Honey bees or "apis" latin for bees "melifera" latin for honey-bearing here in Western PA can be a challenge but also an exciting endeavor. I know when I started I was only interested in the honey with the hopes of the bees helping my perennial gardens to flourish but as I got closer and more intimate working with hundreds of colonies, I began to be inspired by their tireless work ethic and ability to all work together for the success of their colony. A colony of honey bees has one queen and several thousand if not tens of thousands of workers. There are drones who are the only males in the hive whose numbers rise and fall according to the seasons, and the need for them to mate with the queen. Honeybees are a necessary part of our ecosystem.

I decided to expand my honey varieties beyond the typical wildflower honey into sunflower honey a couple years ago. After months of hard work, I now have our own healthy and beautiful sunflower fields. Our bees love it and so do we!

The sunflower is tops on the bees favorite list and it produces a beautiful amber, full flavor honey rich in antioxidants. Some specific benefits of sunflower honey, because of its high antioxidant content, are wound healing, and helpful to cold and flu symptoms like sore throat and coughing. It is full of amino acids and minerals, exhibiting antibacterial and energizing properties.