“The only reason for being a bee that I know of is to make honey.... And the only reason for making honey, is so as I can eat it.” - Winnie the Pooh
Nature's Sweetener
I've always loved honey. It's nature's natural sweetener. I love drizzling it over scones or stirring it into tea. Local honey is even better, because it's fresh and it helps the consumer to build immunity towards local allergens.
When my grandparents moved to Abilene, they bought a house that sat on three acres. Soon after they had settled in, my dad and granddad bought bees. They already had the hives from years before when they raised bees together when Dad was growing up in California.
The bees pollinated the plants around my grandparent’s house. Though wildflowers make an appearance in the spring, the bee’s chief activity centered on the mesquite trees. I could always hear the low hum of thousands of buzzing bees as they buzzed around the pink redbud in front of the house and pollinated the scraggly mesquite trees out back. Bees land on the fuzzy yellow mesquite flowers and gather nectar, which they will convert into honey.
I remember sticking my finger in the fresh honey and licking it off of my sticky fingers, savoring the golden goodness. Mesquite trees produce wonderful honey. It is thin, light and sweet and has a very high sugar content.
When my grandparents moved to Abilene, they bought a house that sat on three acres. Soon after they had settled in, my dad and granddad bought bees. They already had the hives from years before when they raised bees together when Dad was growing up in California.
The bees pollinated the plants around my grandparent’s house. Though wildflowers make an appearance in the spring, the bee’s chief activity centered on the mesquite trees. I could always hear the low hum of thousands of buzzing bees as they buzzed around the pink redbud in front of the house and pollinated the scraggly mesquite trees out back. Bees land on the fuzzy yellow mesquite flowers and gather nectar, which they will convert into honey.
I remember sticking my finger in the fresh honey and licking it off of my sticky fingers, savoring the golden goodness. Mesquite trees produce wonderful honey. It is thin, light and sweet and has a very high sugar content.
 |
| A mesquite flower |
A Fledgling Beekeeper
I never robbed the bees; I was always too scared. But every year Dad and Granddad would don their white gear to rob the bees. The bees got agitated when we stole from them, so I made sure to stay inside the entire time. I have since learned that we did not technically “rob” the bees. Instead, we harvested the surplus of honey.
Historically, bee’s hives were robbed and essentially destroyed. Beekeepers took all of the honey from the hives, leaving nothing behind. Bees actually make honey as a source of food. In the warm spring and summer months, they store this food in the hives. In modern times, a more humane method of gathering honey is employed. Beekeepers today take the excess honey and leave behind enough to sustain the bees throughout the winter months.
I never robbed the bees; I was always too scared. But every year Dad and Granddad would don their white gear to rob the bees. The bees got agitated when we stole from them, so I made sure to stay inside the entire time. I have since learned that we did not technically “rob” the bees. Instead, we harvested the surplus of honey.
Historically, bee’s hives were robbed and essentially destroyed. Beekeepers took all of the honey from the hives, leaving nothing behind. Bees actually make honey as a source of food. In the warm spring and summer months, they store this food in the hives. In modern times, a more humane method of gathering honey is employed. Beekeepers today take the excess honey and leave behind enough to sustain the bees throughout the winter months.
I may not have harvested the honey myself, but I did help prepare it. The people in protective suits would bring the frames indoors for those of us who hid inside in order to avoid stings.
We took the frames and placed them in honey extractors.
Because we harvested honey only for ourselves, our extractor was cranked by hand. I would turn the crank, as furiously as possible, spinning the honey and draining it into a large metal vat. Thick and golden it would spin off the frame in long, sticky ropes. Sometimes, we would cut the honeycomb into pieces, to put in the jars with the honey.
Because we harvested honey only for ourselves, our extractor was cranked by hand. I would turn the crank, as furiously as possible, spinning the honey and draining it into a large metal vat. Thick and golden it would spin off the frame in long, sticky ropes. Sometimes, we would cut the honeycomb into pieces, to put in the jars with the honey.
 |
| Photo not by me |
Killer Bees
But the bees were Africanized. For years, I didn’t understand what this meant. It seemed odd that bees had flown to Texas from Africa and somehow the Texan bees changed races, and became African. Of course, that is not the case at all. Also known as “killer bees,” these aggressive bees are a hybrid of the African hone bee and European honeybees. Swarms of Africanized bees invade a hive, kill the queen and replace her with their own queen.
Once a hive has been Africanized, there is only one option: terminate the hive. We did so one year and had to buy a new queen and hive. Unfortunately, this is time-consuming and unproductive. The best batches of honey come from established hives, not from newly developing hives.
 |
| A bee in my grandparent's red bud tree |
Do I Smell Bananas?
Somewhere close to my grandparent’s house is a hive of Africanized bees. When bees are stirred up and upset, they release a pheromone that has an odor similar to bananas. This attracts other bees and when they smell this, they are also agitated. Granddad’s docile bees released this pheromone when they were robbed. The nearby Africanized bees smelled it and buzzed their way to our hives. The bees mixed together, agitating the European bees, so that they all swarmed and attacked. No one was seriously injured, but as my grandparents live next to a school, they decided the risk was not worth it.
Somewhere close to my grandparent’s house is a hive of Africanized bees. When bees are stirred up and upset, they release a pheromone that has an odor similar to bananas. This attracts other bees and when they smell this, they are also agitated. Granddad’s docile bees released this pheromone when they were robbed. The nearby Africanized bees smelled it and buzzed their way to our hives. The bees mixed together, agitating the European bees, so that they all swarmed and attacked. No one was seriously injured, but as my grandparents live next to a school, they decided the risk was not worth it.
We no longer raise bees and we no longer harvest honey. I miss the sweet golden nectar; store-bought honey is just not the same. It still amazes me that bees can transform the unappetizing mesquite trees into a delicate sweet.
Oh my goodness Rebekah! This is so incredibly interesting! Firstly, let me say I absolutely love your blog's theme. The Texas-feel to it is wonderful and I couldn't help but laugh at your first post (when you thought everyone in Texas rides a horse). Being a Texas-born girl, I really appreciate the wonderful writings you have about Texas and all of its "wonders." Additionally, I find it fascinating that you raised bees (I hope that is correct & I didn't misread anything?). That is such a neat thing to write about, and you did it absolutely wonderfully. Oftentimes, it felt like I was reading a novel. Great, great job!
ReplyDelete