> Eat the Press February 22 2014

We love the emphasis magazines and boutiques are placing on food now. 

Small-batch offerings, with an emphasis on knowing where your food is grown or made, are all the rage, and we're tickled to be featured in two lifestyle magazines right now. 

The March 2014 issue of Southern Living is a double-whammy of attention for us. Our creamed Tennessee Snow honey is on page 95 with a big feature about cooking with honey. The SL   website fleshes out the piece with an article "We're Sweet on Southern Honey" that profiles our creamed honey and our 2013 Tennessee Spring vintage. 

In addition, our Summer Wildflower honey appears on page TN8 (between pages 61 and 62 — it's like the Harry Potter train platform 9 3/4 that only Tennesseans can see). We're there with a full-page feature on Batch, a subscription box company based in Nashville that was kind enough to include our honey in its debut "Rise and Shine" box. 

We're also thrilled to be on the ingredients list of our friend (and owner of Piebox) Adrienne Blumthal's latest pie recipe on MarthaStewart.com. She makes a good point, that honey is a good substitute for fruit during the bleak winter months. 

After all, honey is the concentration of nectar from thousands of flowers and plants. Her Honey Goat's Milk   Pie recipe might just tied us over until spring.

> Not easy being Queen February 13 2014

My “Wizard Of Oz” theory came to mind yesterday. 

We often joke that being small business owners is like dashing around in front of and behind a curtain, doing all kinds of jobs, wearing all kinds of hats. 

The “wizard” of the famous movie was a ticket taker, lever puller, wizard and even,          if you will, a life coach. 

Between Jeff and me, our responsibilities range from keeping bees, hammering together hive equipment, harvesting honey, bottling honey, graphic design, photography, branding, accounting — and sometimes even sales! 

So, imagine my delight to get a letter yesterday addressed to the “Complaint Department.” 

“Well, that’s a new one,” I thought, then opened the letter, wondering what the head of the newly formed Complaint Department should wear to work each day.  

It seems that a customer in Washington received one of our honey sampler crates for Christmas, but one of the jars leaked. She kindly asked for a replacement, followed with best wishes and blessings from God. 

We sent her a replacement the next day, along with two beeswax lip balms (since people in Washington probably need them more than anybody) and a handwritten note.  

I’m hoping that’ll be the end of the Complaint Department, but with growth come other challenges and more hats to wear. 

For example, I got a call the other day from a potential buyer who condescendingly asked, “Are you in a position to authorize samples being sent to us?” 

I wanted to say, “Not only am I in a position to, as in standing over boxes and tape, but I am The Queen Bee and can authorize anything I want.” 

Instead, with a wink at my dog, I said, “I think we can take care of that for you.” 

> If you plant one thing February 07 2014

I was about to say, "If you plant one thing for your honeybees, plant crimson clover."

But I'm rethinking that already. We have a little land, and Jeff plowed about an acre of it in 2010 and sowed crimson clover seed. We have enjoyed this clover probably as much as the bees have. It's attractive, it's a great nectar source and it keeps other growth at bay.

But there are other plants just as easy that work for small patches of yard or for patios. One of my favorites is anise hyssop. A perennial herb, mine is in full sun and comes back each year. The foliage is a deep green, smelling of anise, and the flowers are a lovely lavender color that honeybees seem to fancy.

Lavender is another perennial that bees go crazy over, but it can be difficult to maintain in Tennessee's wet springs and humid summers. We have about 40 lavender plants that have thrived only because they are in full, baking sun and rocky soil. The same goes for rosemary — bees like the delicate blue-purple flowers, but rosemary likes well-drained soil and lots of sun!

If you're interested in building up the "backbone" of your landscape, and also want evergreens, hollies have almost imperceptible little white flowers in the spring that are a prolific nectar source. The same goes for privet and pittosporum.

All this to say, there's really no need to plant things for your bees. They will fly up to three miles from the hive, and they are designed to forage.

In fact, in much of the Southeast, it's quite easy to help provide for the bees — just put off mowing the lawn a few days. That's our excuse, at least. Ignoring the lawn will probably result in lots of white clover, something the bees really like.

So, I'm coming full circle here. I've gone from "if you plant one thing" to "if you ignore one thing."

See? It's that easy to make honeybees happy.

Resources:

Wildseed Farms, a seed catalog that offers regional wildflower mixes. We sowed an acre with the southeast blend a few years ago, and many of the flowers, like cosmos and gallardia, have re-seeded themselves.

