Back At It - Summer Protein

-Posted by Isaac

Nose to the grindstone. While some beekeepers choose to fritter their summer away with vacations, it's nothing but Work Work Work around here. 

The bees have been hard at it, and me, I haven't had a break in like a week!

And what an awesome summer for honey production! If you remember, I mentioned going out to shake a frame before the Montana trip and finding the very beginnings of the of the summer honey flow. Well, the last three weeks have been amazing! Many hives have filled two, three, even four supers.

Strong bees and a strong nectar flow... almost makes you forget the cussing and complaining of last summer.

I bought a lot of new frames this year. And what a great decision that was. (A statement I don't get to make very often, unfortunately.) The bees have done an awesome job on the new stuff. Beautiful white wax, drawn out with the recent nectar flow.

Tip for beekeepers: Acorn foundation is superior to just about anything. (Even frames we waxed ourselves!)

It's not quite time for extracting. The nectar continues to come in, and most of the honey is not yet capped. So we wait. But we're not sitting around, oh no. We've actually been into one of the tougher jobs of the bee year-- feeding protein.

This is something that I've done in recent years, July and August, and I'm pretty sure it helps the bees immensely. I say "pretty sure," because it's kind of hard to quantify. A little protein now, when forage is scarce, may just be the ticket to taking full advantage of our wonderful goldenrod flow in mid-September. And it's not just a matter of making more fall honey. The bees seem to winter better also. They go into the cold months with a bigger cluster, more stored honey, more protein reserves, all of that.

At least I think I'm seeing this...    Or am I just trying to convince myself that it's worth all the trouble and money?

I had one big beekeeper (3500 hives) tell me that summer protein was effective at diluting all the systemic poisons coming in from corn pollen and neonic drift to whatever else. The neonics! (Months after planting, still protecting the American farmer!) (Thank you Bayer. Thank you Monsanto.)

Whatever you choose to believe, a little protein does seem to result in healthier hives.

But it is quite an expense. It is quite a bother. Not only is it hard work getting protein to the brood, the stuff needs to be kept cool if you're going to take a couple of months to feed it. Thankfully I'm in good with some rich produce farmers. Half of our boxes now sit in a 50 degree storage room. The other half will be fed in the next two weeks.

Back when I started feeding protein, we would mix big wheelbarrows full of protein powder, syrup, eggs, cinnamon, bananas, essential oils, honey, etc...

But lately I've gotten lazy. Most of the protein now goes down in pre-made patties. I'm thinking, just let the nutrition experts figure it out... and pay them a lot for being the "experts."

Plus, even without all the mixing, this job is hard enough. The protein needs to sit between the brood chambers, so you're out there in a bee suit, 90 degrees, sweating bullets, trying to get down three, four, five boxes to the brood. Hard work! Especially this year... we've got all this dang honey in the way!

I keep getting tagged in facebook pictures about the hard work of baling hay. We did a lot of hay during my growing up. Sometimes a thousand bales a day; I'd get feeling pretty exhausted. But this bee protein stuff, on a hot day, takes "exhausted" to a whole new level. Six or seven bee yards in eight or nine hours... it makes baling hay feel like a day on the beach.

(ISIS ain't a'gonna find this super.)

Is the protein necessary? I hope so. I want to tell myself it is...

At the very least, with the heat and expense, I have something to complain about. Without that, I'd be at a loss.

Montana III - Animal Whisperers

-Posted by Isaac

One more non-beekeeping post. For the two or three of you reading this blog and looking for bee advice, I am failing you yet again. But soon, I promise, soon back to the bees. For you other dedicated readers, another special treat from Glacier National Park! (Or scroll on to Jayne's honey zucchini bread if you want to learn something.)

This time we highlight the scenery and the "wildlife."

As I started to say in that last post, Glacier Park occupies a special little corner of my heart. The many experiences and memories build on one another. This trip was the Seth trip. His first time there, but unlike me, Seth has connections. On one of the days we found ourselves hiking with a group.

But most of the time it was just he and I and our hiking boots. Final tally, around 75 trail miles in four days! On every kind of terrain.

Snow and ice,

rock and water,

and mud...         I think Seth was preparing himself for bootcamp in a few weeks.

We had a surprising amount of rain.

"It really never rains in Glacier Park past, like, June 20th."                                                                                              -Our shuttle bus driver, one hour previous.

But it never lasted long. When the skies cleared, taking in the stunning views often required a food stop.

Seth had been hiking by that point for about a week. He was in Yellowstone a few days previous. I had flown into Bozeman to meet him. From there it's a five hour drive to Glacier Park. Plenty of time, plenty of stops to load up on trail food. Whatever we could dream up.

We carried with us quite an arsenal. Most, looking better than tasting....

And later, how to get rid of all that gut-churning gas station trail food? By taking in more great views, of course!

(Just fine, if you want to hold it for seven miles.)

