Curly Girl Farm

-posted by Jayne

Today I want to tell you a bit about one of our retail partners, Curly Girl Farm. In this case, “retail partner” is just a fancy word for “a friend from college who sells our honey.” Kristen Baughman, fellow Wittenberg grad, is the “curly girl” referenced in her farm name. At the farmer’s market in Zanesville, she quickly became known as the “farmer with the curly hair” and thus changed her farm name from “Kristen’s Old Fashioned Produce” to “Curly Girl Farm.”

Kristen sells quite a bit of our honey (as you can see by her enormous honey display below). If you ever find yourself just east of Zanesville on State Route 40, you should stop by and check it out.

Kristen is the type of person that is always busy with a new project or a idea. She hosts flower arranging parties at her house, allowing her guests to wander through her fields and select any flowers they want to create their own arrangments.

She grows multitudes of fresh tomatoes using organic methods.

Pumpkins and squash are another specialty. She can tell you all sorts of fun facts about the different varieties and their best uses. (although decorating is always my favorite use for them!)

Kristen throws a pretty awesome “Hoe-Down” each fall, complete with pie eating contests, an apple-butter stir, and the best potluck I have the pleasure of attending.

Since farming slows down by the beginning of November, Kristen finds time to head over to Honeyrun Farm for 3 days a week to help me stay caught up with our holiday orders. Last year, I put her in charge of making the beeswax Christmas ornaments you see here.

If you can’t tell by now, I have a lot of admiration and respect for Kristen. Which is why I felt pretty bad about my “friendship skills” a few weeks ago when Kristen, myself, and my other friends Becky and Angie went hiking in the Hocking Hills. We have this annual tradition of taking a backpacking trip each fall. (pictured below was our inaugural trip to Dolly Sods, WV).

Left to Right: Kristen, Angie, Becky, and I

A few weeks ago we were getting started on a hike into the woods near Becky’s cabin, which sits just a few miles from Old Man’s Cave. There was no trail… we were making our own trail, as the land is covered with beautiful waterfalls and rock formations. It wasn’t long after I stepped into the woods that I felt this horrible stinging sensation. My first thought was stinging nettles (but they hurt more than any stinging nettle I had ever felt before). My second thought was that I was in some sort of magical, painful, forest similar to the Hunger Games. (I am not even joking… this thought went through my head). I screamed and ran, because the pain was becoming so intense. I didn’t bother to look behind me and see that Kristen had fell onto the ground. My “flight” response had taken over and I was running for protection. It wasn’t until I reached Becky’s cabin that I realized we had been attacked by a yellow jacket nest! We were a panicked hysterical mess, to say the least. The yellow jackets had even followed us into the cabin and were still attacking us. My grand idea was to jump in the shower with my clothes on… because… you remember… all those cartoons we watched as kids that showed characters jumping into water to escape the swarm of angry insects?! It only kind of worked. Mostly because the majority of yellow jackets were still in the next room attempting to sting Kristen, Becky, and Angie. We decided we had to leave due to the amount of aggressive yellow jackets still in the cabin, so we headed for the local gas station to try to create a poultice of baking soda/water. We brought a new wave of hysteria into a normally very sober gas station environment. The man next to us was casually ordering gas for pump 2 while we frantically explained to the next cashier that we had been attacked by yellow jackets and needed baking soda and ibuprofin STAT. Luckily, none of us had an allergic reaction and we all were fine. We ended our trip with greasy food and drinks at the local favorite, JimBo’s Tavern in South Bloomingville.

The moral of this story? Well…. first of all, if you ever want to know whether you have more of a “fight” or “flight” response to a threat…. you will find out if you stumble upon a nest of yellow jackets. And next time you stumble upon a hive of “bees” in your wall or barn, you can refer to this handy guide before calling us:

You do what with that black stuff?

-posted by Jayne

Activated Charcoal. It’s gaining popularity these days for a variety of home remedies and skin issues. Made from coal, wood, or other natural substances, it can be used to remove toxins and drugs from the body. I spotted it in a soap about 8 years ago when I was traveling and visiting a farmer’s market, so I decided to try it in a recipe for myself. After creating just one batch I was hooked, as were our customers. Our activated charcoal soap has become our second best-selling bar of soap (the first being Lemongrass). Pictured below is a bit of our soap making process-- the last step- cutting it into bars.

An 8 lb. block of soap ready to cut into two logs of soap.

Isaac fashioned this log cutter from a guitar string. We have used this for the past 11 years.

The individual bar cutter- cuts the logs into 3.8 oz bars.

At the Lithopolis Honeyfest a few weeks ago one of our friends (a fellow Scioto Valley Beekeeper Club member) came to our booth and said he was going to buy a bar of our soap for the very first time and wanted to know which one I would recommend. I told him about our two best-sellers, and asked if he was aware of the many uses of Activated Charcoal. He looked at me kinda funny and said, “Well, I’ve heard that some people use it in their pants….”

