Bees, nature’s gift to humans not only produce edible gifts for us to enjoy but are essential to our global economy. Coming from a beekeeping family, our connection with bees and nature gives us an appreciation for all the hard work our wonderful workers perform.

The founders of Rosewood Estates Winery are avid beekeepers and through our friends at Good Food we’ll be posting regular updates on this most crucial insect we lovingly think of as a part of our family. Without our little workers we wouldn’t be able to enjoy most of the delicious local food we love and other important products like our clothes (bees pollinate most cotton!).

Here’s the spring update…….

Spring is when we go out into our hives to inspect them for winter survival and inspect the strength of the colonies. We then determine whether we need to supplement their food with natural proteins or nutrients to prepare the hive for the busy season. In recent year’s CCD – Colony Collapse Disorder has threatened many large producers but by adhering to natural and sustainable beekeeping, the Rosewood colonies have been strong and healthy. In the beginning bees must be inspected frequently once every 2 to 3 weeks to see how the hive is developing. Natural infections can be devastating to a hive in the early season so we look for signs for disease and monitor frequently to ensure the hive is growing and is healthy.

Have you seen bees flying about already? In Niagara they are out exploring due to our mild winter.

This year the season is approx 5 weeks ahead of schedule and the SUPERS are already out! Supers – otherwise known as the growth foundation for hives, is a frame that gets added to a growing hive to act as a foundation to support more honey, and breeding. Eugene Roman, our master beekeeper has never put out supers this early in his 45 + years of beekeeping experience.

Monitoring is crucial at this point and we’re doing everything we can to prepare the hive for the June – July – August collection period.

So far so good, besides the early season and the active bees, the Rosewood hives are looking strong and happy to get back to work. Did you know that produce one jar of honey a bee must visit over 2 million flowers. So next time you’re enjoying some local honey think of how many airmiles it took to create your spoonful of honey.

Allergy season is upon us, and eating local honey helps your body adapt to the natural and local pollens in the air. So BEE sure to find some local honey to help you combat the itchy eyes, and sniffles. We suggest Rosewood honey, made in Niagara, available in Toronto, Hamilton & beyond at these fine retailers:

All the Best Fine Foods, Chapters Indigo, Fairmont Royal York, The Cheese Boutique, Ruby Eats, Upper Canada Cheese, Our Gate to your Plate, Cheese Shoppe on Locke St, Vineland Estates, Good Earth Winery, Sliced & Stasis Preserves.

Cheers,
The Social Bee
Krys Roman