For many, bees are simply a pesky little nuisance that ruins our outdoor activities. What you may not know is that these little insects are hard working little creatures.  They are critical pollinators, without the bees and other pollinators; including birds, bats, beetles, and butterflies, to pollinate the crops they will die off and without food, we are not far behind. 

Did you know that cross-pollination helps 30% of the world’s crops and 90% of our wild plants thrive?

Bees pollinate 70 of the around 100 crop species that feed 90% of the world.  

Pollination is not the only thing the bees do for us that is extremely important. 

The honey produced by the bees is not just another sweetener.  Raw, unfiltered honey has many health benefits and research has shown that it contains all sorts of vitamins, including phosphorous, iron, vitamins A, B-complex, C, D, E & K.

Beeswax is another ‘byproduct’ of the honey bee and can be used in your DIY moisturizers, lip balms, candles etc.

• Honeybees produce honey from the pollen and nectar of the plants they pollinate.
• Bees store the honey they produce in honeycombs which they later use to feed the babies and to keep the hive alive during the winter months.
• Honeybees live in large "families" (aka colony) and are found all over the world.
• The honeybee is the only social insect whose colony can survive many years. 
• That 'buzzing' you hear is actually their wings flapping. Their wings flap 11,000 times per minute!! Phew! That's a lot of flapping!
• Honeybees can only sting once. 
• If bees are wiped out, the human race will only survive approximately 4 years
• Honey bees must gather nectar from two million flowers to make one pound of honey.
• One bee has to fly about 90,000 miles to make one pound of honey.
• The average bee will make only 1/12th of a teaspoon of honey in its lifetime.
• Honey bees are the only insect that produces food that is consumed by humans.
• A queen bee will lay up to 2500 eggs per day.

types of honey:

Raw or pasteurized

What's the difference: raw honey is the pure form of honey and maintains the all natural properties honey has to offer. pasteurized honey has been heated and strained to kill bacteria but in the process it kills all the natural benefits of raw honey.

honey options:

comb honey, liquid honey, granulated honey, creamed honey

• Comb honey is just what it says, it's honey with the comb just as it would be in the hive.  Comb honey is rich in very long chain fatty acids.  As with so many things, more is not always better as too much comb could cause blockages.  I like to chew on the comb and extract the goodness and then simply toss the comb when I'm done.  
• Liquid honey is simply honey extracted from the cells with no comb.
• Granulated honey is made by freezing or drying the honey to extract the water.  The granules can then be turned into powder to be used in smoothies, teas etc.  I've never tried making granulated honey.  May check into that in the future.
• Creamed honey is a blend of granulated and liquid honey creamed together and stored at approximately 57 degrees until it's firm

Natural Bee Repellents include Diatomaceous earth (DE), Citronella and Powdered Garlic, just to name a few.

DIY Bee Repellent (I haven't actually tried this, I just happened across it and thought I'd share)

Boil a head of garlic in 16 ounces of water for 10 minutes, take it off the stove and allow it to cool. Remove the garlic, pour the water into a spray bottle and spray areas you want to keep bee-free. The scent of the garlic overpowers the sweet, flowery smell of other plants that attracts bees.