nJm7YUHhKuXd29lIJtndbkKQfzOzEm-AoJSZ2FmSgvGjPD8nsVW0FyT1Iv07QcScnU3ES7w=s320" width="228" /></a></div></div><div style="line-height: 20px; text-align: center;"><div style="color: #333333; font-size: 15px; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;"><i>2022 American Honey Queen</i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: 15px;">Lucy Winn from Pennsylvania</span></span></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-size: 15px; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-size: 15px; text-align: justify;"><span style="background-color: white; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Congratulations! She will travel the United States promoting honey and beekeeping and post interesting articles about bees and honey along the way. Keep an eye out for the sweetest representative in America!</span></span></div></div>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-33902594561219854982022-01-01T05:00:00.002-08:002022-01-01T05:00:00.202-08:00Who Are Beekeepers?<p>This month, let’s learn about the people who take care of honey bees; Beekeepers!</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--01sbFfKRB0/YOTuL3L3muI/AAAAAAAACr4/X-Jpc5g1AwcfKFmkiMdkAUdPViugCu-iQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1920/beekeeper-3661762_1920.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1920" height="262" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--01sbFfKRB0/YOTuL3L3muI/AAAAAAAACr4/X-Jpc5g1AwcfKFmkiMdkAUdPViugCu-iQCLcBGAsYHQ/w393-h262/beekeeper-3661762_1920.jpg" width="393" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beekeepers are the caregivers of the beehive.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Hobbyist beekeepers generally have 1-25 hives. Some gather and use the honey for personal use while others may experiment with purifying beeswax to make cosmetics like makeup, lotions, and soap bars. Many hobbyists keep their bees in small city lots which helps to pollinate the flowers that we see at city parks, along the roads, and in our neighborhoods. Even though hobbyist beekeepers have relatively few hives, it still takes a lot of hard work to inspect the hives regularly in the hot summers and cold winters. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WXZQ7f-B92w/YOTuVr9lYBI/AAAAAAAACr8/J4xtAyEtjkMD1s2q9SckOND6i35CPwVYwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1920/farming-1537122_1920.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="1273" height="385" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WXZQ7f-B92w/YOTuVr9lYBI/AAAAAAAACr8/J4xtAyEtjkMD1s2q9SckOND6i35CPwVYwCLcBGAsYHQ/w255-h385/farming-1537122_1920.jpg" width="255" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beekeepers check their hives regularly to see how the bees are doing <br />and if they need any supplemental food.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>In contrast, Sideline and Commercial Beekeepers have hundreds and thousands of hives! These people manage beehives on a large scale to provide you and me fresh fruits, veggies, nuts, and even our clothes! All of these products are made possible by commercial beekeepers loading their beehives onto tractor-trailers and moving them across the country as the different crops bloom. Honey bees are very efficient pollinators, pollinating millions of flowers each day! They too work hard all year to help other farmers increase the quality and quantity of their crops. The next time you go to the grocery store or buy honey from a beekeeper, remember that one-third of the food that you eat was pollinated by a honey bee and that the beekeepers worked hard all year to give you this amazing product called honey. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LWvAAkE-gQk/YOTwBDK5jRI/AAAAAAAACsQ/aEw4PBlE8G0_OGlLZTKg2FUHVEkCXByHwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1008/IMG_4897.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="756" data-original-width="1008" height="354" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LWvAAkE-gQk/YOTwBDK5jRI/AAAAAAAACsQ/aEw4PBlE8G0_OGlLZTKg2FUHVEkCXByHwCLcBGAsYHQ/w472-h354/IMG_4897.JPG" width="472" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This Montana beekeeper loads his hives in preparation for crop pollination.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p><br /></p>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-63932417443282075592021-12-01T05:00:00.000-08:002021-12-01T05:00:00.198-08:00How do we use products from a hive?<p>Honeybees are quite amazing insects if you really think about it. Not only do they make it possible to have so many delicious fruits and vegetables but the products that they produce are used in so many different ways! The unique and diverse ways that these products are used my surprise you and who knows, you may even be already using them at home.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GqNe05xvXTw/YPDMJw-0VNI/AAAAAAAACsY/gXhCOqeIWT4dFjLgN5sZI3JIfVL5_Y88ACLcBGAsYHQ/s361/Bee-on-cucumber-flower.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="305" data-original-width="361" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GqNe05xvXTw/YPDMJw-0VNI/AAAAAAAACsY/gXhCOqeIWT4dFjLgN5sZI3JIfVL5_Y88ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Bee-on-cucumber-flower.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p><b>Health</b></p><p>What do you reach for when you feel a tingle in your throat? Make it your jar of honey or honey cough drops! Honey and propolis are found in many health products for the immune boosting properties found in them. Honey helps to naturally sooth a sore or scratchy throat. One product that you may not think of is pollen. Pollen is a great addition to your diet as it is high in protein and has many vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants found within the yellow, green, and orange pollen pellets collected by honeybees. This pollen can improve your imune system in addition to improving wound healing.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oZx8215NGNs/YPJd-dbHYeI/AAAAAAAACtc/q1kkqac12QAo21CRcVzhoGqszWFC_10UwCLcBGAsYHQ/s488/GUEST_33f334b6-721f-45c0-ab1e-d43ef028a649.