Bees!

The bee observation frame in our store. Come see the queen!
The beekeeper inspecting a hive
Inside the hive the bees are always busy with something
We have 15 hives tucked away for our hundreds of thousands little friends.
Ben Chadwick loads up the observation frame. Don't try this at home.
And if pollination wasn't enough, these girls make a tasty treat as well.

At Cider Hill Farm, we love our bees.
Without them, most of our crops would suffer with poor set as bees are essential for good pollination. It is estimated that 80% of world fruit and vegetable production depends on bee pollination.

See them Working
We have an observation in the store which is an actual working colony complete with queen. Our long-time friend, and beekeeper Ben Chadwick, helps us maintain this observation area as well as 15 hives up our hill in a large grove of trees.

In their single-minded push to feed the hive, bees will fly every waking moment to gather nectar and pollen for energy and protein sources. They will literally fly their wings off in 6 weeks during periods of high bloom.

In the observation hive, you will see many nurse bees around the queen, attending to her every need and whim as she lays thousands of eggs. You will see bees just coming in from a gathering flight excitedly shaking their abdomens as they communicate the coordinates and distance to a promising food source to any nearby bee. There are bees that fan the cells with their wings to condense the nectar into honey. There are bees that feed the young.

You may even notice the larger bees that are scattered throughout the hive that seem to be, and in fact, are doing nothing. These are the only males in the hive, affectionately called drone bees. Their only purpose is to fly one time when a new queen is produced to try to be one of the few that can out fly the rest and mate with her. This might be necessary once a year. After this flight, all drones are driven out of the hive, as they become completely useless.

Some interesting facts about bees