Ghost Town Apiary

Hi folks! This coming Saturday February 13th is my Beekeeping Boot Camp! During this crash course in keeping bees, you'll explore the inner sanctum of a colony of Apis Mellifera, or Italian Honey Bee. Observe the habits and duties of workers and drones. Extract the three main "products" of a bee hive; pollen, propolis, and of course honey! We'll also cover some basic techniques and philosophies of beekeeping. DETAILS... First, participants will be given an introduction to some basic facts on honey bees, and their hive, as well as both a crash course in the language of beekeepers, and the all-important safety talk! Next we prepare for our hive inspection by suiting up, doing a partner check, and going over our equipment. Now the fun begins! We perform a complete hive inspection to search for signs of the illusive queen, check the health if the colony, and sample some honey! SAFETY NOTE: BEES CAN STING. Bees can be gentle , or they can be aggressive depending on how we treat them. Beekeeping suits are not provided, but can be purchased at Bee Healthy on Telegraph and 30th st. Single veils can also be purchased the day of the workshop. A liability waver will be required before class begins for both your child, and you. This is a private residence. Signage will direct you in to the back yard. Parking on street

Not a good year here. The loss of two hives to wax moths, and a pitifully low harvest has brought supply to a screeching halt. Normally a new hive will yield 30-40 lbs of honey. An older, established hive, around 60-80 lbs. This harvest yielded about 2 gallons from my strongest hive. Yesterday, I broke down and cleaned the two failed ones, and got a good amount of both wax and propolis. The propolis, or "bee glue" is made by workers from tree sap and used to seal cracks and ...basically glue everything tight. It is naturally antibiotic, and is used to make tincture for minor injuries, as well as in some tooth paste. In addition, it is burned on coals as an incense, and was used to make the varnish on Stradivarius instruments in the 17th century which hold its glow and luster to this day. I'll be experimenting with a few recipes to try and create this varnish for use on my hand made wood furniture, as well as a bees wax/oil polish.

First summer harvest coming soon! Keep an eye out for sales!