Feed the Bees, a Community Campaign — encourages sustainable bee populations by offering bee friendly planting ideas

The Honeybee Conservancy — lots of garden ideas, plus information about bees that burrow

> Honeybee facts January 06 2014

There is never an end to the questions we're asked about honeybees! Below are answers to a few of the most commonly asked questions. (We saved the best for last.)

• Honey bees fly up to three miles from their hives to collect nectar and pollen.

• It would take about eight honey bee stings for each pound you weigh to kill you.

• Male bees have no stinger and only one job; to mate with the queen. After they do their job they die.

• The honey bee's wings stroke incredibly fast, about 200 beats per second

• A honey bee can fly for up to six miles, and as fast as 15 miles per hour.

•The average worker bee produces about 1/12th teaspoon of honey in her lifetime.

• A hive of bees will fly 40,000 miles, more than once around the earth, to collect 1 pound of honey.

• It takes one ounce of honey to fuel a bee’s flight around the world.

• A honey bee visits 50 to 100 flowers during a collection trip.

• Only worker bees sting, and only if they feel threatened. They die once they sting.

• Queens have a stinger, but they don’t leave the hive to help defend it.

• During winter, honey bees feed on the honey they collected during the warmer months. They form a tight cluster in their hive to keep the queen and themselves warm.

• The queen bee can live up to 5 years and lays up to 3,000 eggs a day during the summer months

• Yes, we get stung.

> Sample a 'Taste of the South' November 15 2013

Currently featured by Garden & Gun as one of the magazine's "Southern-Inspired Stocking Stuffers."

When we came up with the idea of a honey sampler crate, it seemed only natural to showcase a taste of southern classics.

Unsung heroes, if you will. 

Our 2013 limited-edition honey crate features Coastal Spring, Wildflower Summer and Tennessee Snow honeys, all tied up in a pine crate made by a southern craftsman.

The honey in this set represents the earthy, scrappy nature of the South and its native plants. 

Coastal Spring honey was made from the gallberry bush, a scrubby, coastal plant and a prolific nectar source which honeybees love, found along the southern Atlantic and Gulf coasts. This honey is a tribute to the salty survivor, like a lot of us Southerners — maybe not much to look at, but worth our weight in sweetness.

Wildflower Summer is the condensed, ephemeral taste of hot, country pastures and plains, full of clover, thistle, dandelion and privet nectars, and, of course, magnolia pollen. This variety jumps onto the tongue with a bold, classic taste (that’s the clover for you), then finishes with a tang, a tip of the hat to the non-native herbs that southerners are kind enough to plant.

Tennessee Snow honey is a tribute to our sense of place. While we’re not from Nashville, we love it here. We’d love it more with a little bit of snow in the winter … so we just made our own. Our creamed honey (also called spun honey or whipped honey) is perfect as an all-natural topping on cinnamon rolls, toast and even stirred into tea.

> Find us at these holiday events: October 29 2013

We carefully choose a handful of area craft and food events to attend each year.

We've already enjoyed Made In Nashville, a benefit for the TN Literacy Coalition, as well as the Southern Artisan Cheese Festival, which draws foodies from all over the Southeast, and the Edgehill Village Artisan Fair, a small neighborhood show in the hip and crafty Edgehill Village 'hood. 

Now we're gearing up for holiday shoppers with four more events. 

* Barn in the Bend (Madison, Tenn.) — Nov. 8 and 9 with a sneak peak the evening of Nov. 7 (Never done a barn sale, so can't wait to try a new experience!) 

* Indie Craft Experience (ICE) (Atlanta, Ga.) — Nov. 23 and 24 (Get ready, Atlanta. Our friend Suzi of Beautiful Briny Sea is curating the food section of the show, and we're flattered to be picked!) 

* Porter Flea Holiday (Nashville, Tenn.) — Dec. 6 and 7 (We were totally unprepared for this show last year — sold out before one 'o clock — so we'll be armed with lots of honey sampler crates and other gift items this year.) 

* Studio Be Holiday Market (Nashville, Tenn.) — Dec. 6 and 7 (Met Shannon Wille at Edgehill Village Artisan Fair, and she handpicked us for this show; looks like a nice assortment of handmade crafts, gourmet food and art! There will be food and wine on the 6th.) 

> Tasting notes from a sommelier September 26 2013

The owner of Franklin Wine & Spirits, Dave Clark, was kind enough to taste our current honey vintages and help us describe them. Honey, like grapes, is affected by the weather (rainfall, sunshine, earth), so we thought it would be fun to have a wine expert give us feedback.

