Hill City Honey And BeeYond

02/12/2025

Snug as a bug in a rug!
Yes, we write notes and reminders to ourselves on the hives. 🐝

02/11/2025

I'm enjoying seeing the beeutiful snow-covered ground this morning… and this photo pops up from spring 2021. Instantly, I felt the sun and a slight warmness run through me. ❄️☀️

02/07/2025

The perfect pour!

01/27/2025

The 3lb bottle has been the bottle of choice here recently. 🍯
This is the first year for this exact “jug” for us ~ and I love it. Easy to handle.

01/18/2025

01/17/2025

Show me pictures of your small herb gardens. I envision growing fresh herbs in a large planter on my back porch.
Fresh rosemary, basil, chives, sage, mint.
I have mint and chives in random places but don't use these in our food.

Last year, you may remember, I was nursing a back injury and did minimal gardening and planting. This year, I am back! 🎉
Who is planning their gardens? Some energetic friends have started their seeds indoors. Are you planning flower beds? Pots of beeutiful blooms or increasing efforts to liven up your landscaped areas?

Remember to plant for pollinators and to have blooms throughout the seasons as much as possible.

This graphic is my list of suggestions for our location in Central VA.

Salvia thrives well in our yard, and honey bees love it. Lavender grows for us and tends to attract more bumble bees. The Bee Balm in my front yard attracts many varieties of pollinators.

Our deer and rabbit populations cannot be outsmarted, so I will incorporate more plants in pots and raised beds where I have more control of location… deck, porch, second-story porch. And that's okay—I love the wildlife, too.

*Do not underestimate wildflowers. They are excellent bee food/pollinator food and easy to grow.

*Some of those first spring ”weeds” provide for our hungry pollinators.

Avoid using chemicals and toxins around your house.

📷 Share your pictures of plans, buds, garden sheds, and potting benches.

01/08/2025

❄️❄️❄️Brr. It’s cold! A common question is why did my honey crystallize?

The simple response - Honey crystallizing is a natural process.
(You may notice the bottles at big box stores often don’t)

Real 🍯 honey will crystallize at some point. The sugars - mainly glucose will granulate, especially at lower temperatures.
Here in central Virginia it’s cold! Electricity is out for some and it’s cold inside too.
While crystallized honey is perfectly safe to consume - you can warm it to restore its liquid form without losing its beneficial nutrients.

👍Safely warm crystallized honey with a “Water Bath” - Use a pot, bowl, glass jar, or container with crystallized honey.
1. Fill a pot with warm water (not boiling; around 95-100°f). Keep the honey temperature under 95°.
2. Place the jar(s) of crystallized honey in the pot, ensuring the water level is below the lid to prevent water from getting into the honey.
3. Let it sit for 10-20 minutes, stirring occasionally until the honey becomes liquid again.
4. Remove it from the water bath and stir to ensure uniformity.

🍯Tips
Never boil honey or expose it to high temperatures, as higher temperatures can destroy benefits and reduce flavor.
Do not microwave.

Glass vs. Plastic
Glass containers are preferable when warming. If you have plastic containers transfer it to glass.

💪 With a little effort, you can effectively return crystallized honey to its liquid state while preserving its natural qualities and nutrients.

🥄 Spoon or dip out crystallized honey OR enjoy it in its crystallized state.
😊 One customer asks for crystallized honey; she prefers to spoon it into her hot tea more in a lump.

01/01/2025

I appreciate your support of BeeUniQ/ Hill City Honey. I'm looking forward to the new year and all that it will bring. The easy things are good, and the hard things are challenges. Faith, family, and friends will get it done!
Does anyone have a word for this year you would like to share?
For a change, I didn’t pick one. I have no resolutions. Of course, I have ideas and goals - here is to our new year.

12/22/2024

Something amazing about seeing blooms. Even more amazing when bees, butterflies, and other pollinators take much needed joy in your efforts.

12/14/2024

Happily still filling orders.
Shipping 📦 and porch pickups. 🏠
Questions - please let me know.
👉

Hello honey bee enthusiast. Creating a buzz on honey bee awareness. A UniQ twist on the old general store with a variety of sweet & uniq items while sparking conversations to keep spreading the buzz.

12/04/2024

Lip Balms in all the flavors.