I was a little puzzled at first, but then I remembered reading the reviews on Amazon when I bought my first bag of Activated Charcoal, and started laughing. Some people actually put activated charcoal in their underwear to dispel the smell of their gas. There is even a product on amazon called “Subtle Butt: disposable gas neutralizers.” I’ll let you follow that link if you need a good laugh… and be sure to read the reviews.

I regret to tell you- he ultimately settled on the Lemongrass soap and left our Activated Charcoal soap for the next (more adventurous) customer. Is that you? If so, you’re in luck. I have our Activated Charcoal with Rosemary and Eucalyptus Soap on sale until Monday at 5 p.m. Normally $4.50 a bar, I have it marked down to $3.00 (this discount is available online only).

And if you’re wondering why you’re getting a post from Jayne and not Isaac- I’m giving him a break as he is recovering from his Ultra race this past weekend. He ran the Vermont 50 Mile Run in 7:33:19. The hilly course had a 9000 foot vertical, so he is a little sore. 4th place! And he was 1st in the masters category so we were rewarded with some maple syrup and a shiny medal.

Next week on the blog: Stay tuned for a tribute to a few of our partners that sell our products in locations around Ohio.

A cabin in the hills

-Posted by Isaac

About a year ago, we bought this 1800’s cabin down in the Hocking Hills. To say the least, the place was what you’d call a fixer-upper. Jayne fell in love with the rustic nature of it and the quiet of the surrounding hills. I kind of liked the 13 acres it sat on. Considering how close to Old Man’s Cave it was (9 miles) and how close to Logan (5 miles), we thought we were getting a real steal. Looking back, I think we were pretty naive.

It had four apple trees and two peach trees in the front yard. When we bought the place they were full of ripened fruit. We figured at the very least, we could feed our children.

First and foremost we bought the place as an investment with the intention of making this a business. We have friends in the cabin rental business, and I guess we took the bait…

If you’re at all interested in staying, it’s ready! Sleeps six. Jayne got us online just this week.

But aside from making another business, inventing more work for ourselves, the thinking was that we could also enjoy it. When we’re not busy in the bees or the honey house, our family would spend a lot of time hiking and milling around in the Hocking Hills. We thought having a little intermittent getaway down there would be great for the kids and more relaxing for the parents. Haha.

As the weeks wore on, it became apparent that we were in over our heads.

I had the Bobcat down there at least four times on various projects.

Fixing and cleaning. And more fixing. And more cleaning.

Yes, we were grateful for the boundless efforts of our children.

We had to basically gut the place, taking out the floor, building new walls, straightening beams…

By winter, still feeling in over our heads, the decision was made to hire a contractor.

Chuck Fleming was the man! Chuck is a self-proclaimed “hillbilly” that doesn’t do “computer s*%+"…but he certainly does know how to fix up a crooked house.

After Chuck came along, things really began to take shape.

I wish I had more “before and after” pictures. Here’s one I found of the old kitchen:

And here’s the new:

Plenty of “after” pictures…

The new living room:

The new music room (TV room):

The bathroom:

The kid’s bedroom:

The yard and barn also got a facelift.

We still need a coat of paint on the barn, but just about a week ago, I finished a fire pit…

…while Jayne hung out in the hot tub and enjoyed the view.

Hanging out, enjoying the view, soaking the nature, hiking the hills, savoring the peace… it’s been a long year in the making, but I’m happy to say we can finally do some of these things.

And you can too! Come check it out. Bring the family. It’s ready to rent as of Oct. 11th. You can reserve it by contacting our cabin rental company, Good Earth Cabins. https://www.goodearthcabins.com/ Or you can give them a call and request to stay at the Calico Ridge Cabin: 740-385-3795.

September rally

-Posted by Isaac

Starting with the Honeyfest, September is the month for festivals. We all have our favorites. Here’s one in southern Ohio that our family will never miss:

…As long as our kids are young. It’s great free entertainment. We go for the music and the bouncy houses. And of course the pawpaw food and pawpaw beer.

It’s more of an Earth loving, science loving, hippie, peacenik crowd. The first thing I like to do is research the parking lot.

Most years we camp with our hippie friends.

And we enjoy hippie things like pollinator appreciation.

But the Pawpaw isn’t the only rally for pollinators. Not to be outdone, the Farm Science Review just north of London holds its own brand of science and pollinator appreciation. Later in the week, we made our way to a small green oasis in the middle of the Big Ag extravaganza.

We hear all the time about how we need our pollinators and how honey bees account for about a third of the food we eat… but in the midwest they certainly don’t account for a third of the Ag economy. Around here, Corn is King.

It’s a corn driven economy, and that becomes very evident at the Farm Science Review.