Here's what he said:

The honeys were tasted from the lightest color to the darkest. Each was tasted alone, then with several food items. The honeys were tasted similarly to how I taste wines. First, the color was noted, then the aroma. Finally, the honeys were tasted and paired with foods. 

2013 Summer Honey: Light gold color. Sweet aroma of honeysuckle. Although it tastes sweet, the honey has a little tartness, with a hint of lemon. Pairs well with prosciutto and soft, mild cheddar. The bit of tartness makes it pair well with meats with some marbling, as the tartness and fat balance each other. (Beekeeper's note: the spicy, balanced sweetness also makes this vintage good with coffee, and with bleu cheese.)

2013 Spring Honey:  Medium amber color. Hint of orange blossom on the nose. Thicker consistency than the summer honey, but not quite as sweet. A nuttier flavor, with a hint of almond on the finish. Pairs well with hard, aged, dry cheddar, cashews and bread. Nuts and yeasty breads would pair very well with this honey. (Beekeeper's note: this vintage has a lingering, fruity tartness, making it good with tea, especially green tea, and with goat cheese.)

2012 Coastal Spring Honey:  Dark amber color, almost caramel. On the nose, the honey had notes of honeysuckle but with more floral fragrance than the summer vintage. The aroma made me think of a field of wild flowers near the edge of a tree line. Sweet up front but with a slightly bitter finish. (Brought back the taste of Tootsie Rolls when I was a kid.) Finishes with toasty notes. Went best with bread and nuts. This honey had a tendency to make cheese taste a little sour. Would be great to have a glass of Brut Champagne with this honey.  (Beekeeper's note: the earthy, smokey hints in this vintage make it a great ingredient in barbecue sauces, beans and even tomato bruschetta.) 

> Honey-Pumpkin Muffins September 25 2013

I make these muffins year round, because they are my daughter's favorite, but they seem to taste better in the fall. I think it's the spices — cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg whet our appetites for warm sustenance and mirror the warm colors of autumn.

These muffins are not gluten-free, vegan or anything else like that, but they are full of Vitamin A, protein, fiber and other healthful things. They make a simple, filling breakfast, and they travel well for weekend get-aways! This recipe is for a huge batch; I don't have lots of time to bake, so when I make 'em, I make 'em! (They freeze beautifully, but this recipe can easily be cut in half.)

Pumpkin-Honey Muffins

(makes 24 regular-size muffins, or 48 mini-muffins)

Dry ingredients — mix all these together:

3 cups whole wheat flour; 1/4 cup flax seed, ground after measuring; 1.5 tsp. baking powder; 1.5 tsp. baking soda; 1/2 tsp. salt; 1 cup brown sugar, not packed; 2 tsp. cinnamon; 1 tsp. nutmeg; 1 tsp. ginger

Then add these:

2 cups cooked, puréed pumpkin (or one 15 oz. can); 3/4 cup honey; 3/4 cup vegetable oil; 4 eggs, lightly beaten

Mix everything together, but don't over-mix. Preheat oven to 350 degrees (or 325 degrees convection). Fill muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake regular-size muffins 25 minutes (20 in convection), or bake mini-muffins 20 minutes (14 in convection). You may leave the flax seed out with no serious consequences to taste or texture. 

> Barefoot in the clover July 19 2013

We hear it all the time:

"You know, when I was a kid, I was afraid to go barefoot in the clover because I'd get stung," people say. "But now, well, I don't see any bees."

Unfortunately, this dearth of bees in the clover is a result of all the hardships honeybees have faced in the past few years. Diseases have wiped out large populations of honeybees, resulting in lawns flecked with nectar-rich clover ... but no honeybees to forage it!

In our Arrington bee yard, things are a little different. We have tons of clover, and there are honeybees all over it. In fact, during mid-summer in Middle Tennessee, many of the big nectar sources have reached the end of their natural season, so we always look forward to the staple of clover to keep our bees happy and fed.

Clover nectar gives our annual summer vintage (harvested in late July or early August) that familiar richness and tang that folks seem to associate with "grandpa's" honey. 

On another note, we also look forward to the clover because it turns into a nice excuse for not mowing. Jeff will come home and say something about the yard looking a little tall. He seems reluctant to start up the tractor, so I say, "Yes, I guess it is, but there's a lot of clover coming up."

"Well, I wouldn't want to cut that down, with the bees and all," he says.

"Yeah, that's true," I say, and we decide that leaving nectar for the bees is more important than having a well-manicured yard (can't exactly call it a lawn).

So, if the front yard of our Arrington apiary starts to look a little wild, don't think for a second we're lazy, or even too busy, because it's neither.

