Thursday, May 10, 2012

Honey Bees

What's your favorite type of honey? Growing up, I had no clue that honey came in different colors and consistencies. I just remember getting the honey in the bear-shaped plastic bottle from the grocery store.

Being in Philadelphia for the past four years has opened up my eyes to ever changing varieties and flavors of honey. Just last year, a couple of local companies began selling the golden nectar by the zip code so customers could taste honey made in the hives of the buzzing bees on their neighbors rooftops. Cool, right?

The sweet taste of honey and the important role of honey bees in the ecosystem has sparked the literary creativity of Philadelphia urban beekeeper, Anaiis Salles. Salles' new book, The Day the Honey Bees Disappeared, is a lovely story of young Berta, who learns a valuable lesson in her grandfather's California almond fields about the part honey bees play in maintaining balance in nature. Berta learns a sad but empowering lesson on why we must keep honey bees safe from harmful pesticides.

Here's to keeping our food free of pesticide poison and our bees busy producing their healthy healing nectar! Honey and buttermilk biscuits anyone?

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