Page 64 - Cityview_May_June_2014

WELLnESS SPOTLIGHT

GET A BUzz FROM
your salad? used in Asian dishes for affair that spans over half a century.
centuries, daylily buds and blossoms Started by a father and son team, Bill HONEY BEES

contain almost as much protein as and Stewart oakes, the farm grew
nben’s bees
spinach, more vitamin A than beans, from their love of gardening and their There wouldn’t be any flowers

and as much vitamin C as oranges. The frustration with the limited selection of without bees, who are vital as
nutty flavor and delicate texture can lilies at the time. The farm now grows pollinators. A honey bee visits up

be a colorful and healthy addition to across 50 acres of colorful day lilies and to 100 flowers during a collection
your salad. You can also saut́ buds and takes pride in providing beautiful, large trip, generating only one twelfth of

season them with herbs for a delicious plants both locally and internation- a teaspoon of honey in its lifetime.
side dish. Just keep in mind that lilies ally. You can order from a catalog or So it’s a good thing that a colony of

are diuretic—so eat in moderation.
visit the farm during the annual Bloom bees consists of 20,000 to 60,000
The oaks Daylily farm is a family
festival, June 27 and 28.
honeybees, in additon to its queen. And

the distinctive buzz? The honeybee’s
wings beat 11,400 times per minute!

how did Ben’s Bees get started?
owner Ben Volk had a problem. he

wanted to grow tomatoes—but the
tomatoes didn’t pollinate and died. So

Volk decided to purchase a few hives of
bees. “Come to find out that honey bees

don’t even pollinate tomato plants,”
says Ben. “however, they do so much

work that they create more food for the
other bees—who do tend to tomatoes!”

Volk turned his gardening dillema
into a bee-keeping hobby and then into

a full-time ocupation when his son
was born seven years ago. “I enjoyed

the fact that I could spend quality
time with my son—while providing

‘bee rental’ services to the farms in the
area.” Ben is a certified state apiary

inspector and President of the Knox
County Beekeepers Association. In ad-

dition to hive rental services, Ben also
offers swarm removal services. he also

sells honey, beeswax candles (plain or
lemongrass), and lip balm (peppermint

or tangerine).
What is it like working with bees?

Volk keeps a couple of hives in his yard.
When he was about 4 years old, Volk’s

son ran over to the hives and then
started banging on the sides. of course,

the bees came out to see who was
bothering them. Volk ran out to save

his son from being stung—but since
the bees naturally go towards a moving

object, Volk ended up being chased by
angry bees—while his son laughed and

laughed. “got you, daddy!” could be
heard over the buzzing!

62 cityviewmag.com
may june 2014