We're leaving it for the bees ... and we're not going barefoot.

> Honey Vanilla Ice Cream recipe July 11 2013

Lots of people have been asking for this, so here it is! Very simple, and no sugar.

Honey Vanilla Ice Cream

2 cups milk (I use 2 percent)

3/4 cup honey (wildflower honey, of course)

dash of salt

2 eggs beaten

2 cups heavy cream

1 tablespoon real vanilla extract

In saucepan, heat milk but don't burn or "scald" it. Stir in honey and salt. Pour small amount of warm liquid into eggs; return to milk mixture and cook over medium-low heat for 5 minutes or less, stirring constantly. Cool thoroughly. Stir in cream and vanilla. Chill. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions. Makes about 5 cups and is delicious on a hot summer evening!

> NY Mouth asks all the right questions. May 17 2013

We just did an e-mail interview with one of our newest customers, New York Mouth, which specializes in small-batch foods. They asked some fun questions, so here's a sneak peak: 

Where did you grow up? I'm a Carolina girl. 

Was food always important to you, or did you develop a passion for food at a particular place and time? The only thing I knew how to make as a child was biscuits, and I always mashed up the Ritz crackers for squash casserole in the summer. Other than that, I never knew how to cook from elemental ingredients until I joined the U.S. Peace Corps. I served in a third-world African country, where I learned to appreciate freshness and simplicity of ingredients.  Everything was made from scratch, and I learned to cook there.  (Sometimes we had crazy Peace Corps parties where the main event would be to roll out and fry our own corn flour chips and then dip them in our own fresh-made guacamole. Our biggest resource was time, so why not?) 

How did you get into beekeeping? My husband, Jeff, grew up near a beekeeper and was fascinated by it. I knew he really wanted to learn how to keep bees but would never take the leap, so I bought him a bee hive for Christmas 10 years ago. He bought me a stand-up bass the same year, for the same reason. 

Tell us about deciding to go into business – How did it happen?  What made it possible? We've been selling our honey at farmers markets (in North Carolina and Tennessee), and the decision to move from that to a larger market was a result of the reception we've received from these marketplaces. Our customers embrace our commitment to purity, our concern about the fate of the honeybee and our emphasis on the ephemeral nature of honey from year to year. To completely answer the question, our customers make it "possible" every day for us to continue our commitment to sustainable American agriculture.

What do you think makes your product stand out in its category? Our honey is unique in that we celebrate the indigenous plants that produce it and we don't manipulate the harvest and nectar flow to produce a singe-source product.  (Single-source varietals are the ones everyone's heard about, like orange blossom, tupelo, etc.). For example, to offer orange blossom honey a beekeeper is likely involved in commercial pollination. While commercial pollination is necessary, especially in these days of big agriculture and bee shortages, trucking bees to an orange (or almond or apple) grove to perform a service, while exposed to pesticides and herbicides, is not healthy for the bees and not a sustainable method of agriculture. 

>>> Our bees are "free-range." 

While the "free-range" thing started as a joke (because who is really going to stop a honeybee from going where it wants to?), it has come to denote a commitment to healthy, natural nectar sources for our bees. We say that our bees forage everything "under the country sun," and it's true. We're lucky enough to live near a small pick-your-own blueberry farm, but, other than that, our bees forage nectar and pollen from various natural sources, from fruit tree blossoms in the spring to pesky clover and herbs in the summer. 

Also, when we do a regional "sampler," we work with beekeepers like us, who have a commitment to healthy bees and the glory of wild, indigenous nectar sources. For example, our Coastal Spring vintage was made by honeybees enjoying the native gallberry plant (in the holly family) that grows wild along the coasts of the Southeast. It's sort of an unsung hero in the bee world — a prolific nectar source that nobody cares enough about to spray for anything! The bees love it, and they're not exposed to harmful pesticides and herbicides while they forage it.

What’s  your favorite part about producing honey? Least favorite part? Favorite part of having a bee farm is going out in the bee yard after sunset in the summer, when it's still light, and watching the light reflect off the bees as they return to the hive. Least favorite = being sticky!  

What do you see as  your biggest challenges? Our biggest challenge right now is combating diseases, such as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), that are affecting honeybees all over the world. Almost everyone has heard of these problems in one way or another, and we're encouraged when we go to markets and festivals and have customers who are sincerely interested in the fate of the honeybee. (We have wonderful, thoughtful customers who are sincerely curious about our trade and how it affects us and our food sources.)  

What is the most interesting part of owning a business like this? The nature of the honeybee is endlessly fascinating. It's interesting to observe how they work together, how they communicate, how they are cranky on windy days and how the queen bee dictates the mood of the hive (mean queen = mean colony). I could go on and on.

