A fictional man once said, “Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gonna get.” Well, beekeeping is a lot like that. Donald Dees of Dees Bees tells us it’s “a labor of love,” and each season varies.
His last harvest included a rarity — purple honey. Judging by the SEO reports on our website, y’all have been searching for more. Donald has some hives in the same spots he harvested the dark honey from last year, but there’s no guarantee he’ll get more.
Each of his 80 bee boxes in the Sandhills could yield an entirely different smell and flavor of honey; it all depends on what the bees pollinate. “You just don’t get the flavor from store-bought non-local honey,” he says.
If you notice an influx of bees right now, it’s because this is their peak season. A hive’s population shifts throughout the year. Assuming it remains untouched, the honey they’re making now would be what they’re storing for winter. Since bees only live a couple of weeks, they’d be making food for bees that come 5-8 generations later. We could drone on about fun bee facts all day.
“We need the bees. Having a community that’s bee-friendly is great,” says Donald, adding that farmers have told him his bees have increased their crop yield. “Certain crops only honey bees pollinate,” he says. Watch Dees Bees’ Facebook page for purple honey updates.
