Author Archives: brookfieldfarmhoney

About brookfieldfarmhoney

Brookfield Farm, a small off-grid apiary in Maple Falls, WA focuses on the beauty and bounties of Washington’s wilderness. I sell honey from our bees, whose naturally-treated, antibiotic-free hives are home to bees who fly Washington’s mountains and farmlands. Herbal salves and lip balms from Brookfield beeswax. Delicately infused honeys and vinegars. Varietal honeys from independent Washington beekeepers. Karen Edmundson Bean: beekeeper, photographer. Her love of the wilderness inspires her to discover new ways of bringing the wonders of nature to others. Brookfield Farm : the tastes, textures, sounds, and images of nature.

Winter Bee Hives Losses and Lessons

Posted on March 26, 2015 by brookfieldfarmhoney

I have now gone though all my hives. My last post was about what that entailed. This post is about the results, what I saw for good and for bad, and the result of an experiment. The Overall Results This … Continue reading →

Posted in 1 Beekeeping | Tagged bees, Brookfield Farm, failure, fungus, honeybees, Maple Falls, over winter, queen, results, Washington | 4 Comments

Checking and Manipulating Hives in late winter

Posted on February 20, 2015 by brookfieldfarmhoney

The sun finally broke out, temperatures went into the low 50F’s so I finally got out to the hives to check them for honey stores, a bit of hive manipulation, and to put in their essential oil patties. The sun … Continue reading →

Posted in 1 Beekeeping, 4 Hive Components, 8 Brookfield Farm & Bees, 9 Brookfield Farm Bee Yards | Tagged bee, bees, Brookfield Farm, cleaning, hive, honey bound, honeybees, how to, manipulation, Maple Falls, Washington | 8 Comments

Making Bee Patties at Brookfield Farm

Posted on January 30, 2015 by brookfieldfarmhoney

Twice a year my bees get some essential oils in their diets. The aim is for general health, to strengthen their immune systems and to combat varroa mites, from the inside. Before I go any further, let me say there … Continue reading →

Posted in 1 Beekeeping, 2 Diseases/Pests/Treatments | Tagged bee, Brookfield Farm, essential oil, honeybees, how to, making, Maple Falls, patties, patty, recipe, Washington | 2 Comments

Barn Cats / Hive Cats : Indispensable

Posted on January 14, 2015 by brookfieldfarmhoney

Barn Cats – I could not run the farm or the bees without them. They keep the mice out of the barn with its myriad of places for mice to live and thrive. They patrol the bee yard, to help … Continue reading →

Posted in 1 Beekeeping, 9 Brookfield Farm Bee Yards | Tagged barn, beekeepers cats, bees, Brookfield Farm, cats, hive, Maple Falls, protection, Washington | 6 Comments

Honeybee Food Foraging : Where? Why? How Far?

Posted on December 16, 2014 by brookfieldfarmhoney

I get asked a lot at market: how do you know that the bees actually went to “that” honey. “That” honey may be Buckwheat, Alfalfa/Wildflower, Fireweed/Wildflower, or Wildflowers of particular regions in Washington State. Really it is all about flight … Continue reading →

Posted in 1 Beekeeping, 6 Honeybees -interesting stuff, Honeybees - interesting stuff | Tagged bees, Brookfield Farm, feeding, flight distance, forage, honeybees, how, Maple Falls, Washington, where forage | 5 Comments

How Do Honeybees Smell?

Posted on November 5, 2014 by brookfieldfarmhoney

How honeybees detect smells, things that affect those senses, how humans are using bees sense of smell Continue reading →

Posted in Honeybee Biology, Honeybees - interesting stuff | Tagged beekeeping, bees, biology, Brookfield Farm, honeybees, how, Maple Falls, scent, smell, Washington | 7 Comments

How Much Honey Per Hive?

Posted on October 17, 2014 by brookfieldfarmhoney

How much honey per hive in western Washington state. General information, factors that affect harvest, amounts from 2014 harvest. Continue reading →

Posted in 1 Beekeeping, 92 Honey | Tagged 2014, Brookfield Farm, harvest, honey, honey per hive, Maple Falls, state, Washington, western | 8 Comments

Extracting Honey at Brookfield Farm 2014

Posted on September 25, 2014 by brookfieldfarmhoney

The last post was about harvesting honey, so what else could follow but one about honey extraction at Brookfield Farm? There’s not really much to say other than : Decap Honey (still with a hot knife), Put honey in extractor, … Continue reading →

Posted in Honey Extraction, Wilderness Walking | Tagged 2014, beekeeping, Brookfield Farm, extracting, honey, Maple Falls, pack goats, Washington | Leave a comment

Harvesting Honey, Treating Hives

Posted on September 13, 2014 by brookfieldfarmhoney

I have been pulling honey and putting thymol on the hives this last week. This blog’s been silent for quite a few weeks. July and August simply got out of control. Busy Times: July to August In general I was: … Continue reading →

Posted in 1 Beekeeping, 2 Diseases/Pests/Treatments, 8 Brookfield Farm & Bees, 9 Brookfield Farm Bee Yards | Tagged 8 Brookfield Farm & Bees, bee, beekeeping, Brookfield Farm, harvest, hive, honey, how to, Maple Falls, Mount Baker, natural, pack goats, treatments, Washington | 4 Comments

Cutting Grass in Bee Yards

Posted on June 18, 2014 by brookfieldfarmhoney

As spring moves into summer here in northwest Washington, the grass grows – with authority. What looked like a tidy-ish bee yard one week can be a jungle two weeks later. So armed with my trusty power scythe, I headed … Continue reading →