Do you have a funny story to share?  This wasn't funny at the time, but early in my beekeeping days I made the mistake of wearing my beautiful, hand-engraved sapphire wedding ring while in the hives. I got stung on the tip of my ring finger and didn't think about it until I got home, but it was too late. My finger looked like a hot dog with a tight silver band around it. (None of the Google remedies for getting rings off worked.) My doctor said that if there was still circulation in the fingertip I'd "probably be ok," so I toughed it out so I wouldn't have to get the ring cut off. The next day the swelling went down a little, but I couldn't get the ring off for a month. So, the moral of the story is: don't wear rings when you're working in the hives. 

Did you have a role model/mentor/inspiration in the small batch field before you got started? If so, who? An old man named Mr. Smith was kind enough to sell us our first bees in NC, then help us get through that first year, which can be overwhelming. (More about that here.) We try to pass his kindness along by helping other beekeepers get started. 

When you’re not producing honey, you are most likely . . . . Spending time with our daughter, who just turned 8. Unfortunately, though, the life of a small business owner is pretty seamless when it comes to work and personal time! Business and home life sort of intermingle ... but I do cut out some time to read and to write a little. 

Favorite way to use/eat your own product:  We couldn't survive without peanut butter and honey sandwiches, and our favorite treat is goat cheese and honey. I take a 4 oz "log" of plain chevre, roll it in chopped pecans, drizzle generously with honey and serve surrounded by thin apple slices (Golden Delicious is my favorite). This is an easy, healthy treat that's also a nice party or cocktail appetizer. 

> Call it what you will. April 26 2013

Honey mojito. Derby drink. Honeybee cocktail.

No matter what you call it, it's time for hats, races, drinks, wicker chairs and front porches. (If you're like us, the creaking wicker chairs on the porch dare you to see if they can make it   one more year.)

With the upcoming Iroquois Steeplechase on May 11 here in the outskirts of Nashville, we're reminded of a fun, easy drink that can be made  one at a time or in a pitcher. 

Here's the recipe:

1 oz TruBee Honey simple syrup*

1 oz fresh squeezed lime juice

2 to 3 fresh mint leaves

1-1/2 oz light rum

4 oz soda water

Mix honey simple syrup, mint leaves and a splash of soda water in a glass. Use muddler or spoon to lightly press mint leaves and blend the flavors. Squeeze two halves of lime into the glass, leaving one in the mixture. Add rum, stir and fill glass with ice. Top with soda water, garnish with mint … put on your hat and place your bets. 

*Honey simple syrup:  Four parts TruBee Honey to 1 part hot water in a saucepan. Heat gently and simmer until honey is dissolved. Store in a glass jar or other container at room temperature.

> It's official: we're awesome. April 11 2013

Honey goes with lots of things.

Think about it. There's nobody who hasn't heard the words "honey" and "mustard" together.

Or "honey" and "barbecue."

That's why our honey was included in Bespoke Post's April "Box of Awesome."

Each month Bespoke Post, a monthly subscription service, curates a box of high-end and, well, awesome stuff from all over the world. Each box has a different theme; for example, there's been a "Weekender" box, a "Shave" box and many more. 

Our honey is offered in the "'Cue" box. As in barbecue. Click on the photo above to read about the other great products in the box. There are specialty corn chips, cedar grilling planks and other seriously awesome things.

Oh, and don't forget to check out their "Behind the Brands" spotlight. All the products Bespoke Post features have an awesome story too. 

> Honey brunch / 'Country Living' and 'InStyle' April 04 2013

Our honey doesn’t just look good.

Our honey tastes good too, and we love it when our signature jar is used     to help stage lovely settings.

The photo at right is part of a multi-page feature in Country Living's April issue about a Martha’s Vineyard   home. The designer was Tamara Weiss, of Midnight Farm boutique,   who purchases our honey for her store. 

This is the second brunch scene in which our honey has appeared this year (the first being InStyle magazine’s February issue, below), so it’s high time we shared one of our favorite brunch recipes — just in time for spring events. 

Honey French Toast

2 eggs, well beaten

1/4 cup milk 

1/4 cup honey 

1/4 tsp salt

6-8 slices of bread 

butter, for frying 

Combine eggs, milk, honey and salt. Dip bread slices into honey mixture. Melt butter in a large skillet; fry bread slices in butter over medium heat until golden brown, turning once or until done.

