Well it’s been a pretty traumatic year so far for us humans but the honeybees could not care less! They have been collectively working hard and totally ignoring the concept of social distancing. A good, average-sized hive has about 60,000 bees all doing their instinctive busy work so crowding is the norm and is generally an indication of a strong and healthy hive.
This past Spring we consolidated all of our hives to our Noblesville location. It’s kind of a ‘mixed-use’ neighborhood — we’re 5 minutes from the downtown square yet we still have quite a bit of natural area (especially along the Stony Creek corridor) for the bees to forage. A couple years ago we planted 1500 native wildflower plugs and also seeded several areas here to ensure that they wouldn’t need to go to far for nectar. With the reasonable amount of rainfall this Spring and Summer we had blooms pretty much all season. And we always embrace the appearance of clover and dandelions as a valuable and beautiful resource!
If you are new to Mill Run Honey you may not know that our honey label ‘tagline’ is “Just the Way the Bees Make it”. We follow organic-based strategies in managing our hives and our land to minimize any impurities that might affect the health of the bees or the quality of the honey and beeswax they share with us.
Here in September we may still get a late batch of Goldenrod Honey but otherwise the bulk of our 2020 honey crop has been gleaned (with plenty left for the bees’ Winter food). We look forward to filling those jars to fulfill the orders that you place with us — Thanks for your loyal patronage!
Also — Don’t forget that we make wonderful products with beeswax! As Winter sets in, the natural goodness of pure beeswax skin/lip care as well as long-burning, air-cleansing candles can brighten even the darkest of days!
Bee safe y’all!!!
Mac & Linda Williams