Let's remember, this was still supposed to be a business trip, and all day spent on a mountain meant plenty of time to talk business. Mergers, acquisitions, hedge funds... you know... the business.

"What! Honeyrun stock down a quarter percent?!"                                                                                                             "Yer FIRED, Brumfield!"

Also, logging twenty miles or so in a day means you sleep really well that night. At least for me it does. And your sleeping arrangements really don't seem to matter. Two of the nights we slept under the stars. (Or under rain clouds.)

One night was spent in a teepee just south of the Canadian line. We stayed on the edge of a sprawling metropolis called Polebridge. 

The next morning we made our way downtown to find a Farmer's Market in full swing. (Traffic was horrendous.)

Between the trails, the business meetings, and the hustle of Polebridge city life, we never lacked for entertainment. Seth's friends even showed us what the locals do in lieu of a shower.

Nothing knocks the stink off ...                                                                                                                                                  Like Glacier Park run-off!

But it wasn't all fun and games. We had to be careful! (Play with caution!) One thing we were continually warned about was the possibility of running into a deer.

Oh sorry, I mean a bear.

I guess Glacier Park has a large number of bears apparently looking for food. And, according to some, we apparently qualify as food. Mmmm, delicious....

Thankfully a friend in Bozeman loaned us a can of bear mace.

Man oh man, did it come in handy! It's true, Glacier Park is filled with bears. They're everywhere!

...and boy are they fierce!

Microbear.          ...fresh brewed.

Huh? Wha? You no like my humor??

Ok, we really did see a bear. And we did (almost) literally run into it. (Long story.) We didn't have to use the loaner can of mace - Good. But in the hurry and surprise, I didn't have the presence of mind to get out my camera. - Bad.

But Seth, more experienced and professional in these matters, was fortunately quick on the draw. He managed to snap off three images, the best of which is right here:

NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY BY SETH                                                                                                                           Studios Open Soon!!

Is that a large dog? Seth? 

Really... a grizzly bear??  If you say so...         (They'll really believe that one.)

That was our one and only grizzly sighting. But we did manage to see quite a bit more wildlife. Some close encounters, I'm telling you! (See video)

At some point (maybe after blasting the squirrel) Seth declared ourselves "Animal Whisperers." His words, not mine...  Funny though, we did seem to be able to walk right up to the animals. They've got'em trained well in Glacier Park. Mountain goats, a herd of bighorn sheep, a mother ptarmigan and her baby chicks, jackrabbits, a pika (maybe), about a dozen squirrels and chipmunks, probably more than a dozen deer...

And this guy. In Ohio we call this a groundhog. And if you're a farmer, you reach for the 22 rifle. In Glacier Park it's called a marmot. And it practically lets you pick it up. Luckily I was on top of things with my camera. Very professional!

Speaking of wildlife...  Speaking of grizzly bears...

NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY BY SETH                                                                                                                        Studios Open Soon!!

Seth took this quick photo two seconds before the screams and pepper spray.

"Wait! Stop!," I said, "I'm just a hairy beekeeper!"

And then they really let me have it.

Thanks for joining in on my reliving of another fun trip. One last 30 second laugh for the road:

At one with nature-- The Animal Whisperers

Honey Zucchini Bread Recipe

-posted by Jayne

If you have a zucchini plant in your garden, chances are... you have too much zucchini in your life. You can only give so much of it away because your neighbors are likely having the same conundrum.  Too much zucchini... lots of honey?  Make a honey zucchini bread with honey!  I found this recipe in my New York Times cooking app (my favorite!).  It was a hit, even with my kids!

INGREDIENTS

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
½ teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
 Salt to taste if desired
3 eggs
1 cup safflower, corn or peanut oil (I used canola because it was all I had)
1 cup honey
2 cups grated zucchini, about 3/4 pounds whole
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional- I left them out since I knew my kids wouldn't like it)

PREPARATION

Heat oven to 325 degrees.
Sift flours, baking powder, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon and salt into mixing bowl. Beat eggs in another mixing bowl and add oil and honey. Fold in zucchini.
Fold zucchini mixture into flour mixture. Blend well. Stir in nuts.
Lightly oil 2 loaf pans, each measuring 8 1/2 by 4 1/2 by 2 1/2 inches. Divide batter between them. Place loaves in oven and bake 1 hour. Let cool briefly before removing from pan.

Montana III - Glacier

-Posted by Isaac

I know. The vacationing is getting a bit ridiculous. Although I still haven't quite reached the one per month goal, I'm getting close. Tough gig, this beekeeping.

With every sneaky trip like this one, I feel just that much guiltier.... I really, very much really do owe my beautiful, loving, intelligent, patient, kind and generous wife. This time I brought her some huckleberry soap. Think that'll do it?