> 'You are what you eat.' October 16 2012

Sylvia Ganier reminded us of this last Sunday during the second annual    Fall Festival at her Green Door Gourmet farm in Nashville.

She was tasting our seasonal honeys, along with our friend and fellow beekeeper Jay Williams, and I told her how folks seem surprised to learn  that honey changes with the seasons.

You see, when sampling our spring and summer vintages, I tell customers what the honeybees were foraging when they made each harvest. For example, our spring vintage tastes floral and light because the bees were foraging spring-blooming plants, like apple, pear and black locust trees.

Our summer vintage has a bigger, more herbal flavor, probably because bees were foraging lavender, rosemary and, of course, the ever-present clover.

The store at Green Door CSA (pictured here) features local products ranging from cheese and honey to granola and body care products.

"See?" Sylvia said. "It's true for bees too. You are what you eat."

She has a unique perspective on this, since her farm is dedicated to helping her customers eat healthy, organic, local foods. We are thrilled to work with her, and tickled to learn that our honey makes an occasional appearance in her CSA boxes. (If your shopping for the holidays, we just delivered our limited-edition 2012 Honey Sampler Crates to her farm. Get 'em there and avoid shipping costs!)

She also has a lovely grocery on site, where she offers local foods, from milk and cheese to salsas and skin care products. In addition, her new events barn is already booking vintage-style country weddings. Learn more at greendoorgourmet.com.

> Honeystand June 13 2012

My daughter, who is 7 years old, is a little entrepreneur.

School's out, and she's selling our raw honey by the road, lemonade-stand style, with her trusted customers putting their money in a metal coffee can marked "honey money."

She would love to sit by the stand all day, with her German shepherddog at her side, I've insisted this would be too much for the poor dog, so we rely on honesty.

This honeystand is where we re-use our glass jars — some of them a little scratched — and sometimes you may find a selection of sizes to choose from, all for a flat rate. This near-wholesale price is available only at our TruBee Honey "outlet" and only because we want Lillian to learn the value of hard work and the reward of earning money.

The scene is this:  a rolling country highway — a nice, scenic road that's become a bit of a byway. During weekdays, TN 252 is a secret corridor between Murfreesboro and Cool Springs. On the weekends, it's a delightful, curvy ride for cyclists and bikers, with many of the latter on their way to Arrington Vineyards, only two miles away.

This honeystand is an experiment in trust, human nature and marketing — or lack of. We haven't done anything to promote Lillian's honeystand, but when she pulls her red wagon with wood panels out to the road, counts her inventory and arranges the jars, she often has customers pulling in the driveway immediately.

Our country neighbors, folks who have lived here all their lives, are curious. "You ever been ripped off?" they ask in subdued voices. (Our secret's safe with them.)

"No," we say, "but sometimes people leave extra."

That's the truth. We've had an extra dollar here and there, a few IOUs on business cards (which were fulfilled in two or three days) and even a few people have left small stuffed animals for the owner of the honeystand. (Anyone with a little girl knows how these go over.)

If you find yourself in Middle Tennessee, meandering along Wilson Pike (TN 252), then you're welcome to look for the honeystand. It's open on sunny days only, most of the time, because 7-year-old girls are creatures of whimsy and because Lillian doesn't want her chalkboard signs to get wet. Usually the honey is in a red Radio Flyer wagon, and sometimes it's accompanied by Jeff's old Ford 8N tractor (not for sale, boys, not for sale).

Lillian also accepts empty glass jar returns here. Just put them in the grass next to the wagon, and we will sterilize and re-use.

Also, Lillian has expanded her inventory this year. She thinks kids really like honey straws, since she does, so she makes bundles of five straws and sells them for $1 a bundle. Jeff and I think this is an awesome energy burst for all the cyclists we see pedaling up and down the road, but her target market is other kids.

This is her thing, and we're proud that she's thought of a way to reach new customers. So far, she's sold only four bundles.

But you've gotta start somewhere.

> 'Put 'er there.' June 07 2012

That's what Daddy used to say to me.

"Put 'er there."

He'd stride into the room after work with his coat hooked over his shoulder.  He'd hold out his hand and wait for me to shake it.

Hard.

No limp noodle hands allowed, not even from a little girl.

"This is important," he would say, and I went along with it, gradually learning the "right" way to grip a palm, how to squeeze it like I mean it.

This came back a few days ago, on a delivery day. It was a new stop, a restaurant in West Nashville, where I took an order of bulk honey to the back supply room. One of the chefs was there to confirm the order, and he held out his hand.

I shook it, and he reared back a little and smiled.

"Now that's a man-shake!" he said.

