Shedding Light on the Candle's History

For centuries, candles have cast a light on man's progress. However, many people aren't aware of the origin of candles, named for the Latin word "candere," which means "to shine." Although it is often written that the first candles were developed by the Ancient Egyptians who used rushlights, or torches, made by soaking the pithy core of reeds in molten tallow, the rushlights had no wick, like today's modern candles. It is the Romans who are credited with developing the wick candle, using it to aid travelers at dark, and lighting homes and places of worship at night.

Like the early Egyptians, the Romans relied on tallow, gathered from cattle or sheep suet (lard), as the principal ingredient of candles. It was not until the Middle Ages when beeswax, a substance secreted by honey bees to make their honeycombs, was introduced. Beeswax candles were a marked improvement over those made with tallow, for they did not produce a smoky flame, or emit an acrid odor when burned. Instead, beeswax candles burned pure and clean. However, they were expensive, and therefore, only the wealthy could afford them.

Colonial women offered America's first contribution to candlemaking when they discovered that boiling the grayish green berries of bayberry bushes produced a sweet-smelling wax that burned clean. However, extracting the wax from the bayberries was extremely tedious. As a result, the popularity of bayberry candles soon diminished.

The growth of the whaling industry in the late eighteenth century brought the first major change in candlemaking since the Middle Ages, when spermaceti, a wax obtained by crystallizing whale oil, was produced. This new wax did not elicit a repugnant odor when burned. Furthermore, spermaceti wax was found harder than both tallow and beeswax, which meant that it did not soften or bend in the summer heat. Historians note that the first "standard candles" were made from spermaceti wax.

It was during the nineteenth century when most major developments affecting contemporary candlemaking occurred. In 1834, inventor Joseph Morgan introduced a machine which allowed continuous production of molded candles by the use of a cylinder which featured a movable piston that ejected candles as they solidified. Further developments in candlemaking occurred in 1850 with the production of paraffin wax made from oil and coal shales.

Processed by distilling the residues left after crude petroleum was refined, the bluish-white paraffin wax was found to burn cleanly, and with no unpleasant odor. Of greatest significance was its cost - paraffin wax was more economical to produce than any preceding candle fuel developed. And while paraffin's low melting point may have posed a threat to its popularity, the discovery of stearic acid solved this problem. Hard and durable, stearic acid was being produced in quantity by the end of the nineteenth century. By this period, most candles being manufactured consisted of paraffin and stearic acid.

With the introduction of the light bulb in 1879, candlemaking declined until the turn of the century, when a renewed popularity for candles emerged, with candles more as a novelty than a necessity. It was probably at this point that candles began to be seen as a decorating accessory that also had a lot of function. Early electric systems would often find themselves succumbing to weather and other difficulties, make candles a useful tool to keep handy.

Candle manufacturing was further enhanced during the first half of the twentieth century through the growth of U.S. oil and meat-packing industries. Along with the increase of crude oil and meat production came an increase in the by-products that are the basic ingredients of contemporary candles - paraffin and stearic acid. A surplus of these ingredients helped keep candles affordable for everyone - including those who could not pay their electric bill.

No longer man's major source of light, candles continue to grow in popularity and use even more so today. As we approach the new century, candles continue to symbolize celebration, mark romance, define ceremony and accent decor - casting a warm and unique glow for all to enjoy.

Source: The National Candle Association, 2001
Melissa Fabel/Robin Russo

June/July at the Honey Farm

All the rain we had in May & June made it difficult to get in to some of our Honeybee Yards and we had to borrow a small 4 wheeler ATV to get in to some of them - But the rain made for some very strong plant growth that should help our honey crop.

In June we check all the hives to see if the queen cells that we installed in May worked ok. If a hive was queenless at this point, I usually give them a frame of eggs from a nearby hive for them to make their own replacement queen. Honey supers are added at this time to give them a place to put the spring honey that they collected.

In July we will put another round of honey supers on the bee hives - & sometimes they get really tall.

We also started using a "fog" of "Food Grade Mineral Oil and
Thymol" (an herb). This is a more natural treatment more Varroa Mites that have been killing most hives in the last 10 years. This fog is sprayed into the front of the hives every few weeks or so with a "mosquito fogger."