It takes big machines to handle all that corn. We see the future on display at London, and we see the present on our drive there. Corn is most definitely King.

It was somewhat empty at the FSR this year.

Partially because the farmers were all in the fields. Harvest has come early to central Ohio. But another more ominous reason for the lack of attendance was the present price of the commodity. When corn falls below $3.00/bushel, basically below the price of production, farmers are not quite as interested in looking at shiny new machines.

Not even shiny new monster trucks.

I’ve had my criticisms of Big Ag before, and as you may know it’s landed me in hot water. I won’t go there this time. Let’s just hope that the price of corn goes up. It’s scary that so much of our food production lifestyle here in Ohio depends on communications with the world. A lot hinges on the Big Ag economy.

Plus, Lord knows, we all need to eat. And communicate.

Speaking of eating… speaking of good eating… the goldenrod continues to be fantastic! Our bees are getting fat.

Just look at that pollen!

On the pollen runs this week, it was all I could do to keep up. Every other day the traps needed emptied.

Between the running and collecting, I plugged away with the mite treatment. Finished up with the last yard yesterday out at Circle S Farms.

I dropped these bees in early August and was happy so see that they did their job. Pumpkins everywhere! It was hard not to trip. I was even happier to see that most of the hives had also made a box of honey.

Some lucky years, if the stars aline and the weather is perfect, we get to double dip with the pumpkin pollinators. Hey, we’ll take it. Better for the bottomline. No, that’s not pumpkin honey. Judging from the smell, I’m guessing that the bees found the goldenrod in nearby Battelle Darby Metro Park.

We’ve got bees in five different pumpkin locations. As it’s not my normal route between yards, usually I’m able to see something new or different on the drive. This time, sightseeing on my way home, I couldn’t help but stop to admire the showcase of some true patriots.

Is that a threat or a promise?

Had to stop the truck for this one. I really wanted to capture that big Confederate flag in its full glory, but the wind wouldn’t cooperate. After a few long seconds of photo taking on the sly, it occurred to me that these folks were most likely very strong supporters of the Second Amendment. I’d best get a move on.

Luckily I didn’t see a soul.

Maybe they were all at the rally?

Fair Weather Beekeeping

-Posted by Isaac

What a wonderful week!

But it didn’t start very wonderful. Cold, wet, clammy, the bees were nasty. I was on a mission of mite treatment.

This involves splitting every hive body,

checking brood and colony health, then putting the acid pads in. You can see how much the bees appreciate that acid.

It’s a quick job. I almost got 600 done in four days. And it’s also a necessary job… mite-free bees in September should equate to healthy hives in the winter. But it’s not a fun job. Especially when it’s cold and the foragers are all hanging around with nothing to do. When I pop the lid and start splitting boxes, they quickly discover a purpose in life: sting the crap out of that guy!

I took quite a few stings on Monday and Tuesday. And the bees were so angry hitting my veil, I could barely hear the radio. It was obnoxious.

Treating a yard takes about 20 minutes, but it’s not a hard thinking 20 minutes. Sometimes I like to live in my mind, but this week, what with the hurricane and the politics, I opted for the truck radio. It’s sort of fun to do a yard with Ari Shapiro (NPR), then do the next yard with Rush Limbaugh.

No, it’s more than fun. It’s an experiment in human psychology— same news… but pick the universe you’d like to inhabit.

mmm… maybe that doesn’t quite describe it. Yesterday I was telling sister Becky about my station flipping antics. She summed it up nicely— “Isn’t it just the difference between fact and fiction?”

Yes, that’s another way of putting it…

By Tuesday afternoon, things started to look a little better.

This week was the first of the goldenrod! By Wednesday, with a little sun in the recipe, the orange pollen started to flood in. And so too the nectar.

When the bees are drying goldenrod nectar, you smell it from a distance. A warm, musty, dirty-sock aroma that you instantly recognize from ten or fifteen feet away. It’s lovely.

Early in the week, with the smell just barley wafting, I shook a frame. A few drops:

By midweek, the cells were starting to fill, and you could see the new white wax on the edges.

And by Friday, sunny and hot, you could pop about any lid and instantly see that we’re going to have a fall honey crop. This was the week! The week we’ve been waiting for.

How amazing it is! Just a few days with the right combination: strong bees, dry weather, heat, and bloom.

The goldenrod is our September savior.

And I realize something about myself. I’m a fair weather beekeeper. Yes, I’ll still do it when the weather’s crappy. And yes, it still beats any other job I’ve ever had. But I don’t enjoy it, I don’t relish it, until the sun comes out and the flowers bloom. When the bees are busy, I’m happy.

And I’m pretty sure they’re happy too. If it’s possible for insects to have emotions. At least they’re not angrily pecking at my veil. By Friday with the goldenrod in full bloom, you could practically work those hives in a t-shirt. Everything gets a lot easier.

And much more productive.