Jean shares her observations as honey season winds down
The goldenrod is one of the first fall flowers to begin blooming, and it marks the end of the honey season for beekeepers. We’ve been busy behind-the-scenes in preparation for Honeyfest. Volunteer beekeeper Bob Wolff has removed the surplus honey from the hives, and at Honeyfest you’ll meet beekeepers using a centrifuge to extract the honey from the comb.
The bees, meanwhile, are continuing to stay busy in the field. They are collecting pollen right now from wingstem, and the new England aster is just beginning to bloom. The field bees will continue harvesting nectar and pollen until early frosts kill the flowers.
As winter descends on Iowa, the bees will cluster together in the hive to stay warm, eating the honey they have produced throughout the season.