How cool was the bee workshop this past Saturday?! If you missed it, don’t worry – we plan to host a follow-up session come next spring. We want to express our heartfelt thanks to our local beekeeper Mary, for sharing her time, expertise, and stories with everyone who attended.

We began our rainy Saturday morning at the Chatham Community Gardens, where we explored the pollinator garden and the newly installed raised platform garden beds while discussing the future vision for the plot. Afterward, we headed to the hive, where the honeybees were busy traveling in and out, collecting what they could to prepare for winter.

Once everyone had a chance to see the gardens and the hive, Mary was kind enough to host the group at her place to get out of the rain! Once there, Mary explained the different parts of a beehive and showed workshop participants essential beekeeping tools. She also discussed important measures to take seasonally in the fall as part of the overwintering process for a honeybee hive and demonstrated how to place an insulation shell over the hive through winter.

Did you know that honeybees can be “fed” by a beekeeper if the hive has not produced enough food (honey) to last all winter? By using a mixture of two parts cane sugar and one part water, you can supplementarily feed your hive (if needed) beginning in September so the bees can build the honey storage needed to survive the winter.