Spring can be a brutal time for northern Ohio beekeepers. A few warm days and we like to believe the snow and bitter temperatures are behind us, and winter weather has ended. Then there’s the endless rain and blustery days that to go on for weeks and weeks.
Seems forever ago, last fall, when the beehives were winterized, and the bees were all tucked away for the winter. We remained hopeful that the bees would emerge in the spring stronger and healthier than ever. Maybe we’re guilty of being a little impatient and thinking way too far ahead, hoping for an early spring and bee season.
You might recall, we wrote last in December about 2021 being a year of change at Cherry City Honey. We built and opened a new “brick and mortar” location, added a great selection of handmade soaps, and elderberry syrup kits, and other products made locally in Ohio, such as organic teas, essential oils, essential oil diffusers, glassware, coffee mugs, handmade jewelry, and greeting cards.
Cherry City Honey Farms and Apiary is now having our grand opening and ribbon cutting later this week on May 13 & 14. The Sandusky County Chamber of Commerce will be officiating the ribbon cutting at 4pm on Friday, May 13. We have a bunch of activities planned and are looking forward to visiting friends and neighbors.
Our grand opening is a big deal for Cherry City Honey and our local surrounding communities. We’re so excited to finally celebrate! Though our store has been open for a year, we finally feel like the time is right to cut the ribbon and look ahead to the future. Our customers are always reminding us how much we’re appreciated and purchase our products because we offer value to our surrounding communities.
The Bees
Activities in our bee yards are fairly limited until the weather warms to consistent 60-degree days. We’ve just recently begun inspecting beehives, buying additional bees, making hive splits, and adding honey boxes to collect that delicious nectar the bees have begun storing in the hive.
Splitting beehives is so important to our bee business. The hive splits help prevent spring honeybee swarming by reducing the bee population in each hive, and as a result doubling the number of beehives in the bee yard. Bees will usually begin swarming behavior in May if the bee population is not controlled. When bees swarm, half of the bees in the hive and the queen fly away to begin a new hive.
On warm days, we like to check the amount and color of the pollen the bees are collecting. It’s fantastic to see all the different colors of pollen the bees are collecting.
Pollen is needed in the hive since the queen bee has already begun laying eggs and increasing the number of bees. Pollen is needed to feed to the new bees.
The queen bee, for weeks, has been organizing her hive and preparing for warm weather and pollen/nectar collection.
The Flowers
Soon, mother nature will burst fully into warm spring days with millions of flowers, trees with leaves, and plenty of colorful vegetation, everywhere. The bees are ready! And so, the honey season begins.
At Cherry City Honey we also allocate some of our springtime activities to planting flowering plants and trees. Planting is so important to helping the bees! Ohio has weeks during the summer and fall months when bees and other pollinators have little food supply. The multiple flower types help provide additional sources of food for the bees.
We distribute free packets of seeds each year so others can plant flowers and foliage to support the bees and our environment. We all have a role in passing along a sustainable food supply to our kids.
Reflections
Keeping bees and managing honeybee habitat is important. When we consider that about 75% of the world’s food supply relies to some extent on pollination of food crops, it’s easy to see the importance of honeybees. That’s not to say that food supplies would completely disappear without pollination, but crop yields would certainly be reduced, possibly causing food scarcity and definitely higher prices.
Then, when we consider the importance of honey, we discover a such rich history. In many cultures, today and throughout the century’s, possessing honey is/was looked upon as a symbol of great wealth. Celebrations always included honey!
The story of honey and honeybees is older than history itself. Honey and beekeeping have been part of our history from the beginning of recorded records. Did you know that during excavations of Egypt’s pyramids pots of honey were found dating over 3,000 years old? Also, cave paintings, approximately 8,000-year-old, were discovered in Spain which depicts honey harvesting. Finally, the holy books of 1st Samuel (written about 650 BC) references honey and honeycomb, and the book of Judges (written about 550 BC) identifies a bee swarm, bees, and honey.
Our time tending to the honeybees and continuing the age-old tradition of gathering honey has left Tami and I feeling really blessed
Gary & Tami Wylie – Cherry City Honey
Welcome, honey enthusiasts and baking aficionados, to our delightful celebration of Pi Day! At Cherry City Honey, we believe in the magic of combining nature’s golden elixir with the joy of homemade pies. In honor of the mathematical marvel that is Pi Day (3/14), we present to you a mouthwatering Honey Pie recipe that will surely add a sweet twist to your festivities.
Date Dive into the sweet and savory world of Cherry City Honey with our latest culinary masterpiece: Honey-Glazed Balsamic Chicken! 🍯✨ Elevate your home cooking
Opening Hours:
Monday – Friday 9am – 5pm
Sat. 9am-2pm
Phone: (419) 271-2720
Email: shop@cherrycityhoney.com
Address: 1000 CR 312, Bellevue, OH 44811