New Beeswax Candle Designs!

-posted by Jayne

Back in 2013, Isaac wrote a blog post about how we render beeswax from hive cappings into these huge blocks pictured below, and eventually into beeswax candles.  If you missed it, you might want to check it out here.  

It gives a great overview of what becomes of the wax as a by-product of honey extraction, and the process we take to get it to the finished product.  Today, I'd like to show you 3 new candles designs available in our online store.  

I can't resist a morel mushroom.... So when I saw these new designs available from my favorite candle mold provider, I had to snatch them up.  I am an avid morel mushroom hunter in the Spring, so it seemed like a necessity to have this little reminder, year round, of good things to come in the Spring..  

This next one is called "Woodland Bliss" Pillar.  Isn't she a beauty?

And last, we have a set of 3 pinecones.  My fourth style of pinecone candle.  You can never have enough pinecones....  

We've already seen an increase in candle sales, as customers are buying them for hostess gifts, Thanksgiving centerpieces, and early Holiday shopping.  Candle making is one of my favorite jobs here at Honeyrun Farm, so I'd like to offer up a huge "thank-you" to all the customers who keep me busy pouring wax and creating new candles for you to enjoy!  

Thank God, it's finally over!

-Posted by Isaac

We're done! Last of the fall honey! Done!

What's that? Oh, you thought I meant the election? Well, true, thank God that rotten thing is over also. But let's please stick to more important matters.

Like pulling the last of the goldenrod honey:

Yesterday, bright and sunny, I finished up with the last two yards by mid-afternoon.

Today the last frames are run through. The last of the honey is spun out.

The last drums are filled. The last of the wax is rendered.

The last supers are stacked and stored.

This week marked the end of the liquid feeding.

And the last of the pollination hives came out of the pumpkins.

At Lohstroh Family Farms the bees did a great job... producing cattle feed.

This week capped off the productive part of the year. But as you may know, bee work never ends, it only changes.

And oh yes, now back to that other big event.

We were not so busy that we couldn't get out to preform our civic duties.

As Bridger is indicating, I tend to throw my vote to the Green Party. (Throw away my vote...?)

But this year, things were different. It was nasty. It was rotten. It was divisive. It was hard fought. I kept hearing that the future of our nation hinged on my decision.

So... being male, being white... being uneducated and living in the Midwest, I elected to cast my support to a proven winner.

Hey, 3.2% ain't bad!     (If you're playing Powerball.)

Boom! That's right! The Libertarian Party- cleaning up with over three times the Green vote! Go back to your twigs! Go back to your straw houses, Green Girl!

And now here we are. The aftermath. Picking up the pieces in a brave new world. Backward or forward, we continue to climb that step stool of social justice.

In some ways, life seems just the slightest bit more interesting.

And in other ways, I'm reminded of my favorite Who song- Because there's nothing in the street... looks any different to me...

I'll pick up my guitar (hive tool) and play.

Just like yesterday.

Then I'll get on my knees and pray...

We don't get fooled again!

Promoting Local Honey

-Posted by Isaac

This week, amidst the honey pulling, soap making, honey extracting, feeding, treating and winterizing of bees, amidst the trick-or-treating, parent-teacher conferencing, boy scouting, basketballing, piano lessons and library run-around of kids... we were invited to do something special. We got a sneak preview of a new honey store!

THE HONEY HOUSE has a grand opening this weekend. It's an artsy little place in downtown Grove City right across from the new library. Jim and Cindy, long time beekeeping friends took the leap.

Jim North has been a bee mentor of mine for years. He still runs bees for bulk honey production and pollination here in central Ohio, but I guess he's decided to get a taste of the retail side of things. 

CIRCLE BEE APIARIES is his honey business, and of course takes center stage in the new store.

I counted a least four shades of honey. Which, as you know, can happen right here in Ohio- Spring, summer, fall seasons, and just south in the woodsy part of the state, Jim has yards producing tulip poplar and blackberry honey.

There was also some nice looking fall pollen on display, along with a lot of artwork. (For sale, I assume.) What would you give for that awesome self portrait?

Some bee garb, and HONEY HOUSE garb...

And of course, the fancier stuff-- some bee-themed pottery, comb honey, chunk honey, and our very own infused and cinnamon honey.

Looks like they're going make a go of selling Jayne's soap!

And one of the coolest things- do-it-yourself bottling tanks! Light, medium and dark honey available, truly LOCAL honey. Use the quart or pint jars provided, or simply bring your own container and load up on as much as you want. They've got a scale to price it.

THE HONEY HOUSE in the old part of Grove City. Come check it out!

Ok, enough about Jim North. 

Back to Honeyrun Farm. I thought I would add a little more to this post-- show you another store doing an awesome job of promoting local honey.

This is the grand honey display in the Giant Eagle Market District on 3rd Ave:

Look at that! Wow! Talk about selling honey!

Very awesome display...

And that's just the honey. There are other displays for other local products scattered throughout the store. This store is truly doing something special.

Even before you walk in, you're greeted with a Wall of Local-- 

David and Chris, managers at this Market District, took me out to show off their wall. I was flattered and happily surprised. There we were, Honeyrun Farm, sandwiched between the famous Warren Taylor of Snowville and the beautiful, charismatic Dara Schwartz of Darista Dips. (To whom we sell honey.) What a treat! What an honor!

Promoting local- Come check it out!

Honeyrun Happenings

-Posted by Isaac

About 10 days ago we had a beautiful fall wedding.

 Mrs. Becky and Mr. Justin Tilley with help from a slew of flower children.

Everyone jumped on hay wagons and rode down to the stream. The ceremony was held under the yawning limbs of a giant sycamore.

And guess who presided?

