Honey Bees and Their Wondrous Products

Believe that many of these honey bees products that I am about to talk about here are what you have encountered on the shelves at one point or another during your shopping trips, but because you never really know what they are and what they do, you have never really stopped to take a second look. These seven very common products from the honey bees and their amazing benefits which I will be sharing will make you realise (as they have done to me) how indebted we humans are to these tireless creatures and the extent which their products are underused, understated, and sometimes even misunderstood.

1. Bee Pollen

Bee pollen is not the same as allergy-causing pollen that is carried by the wind. It rarely causes allergy symptoms. It is actually the male seed of a flower blossom which are collected by the honey bees and mixed with the bees' digestive enzymes. Bee pollen is low in calories but rich in proteins, amino acids, vitamins, minerals, enzymes, beneficial fatty acids, carbohydrates, and bioflavonoids which are anti-viral, antibacterial and helpful in lowering cholesterol, stabilising and strengthening capillaries. Its ability to rejuvenate the body, stimulates organs, enhances vitality and accelerate rate of recovery makes it a popular tonic among athletes and sportsmen. 

2. Bee Wax

beeswax beads image Bee wax or beeswax is a natural secretion from wax glands on the sides of the body of honey bees and is used primarily as a building block for the bees' honeycomb cells in which the young are raised and honey and pollen are stored. To stimulate the production of beeswax, the honey bees feed themselves with honey and huddle together to raise the temperature of the cluster.

The uses of beeswax are found in numerous products, including skin care products, candles, furniture polish, batik-making,etc. 

3. Royal Jelly

Royal jelly is the queen bee's extraordinary source of food. It is a blend of secretions from the salivary glands of the worker bee and contains a high concentration of vitamins B5, B6, and amino acids and is believed to be a potent antioxidant a special rejuvenating substance that promotes tissue growth, muscle and cell regeneration. 

4. Propolis

Honey bees collect sticky resins that ooze from the buds of some trees and conifers. After chewing them and mixing them with their saliva and other substances, Propolis or sometimes called "sticky glue" is formed. Propolis is of vital importance for the survival of the honey bees in the beehive. Not only does it protect them against diseases, it also helps fight against climatic changes, such as wind and cold. Because of its antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects, Propolis has been shown to have outstanding value for a wide variety of illnesses. It is also used as ointments for healing cuts and wounds.

5. Organic Honey

When I first saw organic honey on the shelves and its big price tag during my grocery shopping, I always wondered what it was and how different it was from the rest of honey varieties. It was only later that I found out that for honey to be certified organic, the manufacturer has to meet a set of very stringent organic standards and conditions during the honey production (set by a organic agriculture certification body), which include source of the nectar, honey bees foraging area, bees management, honey extracting process, transportation, processing temperature, and packaging materials. 

6. Mead

Mead, simply put is honey wine. It is the first alcoholic drink brewed by men, earlier than wine or beer. Today mead has evolved and expanded its flavours to include fruits such as blueberry and cherry, malt as well as various herbs and spices.

7. Bee Bread

What an interesting name, right? Bee Bread is actually the main source of food for most larvae and bees. It is fed to all larvae except those that are selected to become queens; the queen larvae are fed royal jelly instead. Comprised of all essential amino acids, high contents of vitamins especially vitamin K, enzymes, and flavanoids, bee bread is made of pollen mixed with bits of honey, bee wax, and bees'digestive enzymes and is known to be useful in treating anemia, hepatitis, insomnia, stress, failing memory, cholesterol and disgestive tract disorder. Nowadays, in the shop you can find bee bread specially made for promoting kids' physical and mental growth. Bee bread helps children in improving memory, weight gain and fights obesity.

Japanese Quail

Japanese quail are hardy birds that thrive in small cages and are inexpensive to keep. They are affected by common poultry diseases but are fairly disease resistant. Japanese quail mature in about 6 weeks and are usually in full egg production by 50 days of age. With proper care, hens should lay 200 eggs in their first year of lay. Life expectancy is only 2 to 2½ years. 

If the birds have not been subjected to genetic selection for bodyweight, the adult male quail will weigh about 100–140 g, while the females are slightly heavier, weighing from 120–160 g. 

The females are characterised by light tan feathers with black speckling on the throat and upper breast. The males have rusty brown throat and breast feathers. Males also have a cloacal gland, a bulbous structure on the upper edge of the vent that secretes a white, foamy material. This unique gland can be used to assess the reproductive fitness of the males.

Japanese quail eggs are a mottled brown colour and are often covered with a light blue, chalky material. Each hen appears to lay eggs with a characteristic shell pattern or colour. Some strains lay only white eggs. The average egg weighs about 10 g, about 8% of the bodyweight of the quail hen. Young chicks weigh 6–7 g when hatched and are brownish with yellow stripes. The shells are fragile, so handle with care.

