New E-Commerce site is now on line, Additional changes to site have been made.

We finally have the new e-commerce program up and running. It is a program installed on our own server called "Quikstore." It will allow us a lot more flexibility. Some of the main things I like about it are:

More accurate shipping rates - It will actually go to the USPS & UPS sites to automatically figure the charges.

A search engine that you can enter candle info into.

New Items - more cinnamon & bayberry candles.

Since I can manipulate the pages, I can make any detailed changes that I like rather than be contrained to only what was available on the old program.

We can also now take Amercan Express and Discover card now.

 

Not everything is moved over yet. We still have a few things like Nativity Sets that we have not created the new pages yet, but we still have them.

Try Our New Search Page!
You can search by an image or by entering text.

We are also in the process of giving our whole site a new "paint job." All the pages will eventually have a new look. The Honeyfarm & Candle Shop are finished now. The rest will come later.

May at the Honey Farm - Package Bees are installed, Queen rearing is started, 7 Ponds Beekeeper Club Update

Family members are getting a close look at the honeybees on our kitchen table.

 

May at the Honey Farm - We just received and installed 25 package bees from Georgia. Many were installed in a new bee yard at "Millers Big Red Orchard" in Romeo Michigan.

Click here to see package bees being installed.

 

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This month we will also start raising new queen bees from 2 breeder queens from Glenn Apiaries in California. These are special SMR mite resistant queens (1 Russian & 1 Carniolan) that we will use to raise new queens for the splits (new colonies) that we will make in May. This is another way to replace losses and also to improve the genetic quality of our colonies.

We use small cages, part of the "Jenter" queen raising system, that the queen is put into for one day (we call it day 1).

On the 5th day (day 5) small plastic cells on the back of the cage are removed with 1 day old larvae from our breeder queens. 20 - 30 of them are put on a frame and put into a queenless "cell builder hive".

After the queen cells are sealed (about day 10) the cells are carefully removed and taken to new colonies that need new queens. They hatch out on day 17.

Click here for queen cell pictures.

(This is a somewhat simplified explanation)

In May we go through all of our hives to check for strength and make replacements by making splits (make one colony into 2) This is where we use a lot of our new queen cells. This allows us to introduce better strains of mite resistant blood lines into our colonies.

 

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The "7 Ponds Beekeepers Club" just had it's third meeting and there were more than 30 people in attendance. It is loosely affiliated with South Eastern Michigan Beekeepers Association.

It was held in 7 Ponds Nature Center, an affiliate of the Michigan Audubon Society, located in Dryden Township, Lapeer County, Michigan - only a few miles from us.

This month, Roger Sutherland, from SEMBA had a demonstration about bee sting allergies.

It's mission statement is to "Educate Beginning Beekeepers Through Mentoring Programs." It is a really great opportunity for new and seasoned beekeepers to meet. They get together the 4th Tuesday of the month from 7:30 to 9:00 p.m. For more information you can contact myself or Nancy Schleibe at 1-810-395-7379.

 

Antioxidant Research Captures Media Interest

With funding from the National Honey Board, Heidrun B. Gross, nutrition researcher, and others at the University of California at Davis have been analyzing honey's effects on antioxidants. Information about the study has appeared in several leading publications

31/03/2004
A small US study on honey, a food consumed by mankind for thousands of years, suggests daily consumption of this sweet ingredient could be a good source of protective antioxidant compounds for the human body, writes Dominique Patton.

Biochemist Heidrun Gross and colleagues from the University of California, Davis fed 25 study participants about four tablespoons each of buckwheat honey daily for 29 days in addition to their regular diets. The volunteers were divided into two groups receiving honey that provided different amounts of polyphenols - compounds found in fruits, vegetables and seeds that have been linked to a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer.
The researchers drew blood samples from the participants at given intervals following honey consumption. They found that there was a direct link between the honey consumption and the level of polyphenolic antioxidants in the plasma.

Polyphenols have been shown to have antioxidant properties, supporting use of honey as a functional food.

Previous research had shown that a single dose of honey can boost antioxidants, but the new research is thought to be the first study of daily honey consumption.

Results were presented last weekend at a meeting of the American Chemical Society in Anaheim, California.

May Honey Recipe - from Honey.com

	Sweet Summer Fruit Smoothie - Makes 2 servings - 1 - 8 oz.container vanilla low-fat yogurt 1-1/2 cups peeled, sliced ripe peaches, nectarines or other fruits 2 Tablespoons honey 1/4 cup wheat germ
Place all ingredients in blender container; cover. Blend or process on high speed about 1 minute or until smooth. Pour smoothie into 2 glasses and, if desired, sprinkle with additional wheat germ. Note: For a thicker, frosty smoothie, freeze fruit overnight. Use frozen fruit as directed above.
Nutritional Information Per Serving Calories: 260 Calories from fat: 25 Fat: 3g Saturated Fat: 1g Cholesterol: 5mg Sodium: 75mg Carbohydrates: 54g Fiber: 4g Protein: 11g

Do you have a great honey recipe - please send it to us and we will put it in our newsletter.

Candle W*nner & Laugh of the Month

May candle winner: mochakasem@earthlink.net


Will this months w*nner,
mochakasem@earthlink.net
please contact us and so that I can ship your candles.

Our list of previous candle w*nners.

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Click below for something silly to end this newsletter with.

Kaleidoscope

See You Next Month!

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

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