Market Line-Up:
- Honey
- Creamed Honey
- Baklava
- Micro Tomatoes
- Homemade Soaps and Beeswax Products
Creamed Honey
We were all ready for the Farmer’s Market last Saturday in the rain to debut our brand new Creamed Honey, but then Gracie, our little Yorkie, dislocated her knee. The local vet tried to put it back in place, but it would not stay. She will need surgery in Charleston as soon as possible.
BUT: our creamed honey is delicious, and we cannot wait for you to try it.
On the weekend of the 16th, we went to the SCBA annual Bee Conference in Greenville, SC, for George to take his Journeyman Bee Exam, and he passed! We are so proud of both him and friend Karen from the Blackwater Beekeeping club for passing this tough exam.
On to Master Beekeeper!
The conference held some very interesting speakers; the keynote speaker was Dr. Jörg Mayer, a Professor of Zoological Medicine in the Department of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery at the University of Georgia College. He was a treat, very animated and entertaining. We liked him very much. He spoke a lot about probiotics and gave us all lots to think about.
We also had the privilege of hearing from apiarists and authors, Theresa Martin and Dr. Tammy Horn Potter, pictured here. From my standpoint, I loved hearing from women in the field who are so knowledgeable. Dr. Potter has traveled all over the world studying honeybees.
Apiarist Theresa Martin is bravely going against the grain of traditional beekeeping and exploring new techniques. She has outstanding success rates in keeping her bees alive and healthy, producing tons of honey. She shared some technology and techniques that she uses to help her as a solo beekeeper.
Local News
The highlight of news from our locals was Brad Cavin from Clemson on the Yellow-Legged Hornet (YLH). It’s spreading over the Lowcountry and may get here before we know it. This man has been working like crazy to eradicate an insect that has the potential to ruin our local pollinators and honeybees.
The YLH has three nest types: a tiny Embryo nest made by just the queen to lay her initial eggs between Jan. and Mar. Then once those workers emerge, a Primary nest is built between May and June. Finally, in Aug and Sept, a huge final Secondary nest is built.
Some key takeaways from his talk:
- They are opportunistic in that they can make their nests in birdhouses and containers lying around your yard.
- Folks need to look around their house and outbuildings. One person had a Secondary nest on the ledge of his house for three months before reporting it. Said he never saw it. I’m guilty of not looking up sometimes too.
- Do not ever try to kill or break down a nest on your own; there are people for this, there is a Clemson reporting tool, and doing this improperly will just make them move to another place.
- Do not even swat or kill what you think is a YLH. The key to finding hidden nests is to track their flight patterns.
- Take a photo of what you think is a YLH. They will not investigate without one because there are too many look-alikes. And he does not have the staff to investigate or even get back to you about one that is not a threat. (Just look at how tired he is)
We are proud and a little scared that he has an article in the New York Times about this hornet, but you may need to purchase a membership if you do not have one already.
♥Bee Happy♥
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