So this little business trip was for Seth. He's leaving us in two weeks. And we're going to miss him... the perfect beekeeper combination of smart thinking and dumb muscle.

Where is he going? Well, from what I understand, he's off to some kind of government job. Something about "Aiming High."   I really don't know.

This was his retirement-for-now party.

We left the bees in good standing. The day before flying out, I made it to a couple out yards. I wanted to check mite levels, but mainly I was curious about the summer nectar flow. After that fantastic spring crop, the frames had been bone dry for at least a month. Just popping lids and watching activity, I could see things had changed. Shaking a frame, this is what I found:

The summer flow begins!!

It's nice to leave in a good mood.

Those of you who have been to Glacier know the special beauty of the place. Seth is a hiker, hunter, outdoorsy type. A few days in the park would make a nice sending off, as he is about to embark on a six year stint of defusing bombs.

One last chance to be a hippie.

If you're a wildflower person, northern Montana this time of year is like walking through fireworks.

Funny thing though. We hiked through miles of flowers, but I didn't see a single honey bee. Lots of insects, a few bumblebees, but none of the honey making variety. All the while our bees back home were pulling in loads and loads of summer nectar from our Ohio countryside. Summer blooms, wild and monocrop both.

A couple posts back, I got badmouthing Yellowstone Park because of the crowds. Glacier, in July especially, has a little of that too. Seth, always advertising, thought he could drum up business on Logan Pass. 

Check out the vintage "wood paneled" minivan.

But for the most part, on the back trails, over the mountain passes, we had the place to ourselves. I'll share some stories and a little of what we did on the next post.

For now, let's stick to the business side of the trip. We were able to see one big Montana operation. Here you can see hives placed on canola. 168 of them to be exact. In the background is the canola. Miles of rolling hills covered in yellow bloom. The bees had just been placed, supers were soon to follow.

It's a mutual love between canola farmers and beekeepers. In so many other cases the beekeeper is paid to bring bees in. The farmer needs the pollination, but the bees don't make much in the way of honey. Canola is different. The plant is a big nectar producer. I've seen bees on canola with supers stacked head high. Canola means honey!

And 168 hives, all with heavy honey laden supers stacked to the sky, for this big beekeeper means a:

A fistful of Benjamins for this Montana bee operation. It's big business.

Next up: animal encounters in Glacier National Park.

Whoo Hoo! Spring Honey!

-Posted by Isaac

Happy Fourth of July! Hope you're having a wonderful holiday.

Even with the rain, we had some fun. We made it over to my brother's place and celebrated our independence with the fish.

But this has been one of the few slow days in quite a while. In fact, the last month has been a whirlwind. A flood of spring honey.

The bees did great!

Better than ever. Tons and tons of beautiful white spring goodness! The best honey you've ever tasted, and so much of it! This year the stars aligned perfectly. A warm March meant early splits and early splits meant big hives by mid-May. Mid-May here in central Ohio means honey production!

Yard after yard...   The truck filled...

The extractor filled...

The big new bulk tank filled...

The barn itself filled...

And filled....                      Wow!

The honey is gorgeous.  

Lighter than last year's spring crop. There was more of an influence from the black locust bloom this year. Still not quite as clear as a celebratory bottle of wine... but I'd take the honey any day!

It was such a great harvest, we've decided to go wholesale (at least in the smaller sizes.) A few groceries have already picked it up. I snapped a quick shot here at the Giant Eagle Market District in Grandview. What a contrast with the fall goldenrod...

And don't forget about the wonderful byproduct of all this honey making. Lots of honey means lots of wax.

Our wax wall grew and grew over the month of June. It will all be turned into candles by Christmas. (Thanks to Katie.)

About the middle of the month, we had three birthdays to celebrate. The honey work came to a stop for a few hours and we had ourselves a June Thanksgiving. Our little turkeys fought over the pop. (They're allowed a pop once in a blue moon.)

(Seth advertises constantly.)

There are presently 37 bee yards that produce this beautiful spring honey. But that's not all of the bees. As some of you know (you dark honey lovers) we have more bees down in the hills. About 50 more hives in three locations, produce the rich dark tulip poplar honey that some of you have come to love.

You never know how these bees are going to fare. It's a mystery down in the woods. Last year was pretty bad. Too much rain. This year I pulled into this pollination yard south of Bainbridge, lo and behold, I was greeted with a good sign:

Two of the pallets I placed the hives on had buckled! This could only mean one of two things-- crappy pallets... or... honey, honey, honey!

The bees did not disappoint. We have plenty of tulip poplar!

It was a shock and surprise to see the big honey hose turn dark after three weeks of see-through locust honey.

Still not enough to wholesale, but plenty by far to keep the farmstand shelves stocked for another year.

And enough to satisfy you farm market connoisseurs.

Enjoy the fireworks! Tomorrow the sun comes back, it's going to be 86 degrees, and it's back to work. (For all of us.)