I laughed and we talked about the value of a good handshake. He related an experience in Alaska when he offended a burly woman by offering a wimpy handshake.

I told him I also can't stand the little polite clasps some men offer me. I also get a kick out of shaking someone's hand, finding it limp, then feeling it tighten immediately when they realize a "real" handshake was expected.

How telling.

Of all the lessons my dad taught me, this is one I recall frequently as a small business owner. Handshakes are important. With that immediate contact of skin and pressure, I learn a lot about my customers — and they about me — right off the bat.

So, if a parents' merits are judged by the behaviors they manage to cultivate in their kids, I guess Daddy gets some big credit this Father's Day. He'll be getting a shipment of our spring honey and Beeswax Rub, two of his favorites.

He also might like to know that — every so often — I stride into the living room, corner my daughter and say, "Put 'er there."

Some things are worth passing along.

> Spring harvest ready to eat May 29 2012

Just a three days ago, the honey pictured at right was in a hive.

Colonies of honeybees gathered and tended nectar and pollen, organizing their days by what was in bloom.

We've been doing that too. Throughout this glorious early spring, we've watched what the bees are interested in, what they're foraging here in     Middle Tennessee.

We did this because you want to know what's in your wildflower honey. You want to be able to savor, as much as we do, the transitory nature of each drop of nectar — and each grain of pollen — that the bees found to create this unique harvest.

In fact, if you search the tag #2012springhoney on Twitter, you'll find our "bee menu" reports, where we've documented the changes in nectar and pollen flow throughout the spring.

For us, this intimate knowledge seems to make the honey taste even better. We hope you think so too.

> Danger: Live Bees May 20 2012

My favorite time in the bee yard is is late afternoon, from the vantage point of an empty, overturned hive box or bucket. Low, golden light illuminates the little bodies of our honeybees, hurtling themselves to and from the hive, intent on their purpose.

While beekeeping sounds romantic, it's actually a lot of work, and beekeeping wisdom is only learned the hard way.

For example, don't wear rings while beekeeping. This particular lesson, pictured in the making at right, happened last summer. It was a small sting, just on the tip of the finger, but by the time I got home it was too late.

A frantic call to my doctor resulted in taking Benadryl for the allergic reaction and ibuprofen for the inflammation. Another frantic call to a firefighter friend (also a beekeeper) included practical advice too.

"If you need to cut the ring off, come here to the station instead of to the ER," he said. "It won't hurt, but it might be traumatic."

Lucky for you, you don't have to endure this fear-factor nonsense to enjoy pure, raw honey. This is our busiest time of year, as the Southeast comes alive in the sunshine and rain.

In fact, hopefully very soon we'll have a big announcement — that our 2012 Spring Honey is ready to order!

It will be full of light, sweet nectar from early spring fruit trees, rogue blackberry blossoms and country privet. There even will be a touch of the elusive black locust tree.

And, in case you were wondering, I don't wear rings anymore while beekeeping. Last summer, I felt lucky to lose neither my finger nor my ring, so I won't repeat that mistake twice.

It also might help to wear gloves.

> Great balls of bees! March 19 2012

 It's that time of year again:  Swarm season.

You may have seen this natural phenomenon, which starts as a whirlwind of bees, kinda like on "Winnie-the-Pooh," and ends with a ball of living bees hanging from a tree branch or moving into a wall.

Here's why it happens.

In the spring, honeybee colonies grow quickly, and sometimes they run out of room for the queen to lay eggs. Whether they are living in a hollow tree or in contrived hives, when the queen bee says, "We need more room!" the colony follows. (As it should be.)

This movement is called a swarm, and honeybees tend to swarm in the spring. We often get calls from people who have a swarm in their yard or in a wall of their home.

If you see a swarm, enjoy it! Not many people get to witness this phenomenon. And don't be afraid; honeybees without a home are at their most docile when swarming. Their only thought is to protect the queen, somewhere in that big     ball of bees, and they will not attack you as long as you don't attack them.

For beekeepers, preventing swarms involves constant monitoring of the hives to make sure there's enough room for eggs, larvae, honey, etc. If things are looking tight, a beekeeper puts another box on top of the hive. Beekeepers are usually happy to capture swarms; this means free bees (no pun, really) for the apiary and a nuisance removed for the homeowner.

> 1 tsp = work of 12 bees February 07 2012

This tidy package, one teaspoon of honey, contains the life's work of 12 bees.

That's right. Twelve honeybees hurtled under the country sun and over fields of indigenous plants to gather nectar for just one of these straws.

So, you really should savor it!