That's right. My lovely wife. Her talents reach far beyond simply keeping a honey business afloat. If the need arises, she can marry you off!

No sooner were the "I do's" said, and off she went.

Now I follow her west coast adventures on Facebook.

She's in Oregon at the moment. "Wine hopping" with friends. Sounds fun doesn't it?

And here I sit. Left to push this here plow by myself. Four hungry kids and a crop in the field. Overlooked, underappreciated. 

Like a trounced old workhorse.

Like a beatdown mule.

A plodding old donkey.

Or maybe just a jackass...

"VOTE for JACKASS!"

Yes, politics have taken the day here in Pickaway county. I'm not sure it's good for our business, but some folks just seem to live for this.

Facebook fighting is way up. And so are family arguments. And non-family arguments.

Liquor sales are through the roof. Right along with firearms and ammunition.

I hear appointments with divorce lawyers need to be reserved months in advance.

Yes, the once sleepy town of Circleville has become a bastion of unruly and mutinous political propaganda. Signs everywhere you look, threats, warnings and insults. Cluttering your mailbox, your streets, your eyes, your ears... riotous elementary kids pedaling around to campaign signs, seek and destroy, debasing, vandalizing... 

Absolute lawlessness!

(Hilarious or ominous?)        No more whistling in Mayberry.

Thankfully, out in the county we can remove ourselves from all that. Turn off the radio! We've got work to do.

The fall honey pull began two weeks ago and will continue right on into November. It's not like last year where every super was caked with beautiful goldenrod honey, but it's not bad either. I can't complain. Just about the time we least needed it, we had a solid week of rain. But still, the bees found a way. Not all, but enough boxes look like this...

Goldenrod honey = bright yellow wax 

...to make for some happy days in the bees.

In the evenings we prepare ourselves for winter...

Look at those muscles!

...but more importantly, we've got to get our girls ready for winter. 

And most are looking pretty darn ready.

A few hives need to put on some weight before it gets too cold. Not many warm days remain where the bees can take down syrup. Eat up girls!

Speaking of few days remaining, you've only got one more weekend to get to an outdoor market. Worthington moves inside in November, and the North Market just plain ends. (For us.) We're becoming soft. We used to go into December.

Without my lovely wife, I set up both markets this last weekend. It was quite the early start. We beat everybody! Here's the Honeyrun tent at 6:30 AM:

Take that James Barr!

It's funny, I always get asked this. At least three or four times a year, especially in the fall. People seem to like the honey that corresponds with the season we're in. They start sampling, taste the spring, summer, fall, then look around a bit confused, and ask (straight faced) if they can try some winter honey.

Because I'm a nice guy, I respond (straight faced) with the proper answer: We're sold out.

"Yeah, it's in high demand right now. Can't keep it in stock."

"Really! What's it like??"

"Well, it's really dark. And tastes a bit like black licorice."

"I can bring some next week if you want. But it's a bit pricy...

...you know how it is, such high demand and very limited production... at $20 an ounce we're practically giving it away. Consider that a steal!"

Is this too much? The answer, I mean, not the price. A little wily perhaps; not fulfilling my role as honey ambassador?

Instead, a crafty clown?

A sly coyote?

A slick Willy?

Or maybe just a con...

"SHOW ME the MONEY!"

Pollen season

-Posted by Isaac

Bee pollen: Oh, so good!

And good for you too!

Although it would make an interesting blog post, I'm not going to filibuster about the marvelous benefits of pollen. If you are buying pollen, you probably already know.

This is a post to show how we collect it. The pollen traps finally came off today, so it's at the forefront of my mind. Looking through my phone, I was able to scrape together several good pollen images from the last two months.

Back in August, I put the pollen traps on.

It's a real pain. As you can see, the hives have to be taken all the way down, then the trap goes on top of the bottom board. It takes a day to place seventy some traps. Not a day I look forward to.

The bees don't like it much either. They'll search for any possible hole or crack to avoid going through that trap.

The first few trips around, following the placement of the traps, we plug holes. It helps to have a veil for this. (Lesson learned the hard way.)

When the bees collect flower pollen, they carry it back to the hive on their two back legs. (pollen sacs) The pollen trap has a couple screens that the bees navigate. In doing so, some of the pollen gets rubbed off and falls into a tray. This tray is then pulled out from the back of the trap.

We don't take all their pollen. A trap is not the most efficient tool. An estimated third to half the pollen still gets through. Plus, the traps are only on for about two months, August through mid-October.

Like milking the cows, pollen collection is a job that needs done every day. Or at the very least, every other in the humid climate we have in mid-Ohio. If left out there too long, it starts to mold. 

Just like honey, the pollen colors and tastes change as the season rolls on. When the traps are placed in August, everything is yellow and brown from the ragweed and various clovers.

The days go by and it changes. The yellow fades out, the orange comes in-- Goldenrod!

Once the bees are used to the traps and they're happily on a honey flow, you can pretty much do the pollen route in a t-shirt.

Pretty much.... but not always.

Maizy was my pro photographer for the above shot. Everything was fine until I accidentally pinched a bee. The alarm pheromone was out! By the time I made it back to the truck, I had taken five stings. And Maizy had locked the doors.

Jayne helped with a pollen run every so often. Unlike me, she learns from past experience, and decided that this year she wasn't taking chances. 

Only one person gets to wear a pearly white bee suit-- the boss.

It's takes about an hour and a half to make it through a pollen run. Some yards are back long lanes, some are behind locked gates. And if you forget the key, well...

When the goldenrod was really kicking, we could collect about a third of a bucket per bee yard.

Over two months, it really adds up.

Which is good, because a couple of the juice bars (Zest, Alchemy) are really making some big orders. Bee pollen- Oh, so metro!

And oh, so delish!