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="488" data-original-width="488" height="273" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oZx8215NGNs/YPJd-dbHYeI/AAAAAAAACtc/q1kkqac12QAo21CRcVzhoGqszWFC_10UwCLcBGAsYHQ/w273-h273/GUEST_33f334b6-721f-45c0-ab1e-d43ef028a649.jpg" width="273" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p><b>Beauty</b></p><p>Beeswax can commonly be found in beauty products such as chapstick, lotion, makeup, and even hand creams. The properties in beeswax not only helps to lock moisture into the skin but can also help to draw additional moisture to the skin. Royal jelly is another product made by bees that can be found in beauty products. Typically you will see royal jelly in facial and hand creams for its believed benefits that it helps to reduce the signs of aging. But besides beeswax and royal jelly, honey can be found in hand soaps, hair masks, and body wash as honey not only adds moisture to skin and hair but it can also help to reduce inflamation of the skin. </p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FIfzBBNCnGc/YPJfD4R6hvI/AAAAAAAACtw/j1sieR4fHBUBNIv_nYvlfMyUEWnCkcKXACLcBGAsYHQ/s975/il_794xN.2593709347_209z.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="975" data-original-width="794" height="263" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FIfzBBNCnGc/YPJfD4R6hvI/AAAAAAAACtw/j1sieR4fHBUBNIv_nYvlfMyUEWnCkcKXACLcBGAsYHQ/w214-h263/il_794xN.2593709347_209z.jpg" width="214" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><b>Home Products</b></p><p>There are many uses of beeswax around the home! Making and using beeswax cloth wraps are a great alternative to plastic food storage bags if you are looking to wrap up some fruit or maybe a sandwhich. Not only is it reusable but it is also super easy to clean because beeswax repells water. The ability to repel water is a great reason to use beeswax to waterproof boots, clothing, tents, and equipment that you don't want to get wet. You may ocassionally see beeswax used in furniture and shoe polish or even applied to skis to help them glide. Firestarters are commonly found using beeswax to protect the firestarter from getting wet making it better able to handle the elements when camping. It can also be used to lubricate zippers, wooden drawers, instrument valves, or even grease your baking pans!</p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BgOYWggD-Y4/YPJfXtz00iI/AAAAAAAACuA/52mBLs4zAfEcnsMvWwHQ_KwbCMKyqAcjgCLcBGAsYHQ/s794/il_794xN.2174713660_jc9r.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="453" data-original-width="794" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BgOYWggD-Y4/YPJfXtz00iI/AAAAAAAACuA/52mBLs4zAfEcnsMvWwHQ_KwbCMKyqAcjgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/il_794xN.2174713660_jc9r.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p><p>We can utilize the products of the hives in so many different ways. But the fascinating aspect is that many of these products have been used for thousands of years! Try incorporating products from the hive into your health care and beauty routine or maybe try some of the home products featuring beeswax.</p>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5785711571581508325.post-86631968715081640252021-11-01T05:00:00.001-07:002021-11-01T05:00:00.182-07:00The Fascinating Languages of Honey Bees<p>Honey bees have many ways to communicate with each other. In this month’s article, we will cover how honey bees talk in the hive and communicate where food is!</p><p><b><br /></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Pheromones - The Honey Bees’ Perfume</span></b><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E4D3X3DfXDI/YOTsIOsL9NI/AAAAAAAACrw/V5oPv9M-HIgQ4wBxeWP76U6kCasnmo0HwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1024/img_3461.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="213" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E4D3X3DfXDI/YOTsIOsL9NI/AAAAAAAACrw/V5oPv9M-HIgQ4wBxeWP76U6kCasnmo0HwCLcBGAsYHQ/w354-h213/img_3461.jpg" width="354" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here a worker bee extends her abdomen to warn the colony of a threat.</td></tr></tbody></table></p><p>The first way honey bees communicate is through smell. The two main odors are for alarm and the queen bee. The alarm smell helps the guard bees to quickly tell the rest of the colony that an intruder is about to attack. The colony in response will come to that location to provide assistance to protect their hive. Generally, bees will respond to alarm pheromone only at or near the colony, not in the field. Honey bees also use this scent to help her sister locate the hive, food, and water. The queen bee produces a unique smell that tells the colony that all is well. If the queen were to die, that smell would be missing and the worker bees would begin to make a new queen from a female egg.</p><p>The mixture of pheromones plus the distinctive queen signature pheromone, mix with food odors to give each bee colony a distinctive hive odor.</p><p><br /></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Waggle Dances - Where’s the food?</span></b></p><p><b><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody style="background-color: white;"><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hs5pje9civQ/YOTrvYigG-I/AAAAAAAACro/wcuxYdO4KQ48PL4IeMrtEnKi-1S9xa88wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1642/intro-waggle-direction-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="514" data-original-width="1642" height="164" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hs5pje9civQ/YOTrvYigG-I/AAAAAAAACro/wcuxYdO4KQ48PL4IeMrtEnKi-1S9xa88wCLcBGAsYHQ/w526-h164/intro-waggle-direction-1.jpg" width="526" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Honey bees use the sun as a point of reference to find flowers.</td></tr></tbody></table></b></p><p>Honey bees communicate where resources are by performing a type of dance on the bee comb. When she first discovers a new field of flowers, she will remember exactly where it is in relation to the beehive. She takes a sample of the nectar back to the hive to share with her sisters. As she arrives back to the hive, she makes her way to the dancefloor, eager to tell the colony about the resource that she found! By moving in a figure-8 pattern at a specific angle on the comb, she tells the colony how far away the flowers are and which direction the bees should head. She will also wiggle her abdomen to show the quality of the nectar or pollen that she found.</p><p><br /></p>Kaelyn Sumner & Lainey Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02353248381911306439noreply@blogger.com0