Tips on Growing Gourds

Growing gourds is very like growing squash--with some important differences. The biggest difference is that with squash and pumpkins, you harvest at a much earlier stage. Most gardeners have had the experience of finding a giant zucchini that had hidden itself away until it was a giant--tough, stringy and not very good to eat. But with gourds, tough is good. What gives trouble to most new growers, and even some veterans of the gourd patch, is knowing when to harvest and how to cure.

CAN I GROW GOURDS?
Gourds prefer full sun and rich well-drained soil that is rich in organic material. Sow the seeds outdoors after all danger of frost has passed and the weather is warm. Sow seeds 1-2 inches deep in groups of 4 seeds, spacing in groups 5 feet apart in rows spaced 8 feet apart. Thin seedlings to 2 or 3 in each group when leaves develop. Gourds grow well on trellises or supports, keeping the fruits off the ground.

SEEDS OR PLANTS
Gourds are best grown from seed planted directly in the garden. You can start seed indoors 4-6 weeks before last frost in areas with shorter seasons.

CULTIVATION
Gourds need very little attention except to keep the plants from overwhelming each other and other garden plants.

GROWING TIPS
Squash plants need extra water during dry and hot periods. They grow quickly and will train nicely on a trellis, fence or other tall supports.

INSECTS & DISEASES
Large gourds are rarely bothered by insects and diseases. Small gourds can be susceptible to the same problems as cucumbers and pumpkins. Avoid planting in the same spot 2 years in a row to minimize the chance for disease.

HARVEST TIPS
Harvest small gourds as they begin to develop their full color and become hard to the touch. Many small gourds will dry and preserve. Harvest large gourds at frost time for decoration, they will not keep for drying.

How to Raise Geese

Feeding Geese
Goslings begin on starter crumbs, but by two months old good grass should be providing much of their ration. By four months, depending on the quantity and quality, they can survive on grass alone with perhaps some grain. In late summer to early fall, when the quality of grass diminishes, they will also require a balanced supplementary feed such as a finisher pellet if they are heading for the table. Breeding birds will need a breeder feed — a sitting goose cannot get her nutrition and still sit on the eggs. Don’t ever underfeed your birds — give them as much as they will clear up. Laying birds and young birds especially need extra food.

Grit for the gizzard to work properly will be available naturally to grazing geese, but it’s still best to put some out in a dry feeder.

Water for Geese
The heavy geese appreciate water that will hold their weight, but the lighter breeds can manage with a pool in which they can immerse themselves. Like ducks, they need to be able constantly to clean their heads by dipping them under water and be able to splash.

Housing Geese
The house must have sufficient headroom with ventilation above, and be solid, so that predators cannot get in. A strong wooden shed with wire windows sited where it is not exposed to strong sun would provide good, safe shelter, but you can also adapt small barns and existing buildings. The doorway must be wide enough to let more than one bird through at the same time. Use shavings or straw for bedding. Moldy bedding and poor ventilation will cause respiratory problems.

Geese Predators
Geese are at risk from predators, including comparatively small ones like mink or foxes, and they need protection, particularly at night when they must be shut up safely from dusk until the morning every day. During the day, predator-proof fencing may be needed around an orchard in some areas — use small mesh wire netting sunk into the ground and high enough with the top bent over to discourage climbers. You can also use electric fencing to deter predators. If they have access to natural water, watch out for water-based predators, including mink.

Geese Diseases
Geese suffer from bumble foot if they step on something sharp and the wound becomes infected, and this can be incurable. Prevention is better than cure, and geese do best if they are kept as naturally as possible but protected from predators. Correct feeding, watering and sufficient exercise will ensure this naturally hardy bird thrives.

Produce From Your Geese

Geese are large birds and are not at all easy to kill. You must make sure that you are able to slaughter your birds quickly and humanely. You must seek expert advice and guidance before you attempt to kill a goose.

If you want to save the down, the bird must be at least 16 weeks old and be dry plucked. They are hardest to pluck at 12 to 16 weeks, when they are molting their first set of juvenile feathers. However, many small-scale producers prefer wet plucking, when the bird is dunked into hot water for a couple of minutes. There are also plucking machines that you can use. Don’t underestimate the time it will take you to pluck your geese, at least when you are doing it for the first time.

Raising Ducks for Meat and Eggs

If you've raised chickens, you can raise ducks. And you might want to try it! We've talked about niche products as a good way for a small farm to make a business, and duck eggs and meat seem to be a new niche that is taking off rapidly.

Duck eggs are becoming more popular for a few reasons. First, there is more awareness now of duck eggs as an alternative to chicken eggs for those who are allergic. The same is true of duck meat.

Also, chefs and foodies have become more aware of the benefits of duck eggs for cooking. Their yolks are about twice the size of chicken eggs and the egg itself is larger than a chicken egg. The taste is richer and more intense, making them particularly delicious for pasta, mayo, or to serve soft-boiled. They also make baked goods richer and more moist and work particularly well in gluten-free baked goods.

