Category Archives: Honey
2017: The Year in Bee Review
As 2017 draws to a close, let’s look back at the year’s best beekeeping stories. With lower honey prices in 2017, some beekeepers left the business and colony counts fell a little. Back in 2016, I reported that honey bees … Continue reading
Posted in Apitherapy, Bee Biology, Beekeeping, Culture, or lack thereof, Diseases and Pests, Friends, History, Hive Products, Honey, Honey Plants, Killer Bees, Movies, Outreach, People, Pesticides, Pollination, Queens, Save the Bees, Science
Tagged blogging
6 Comments
National “I Love Honey Day”
I’m not sure how serious this is, but someone somewhere has declared December 18 to be national I Love Honey Day. I’m not sure what we’re supposed to do. But here’s an idea: Go out and buy some honey. Even … Continue reading
Creamed Honey
I’ve written about ‘creamed’ honey before, but I think it’s time to mention it again. I don’t know what you call smooth honey – some folks call it creamed (though no dairy products are involved), spun (though no spinning is … Continue reading
Posted in Friends, History, Honey, Tools and Gadgets
Tagged American Bee Journal, creamed honey, Dyce, marketing honey, spun honey
16 Comments
Does the Truth Matter?
I’m back in Canada after a week in Europe. It’s cooler here (21C today) than Hungary’s 39C. It’s been much too dry on the western Canadian prairies – that’s probably going to hurt the honey crop and maybe even the … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, History, Honey, Outreach, Save the Bees
Tagged Canada, Einstein, honey, Hungary, King Tut
14 Comments
When Bees Become Culture
I’m in the central European country of Hungary for a few days. It’s a family visit with no work or particular sightseeing goals. But honey bee culture is everywhere. Perhaps only Utah (“The Beehive State”) and the little alpine nation … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Honey
Tagged beekeeping, Benny the Bee, Franz Liszt, Hungary, Maja the Bee, selling honey, Szeged
4 Comments
Are You Giving It Away?
A few days ago, I was shopping at our local co-op grocery store. As usual, I checked the price of honey. I like to use their prices as a minimum guide for honey produced by hobby beekeepers. Here in Calgary, … Continue reading
Shake, Rattle, Roll: Our Little Earthquake
I live in one of the less shaky parts of the world. I don’t think that Calgary has ever had a damaging earthquake. (Granted, the city isn’t much over a hundred years old, so it’s a short history.) When the … Continue reading
Posted in Friends, Honey, Queens, Science, Strange, Odd Stuff
Tagged beekeeping, Chile, earthquake
4 Comments
Billy Bee and Doyon – Canadian Honey Forever
Professional Canadian beekeepers know the names of honey packers Jack Grossman and Paul Doyon. Jack started Billy Bee Honey; Paul’s label was regional (mostly Quebec) and his product was/is called Miel Doyon. During the 1970s and 1980s, I sold honey … Continue reading
World’s Sweetest Honey
The April 2017 issue of the world’s best bee magazine (American Bee Journal) published a piece written by your favourite bee-blogger (me). My article is called America’s Sweetest Honey. In it, I describe why honey from different flowers tastes different. … Continue reading
Judgement Day for Aggie Days
Calgary (Alberta, Canada) has an annual “Aggie Days” with goat-milking, sheep-shearing, rope-making, corn-mazing, and bee-keeping on display. As our city becomes larger (about 1.2 million now) and less connected with its farming and ranching roots, it becomes almost a novelty … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Friends, Honey, Outreach
Tagged Aggie Days, Calgary Bee Club, honey judging
6 Comments