Stir them into tea, enjoy a burst of natural energy during a workout, or sooth a sore throat with our raw, wildflower honey. We've sold 'em to flight attendants, office workers, workout workers ... and lots and lots of kids.

We offer them in bulk — for retailers to display in our signature jar — or in clear packages of eight.

> Beekeepers hate to waste stuff January 30 2012

And every time we harvest honey, we're left with buckets of beeswax "cappings," the layer of beeswax that honeybees use to seal their honeycomb.

So, our unbleached beeswax is sharing the limelight with our honey now, making its debut in our new Beeswax Rub. We started making it for dry     skin, but market customers and friends have come up with all sorts of new  uses for it — from conditioning leather belts and butcher blocks to using it      on dreadlocks (to condition without too much "slip") and de-squeaking drawers.

We hope you (or your customers) can enjoy it too. It's made of only five all-natural ingredients, and that's including the lavender and rosemary essential oils.

> Look around, Dixieland. January 27 2012

That's right.

According to Bon Appétit magazine, the South — and its culture of no-holds-barred, we're-not-afraid-of-you food — is hot. If you want fearless, experimental flavor with sentimental devotion to real, tangible ingredients, this is the place to be.

The February issue of Bon Appétit fearlessly takes on the South, in all its bigness, leading the cover with nothing less (or more?) than fried chicken.

In the "New Southern Pantry" feature, what the foods have in common is that they are traditional southern favorites which come from the earth, like pecans, peanuts, cucumbers and sweet potatoes, but with a twist:  hell-fire and spice in the pickles and jelly, chili in the chocolate, sweet potatoes turned to hot sauce. Taste, taste, taste!

What's wildflower honey?

While TruBee Honey is thrilled to be on the shelf with these products, we don't feel as innovative. In fact, some might think us simple because we don't haul our hives around on trailers to collect high-dollar nectar from orange, tupelo and sourwood trees.

But, sometimes, simple is good. Traditional, even. Our bees enjoy nectar from indigenous southern plants — like passionflower and those pesky, pokey blackberry brambles creepin' on everybody's fences.

We don't dictate the diet of our "free-range" bees, and our honey changes every season because of it.

Bon Appétit described our honey as "nuanced," because it always changes. We'll see that and raise it: our raw wildflower honey is so unique, so special, that each distinct vintage is a flavor never to be repeated in Nature again.

Come to think of it, that's what Bon Appétit is getting at. Delicious, hip, of-the-moment flavors, but with old-school ingredients — that's what today's southern foods are all about.

> Here's why we're special. November 17 2011

During an interview with a Bon Appétit writer yesterday, it came down to   this:

"What makes TruBee Honey unique?"

As I told her, there are two answers. 

First, it's about the bees and the type of honey they produce. We joke that     our honeybees are "free-range," as if you could tell a bee where to forage     for nectar, but in some ways this is true.

We offer wildflower honey, not honey from a single nectar source. (Think orange blossom, tupelo and sourwood, where bee hives are farmed out to "catch" the nectar flow.) There's nothing wrong with these types of honey, but a multi-source diet is healthier for the bees, and we like the unpredictable nature of each vintage harvest.

You see, since the location of our hives rarely changes, the variables affecting TruBee Honey are things like rainfall and heat. Simple forces of nature. Bees don't go out in the rain, so a wet, cold spring will limit their exposure to nectars from spring-blooming trees, like many fruit trees. But then there might be a lush wild clover crop later that summer, or abundant wild aster in the fall. So, each year is different.

The second way our honey is different is how we process it. In a nutshell, we don't process it. Sure, we extract the honey with a centrifuge, which slings the honey from the combs into a stainless steel tank, but we don't do much after that. We don't pasteurize or boil it, and we don't filter it. If you hold our glass honey jar to the light, you can see different-colored bits of pollen suspended in golden honey.

The pollen also seems to rise to the top and stick to the lid of the jar. We encourage you to lick the lid (like the old Yoplait yogurt commercials) so you get to enjoy every bit of pollen packed in your jar!

Of course, there are many other reasons why we're special. I have a knack for finding four-leaf clovers, and Jeff works harder than anyone I know. We also have a wonderful little girl who likes living in the country and an old dog good at finding skunks but not catching them.

While that's not what the Bon Appétit writer wanted to know, those things make our honey special too. We like living simply and providing a simple product that's unpredictable and ephemeral — each year and each vintage a combination never to be repeated.

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A few articles about bees and honey:

"Most store-bought honey isn't honey at all, tests show" / source: MSN

"Studio Libertiny's vase made by bees" / source: Inhabitat.com