 

ARS Discovers Varroa Control Trait

Agricultural Research Service entomologists have discovered that some bees have a built-in defense against Varroa mites - a trait that can be bred into a bee population. Known as SMR ("suppressed mite reproduction"), the trait protects bees by keeping Varroa mites from reproducing.    

Although acaricides control varroa mites in colonies of honey bees, use of chemicals endangers bees and hive products. Bee breeders strive to reduce exposure of bees to chemicals by developing stocks of bees that resist the mites. Towards that goal, we began breeding bees for resistance to varroa mites more than five years ago. Our project focused on finding varroa-resistance in honey bees from the U.S.

Initially, we found no bees that could survive varroa infestation without chemical control. Short field tests (Figure 1) were used to carefully measure growth of bee and mite populations in colonies that had genetically different queens. We defined resistance as the ability of a colony of bees to significantly limit growth of mite populations below the average colony. In any group of colonies, there is considerable variation in the rate of growth of mite populations. We hoped that small genetic differences between colonies of bees mediated differences in growth of mite populations.

We needed lines of bees that consistently and predictably limited the growth of varroa mite populations before identifying genetic traits related to resistance. Our strategy was to use queens from colonies of bees that significantly limited mite growth as breeder queens. Virgin queens and drones were raised from several different breeder queens. Then various combinations of drones and queens were made using instrumental insemination to control the matings (Figure 2). The newly inseminated queens were tested for varroa resistance in short field tests during the following season. The best queens were again chosen as breeders. The entire process was repeated through several generations until the ability to limit growth of varroa mite populations had been enhanced.

Click here for the rest of the article on the USDA website .....

 

A Spoonful of Honey Helps!

from Honey.com

When it comes to soothing throats, singers have known for generations that a spoonful of honey would sweeten their performance. You don’t have to sing an aria to appreciate the soothing benefits of honey—yelling at a football game can strain your voice and lead to a sore throat.

According to the American Association of Family Physicians, many things can cause a sore throat. These include infections with viruses, such as colds and flu; sinus drainage; allergies; or cigarette smoking, among others. Sore throats caused by bacteria such as streptococci, are usually treated with antibiotics. Always check with your doctor if you have a fever, or if symptoms continue for more than a few days.

Time is the most important healer of sore throats caused by viruses, but for relief of the irritating symptoms, try a spoonful of honey to soothe and coat your throat. Take a spoonful straight, as often as you need, to relieve the irritation. In between, keep up your liquids with a steaming cup of tea sweetened with honey. For added vitamin C, try mixing in orange, grapefruit or lemon juice. (Try a Honey-Citrus Soother.)

Honey, nature’s soother, is more than just sweet. A recent review of scientific literature revealed that honey contains antioxidants and, although in trace amounts, a wide array of vitamins, minerals and amino acids. Honey contributes to a persons overall intake of recommended nutrients. Sweeteners, such as refined sugar, offer no additional nutrients. Be aware, of course, that honey should not be fed to infants under one year of age. Honey is a safe and wholesome food for older children and adults.

Eating honey regularly, not just when colds and flu strike, makes good nutritional sense. There are approximately 300 varieties of honey in the United States. In general, lighter -colored honeys are milder tasting, while darker-colored honeys are bolder in flavor. Darker honeys also tend to have a higher mineral content and antioxidant potential.

From Honey.com

From our readers

This is a section for comments/questions/recipes from our readers. Please read the comments & feel free to put your 2 cents worth in.

Please send me your comments ......

Visit the Readers Comments page to view all the content of these messages. Here are samples of this months e-mails:  

Grape leaves,  ••  Raw honey,  ••  Purchasing grape vines,  ••  Growing vines questions,  ••  Observation hive

The "From our Readers" Page

Candle W*nner & Laugh of the Month

July candle winner: timtoolman173@yahoo.com


Will this months w*nner,
timtoolman173@yahoo.com
please contact us and send your address so that I can ship your candles.

Our list of previous candle w*nners.

---

Click below for something silly to end this newsletter with.

Laugh of the month: 30 Animal to Find

See You Next Month!

Honeyflow Farm Main Page

Honeyflow Farm
4939 Mill Rd.    PO Box 275
Dryden, Michigan 48428
(810) 796-2344 (Phone & Fax)

Comments or questions concerning Honeyflow Farm should be addressed to wcs@honeyflowfarmREMOVETHISBIT.com