And the only reason for making honey is so as I can eat it. – A. A. Milne
This past year, we were privileged to host the making of some authentic Kansas honey. Our contribution? Providing a safe place for a single hive of bees to access our gardens from spring to fall. This included fruit trees, flowers, and our herb garden.
No doubt the bees wandered beyond the boundaries of our modest estate, but we witnessed them busily working over all manner of flowers during their stay. For the most part, it was a happy working relationship, both parties respectfully allowing the other to work.
Authentic Kansas Honey
In December, we were blessed with the results of not only the hard work of the bees we hosted, but also of others in the area. The beekeepers for this brood, Val and Dan, are very innovative and industrious folks. They presented us with their latest product, the Honey Flight (love the pun), featuring five different honeys, one of which is our own Maison Steinbuchel flavor!
The Maison Steinbuchel Honey has a bit of a fruity citrus flavor aged in oak whiskey barrels. Yum!
We enjoy being a part of supporting:
- authentic Kansas businesses
- creative and innovative endeavors
- cultivating precious honey bees
- benefitting from the active pollination of our own fruit trees
It does take a few adjustments as I wrote about in my welcome bee BLOG last spring, but overall, worth the effort.
We hope to do so again this year, perhaps a bit earlier to catch the full season of the fruit trees blossoming. The beekeepers said they would bring us bees that are even more docile. I didn’t know there were ranges of docility in bees!
It is wonderful to have experts who are willing to let us “help” while they do the heavy lifting and we do the learning. Along the way, we learn a bit more about our essential bee buddies.
Are you already dreaming of springtime? What things are you doing to prepare? Let me know in the comments.