Nutritionally, duck eggs pack more of a punch. Besides being a good choice for those allergic to chicken eggs (which is common), they have higher concentrations of vitamins and minerals, more protein, more fat and more cholesterol (not necessarily a bad thing).

Finally, duck eggs are used in traditional Asian cooking. An enterprising small farmer could sell directly to Asian grocery stores and restaurants.

Duck meat tastes richer than chicken, yet the white meat is slightly less calorie-dense and lower-fat.

While duck eggs and meat may never catch up to chicken, it does seem like the demand is increasing every year. Niche products can be really important for the bottom line of a small farm, and can enhance a homestead or hobby farm as well.

So consider raising ducks alongside your chickens. Ducks do, of course, need access to plenty of fresh water to swim in - a small wading pool will do, you don't need a pond. They do very well being raised on pasture. They also help with pest control, eating snails and slugs.

Just like chickens, there are heritage breeds as well as those that excel more at laying eggs, and others more suited for meat. Heritage breeds typically are dual-purpose, doing a pretty good job at both eggs and meat.

Ducks are hardier than chickens, too: they are more resistant to disease in general, although more prone to leg problems. They are also easier to handle and herd compared to chickens (ever tried to corral a flock of chickens into a coop at night? it's much easier with ducks). Ducks are rarely aggressive and they have easy-going, sunny personalities.

Here's another thing to know about ducks: all that water does not only muddy the ground around their pool, but their poop is moist, smelly and profuse.

Still, it seems like raising ducks is well worth a try for a small farmer already invested in poultry.

How to Plant Hops on the Small Farm

So, you've decided planting hops is the right choice for your small farm, and you've chosen your varieties and ordered your rhizomes. What's next?

You'll need to make sure you plan ahead, choosing and preparing your site carefully, building a trellis to support the hops bines, and preparing your soil for optimal growing results.

Choosing a Site for Growing Hops
When choosing your growing site, you should consider the following requirements of the hops plant.

Sunlight. Hops require lots of sunlight to grow well. Choose a southern exposure if possible, particularly if you're in the northern part of the world. Your planting spot should get at least six to eight hours of full sun daily.
Soil quality and drainage. Hops require a pH of 6.5 to 8.0 to grow well. Soil needs to be full of nurtients and well-amended. Hops need lots of moisture, but soil that is too wet will grow moldy and diseased, so you don't want soggy. Make sure your site has good drainage.
Room to climb. Hops bines grow to a minimum of twelve feet, and up to twenty-five feet or more! Commercial hops plantations in the United States typically use eighteen-foot trellis systems. More on your trellis system below, but it needs to be strong enough to bear the weight of the heavy bines, and to survive in whatever level of wind your site experiences.
Air but not too much wind. You want a spot with good air circulation to prevent mold and diseases and pest infiltration, but if it's too windy your hops will suffer. If needed, construct a windbreak, or choose a site that is not too windy.

Constructing Your Hops Trellis

Since hops are a tall-growing vine-like plant, you will need to construct some means of supporting the bines as they grow. The exact nature of the trellis depends on the specifics of your small farm layout. You may need to build a free-standing trellis. Typical shapes are either a T-shaped pole in the middle with twine coming down and out from the top of it, and a rectangular trellis with two supports on each side and a ladder-like horizontal top portion (like a swingset).

Be sure your supports are dug well into the ground, three feet deep at a minimum, and that they are in the ground in such a way that they won't fall over with the weight of your plants. Pour concrete around them if you can.

You will need to have your trellis constructed by the time your plants are six inches high, as they must be trained to grow up the trellis, so do not delay this part of your project! Have it done before you plant your rhizomes, ideally.

Each plant will weigh at least twenty or twenty-five pounds at maturity, so be sure your trellis can support this amount of weight (times the number of plants you will grow).

Sisal twine works well for hops plants; really anything that is strong and light will work.

Consider existing structures to grow hops on, such as along fences, garages, outbuildings or property lines.

Preparing Your Soil for Planting

Add lots of compost or well-rotted manure to your planting site. Check the pH of your soil and make sure it is in the 6 to 8 range.

Work the soil at least two feet deep and mix in any amendments well. Raise the surface of the bed above the ground level, making one hill per plant.

Planting Your Hops Rhizomes

Plant in early spring once the threat of frost has passed. Do not plant later than May. If you are in a zone that has late frosts, you may start your rhizomes in pots indoors and transplant in June.

You will want to space your hops plants about three feet apart. If you are growing different varieties, they should be at least five feet apart.

Plant each rhizome vertically, bud end up, or horizontally if you can't tell which side is the bud end. Cover with one inch of loose soil.

After planting, mulch thickly to keep in moisture and keep out pests and weeds.