Ancient Egypt and Honey Bees

I've just come back from a visit to Toronto, Ontario where many of the King Tut treasures are on exhibit until mid April 2010.

So what does this have to do with honey bees? Well a lot actually.

(Look carefully at the carvings on the side in the photo - see the honey bee?)

The older I get the more I'm learning that the statement is true: "To know the future, look at the past."

It seems that many things from times past come around again, and for good reason. Take the ancient Egyptian use of honey as a medicine.
Doctors around the globe today are now going back to use this ancient medicine--honey.

Honey bandages are made for the medical community to use on infections that are resistant to antibiotics.


(The side of this child's board game shows honey bee and scarab hieroglyphs).


Many diabetics suffering from foot ulcers that would not respond to our traditional treatments were healed quickly and easily with the application of these bandages.

In the book on the historical biography of honey called Robbing the Bees, the author Holly Bishop shares a recipe written by the Greek physician Hippocrates that advises using honey to dress wounds and for sore throats.

You see, honey naturally produces hydrogen peroxide which makes it an antibacterial product and it acts like a preservative for meats and fruits. Antioxidants, amino acids and vitamins help to reduce inflammation and the regeneration of the skin.

The oldest medicine book in the world is the Egyptian Papyrus Ebers found in 1873. It contains a collection of 800 medical problems, diagnoses and recipes, half of which call for the use of honey.

(We weren't allowed to take photos so these are some taken from the tour book I purchased in the gift shop).

The Egyptian Pharohs put all that they valued into their tombs and they valued honey. Honey combs were found thousands of years later inside these Egyptian tombs.

These sealed honeycombs were found to have still edible honey inside them. The honey had not gone bad. Because honey doesn't go bad.

King Tut's tomb was partially robbed of its treasure right after burial but the thieves were stopped and the tomb resealed.

A new king then removed the records of King Tut's existence which actually ended up bringing about the preservation of the tomb as everyone forgot he existed.

His tomb was discovered 3,000 years later in 1922 by Howard Carter. For more information on this king and the amazing treasure visit Wikepedia.

Better yet, come and visit Toronto and see the exhibit yourself.

Hmmm... Eat It or Wear It?

I generally don't believe in coincidences. So I wasn't surprised when I bumped into a very good friend of mine who was in need.

She was stuck waiting a year for an appointment with a dermatologist, suffering greatly with itchy, scaly red patches on her upper arms. I'm an aesthetician and so I've seen a few skin conditions in my day.

It won't be confirmed until she sees the dermatologist but it sure looked like a classic case of psoriasis. Red, thick, raised skin that itches and hurts at the same time. She really was suffering and upset at how unsightly it looked.

She'd tried cortisone creams but they were thinning the skin too much. And so she waits and suffers, worrying because it won't heal or go away.

If you're a beekeeper I bet you knew what I told her to put on those sores. Yes, honey. And that's exactly what I said.

Doctors with patients with diabetic ulcers that won't respond to antibiotics are now returning to ancient medicine that really works--honey bandages. Honey - that anti-inflammatory anti-bacterial natural product that's an absolute God send. Made by little bugs. Amazing little bugs.

Here's a totally natural and edible recipe for a skin ointment to put on cuts, scrapes, wounds, acne, and sore skin (excluding burns which should have nothing put on them).

The focus is to stay away from anything that might irritate the damaged, inflamed skin so that meant no essential oils or perfumes or colours could be added.

Recipe:
Use equal parts of the following:

1. Raw unpasteurized honey
2. Olive Oil
3. Beeswax

Optional is Vitamin E caplets (cut open with the oil squirted into the mixture)

Several heat proof, preferably glass containers to put the ointment in. I really like to use the squat wide mouth mason jars that you can buy at the grocery store.

Directions:

First, get the jars ready to receive. Once that mixture is hot and ready to pour you need them ready. The mixture will cool amazingly fast the second it's off the stove.

Create a double boiler: This is easily done by using a 3" deep pot with water in it. Then place inside that a heat-proof Pyrex Mixing bowl or any other heat proof container such as a second pot.

Set the pot on a medium/mid-low temperature so that the water will boil but not overflow.

Add the 1/3 wax first and wait for it to melt, stirring occasionally. Remember that the flash point for wax is 170 Celsius so never let it get too hot or leave it unattended on the stove.

Once the wax is melted add the 1/3 Olive Oil and stir thoroughly. You'll probably see a colour change to a golden colour as it is added.

Finally add the 1/3 Raw Honey to the mix and stir until the whole is well blended. This could take a bit of stirring. Make sure you get all the lumps out and that the honey is blended in.

Once evenly mixed, pour immediately into heat proof glass containers and leave to cool thoroughly.

This ointment tastes great and is delicious to use as lip balm. It quickly heals up cracked knuckles caused by winter weather and the honey attracts moisture to replenish dry skin.

The thickness and spreadability of the ointment is reliant on how much wax and how much oil so there's lots of room to add a little more of one or the other to adjust the thickness of the cream. Careful though to not add too much wax or you'll be making a candle. (That happened my first attempt because I didn't measure the wax and used too much). It's easily solved by remelting everything and adding more olive oil.

For psoriasis - apply to the affected area 3 times a day for three weeks. BUT FIRST DO A TEST PATCH. It's just wisdom. Yes, the ingredients are very benign but just in case, start off by only treating a small area to see how it does.

You may want to even check the progress by taking before and after photos of the skin. Another way to test the results is to treat half the area and leave the other half untreated and then compare results.

And since you're melting wax, you may as well make another candle!!

We could all use a little light in our lives.

Got a Match? I've got a Beeswax Candle

This is not the Great Wall in Beijing. Neither is it Crocus's gold. No, this is even better. These are beautiful bricks of beeswax (from Dave's apiaries - I didn't have enough wax from my hives).

This project: Making Beeswax Candles using a silicon mold

I've never done this before so should I start with what I did wrong? :)

First a warning--no I didn't burn my house down or start a fire but if you want to try this you should know that beeswax will ignite if it reaches over 170 degrees Celsius so always be sure to watch the temperature setting on your melting device.

Some people use a microwave to melt their wax. I had a spare crock pot so I put my brick of wax in it set on Low.

The advice I got is that fatter candles are easier to make than tapered ones. Personally I find small or skinny candles burn down quickly so I used a 3x6" pillar mold.

Equipment Needed:

*Large chunks of wax to melt

*Heat Proof Pouring Container
A clean used tin can pinched with a pour spout or better yet a glass Pyrex measuring cup with the spout works great. Either way, don't burn your hands on the hot container.

*Wick
The thicker the candle the thicker the wick will need to be. Push the wick up from the hole in the bottom of the mold.

*Metal Wick Holders
These aren't mandatory but they help to hold the wick at the bottom of the candle. I think that's the part I did wrong - I put the metal bit at the bottom of the mold but I think it should go at the top. In other words, the bottom of the mold ends up being the top of the candle.

*Silicon Molds (mine is a fat pillar)
Other heat proof molds can be used made of metal, rubber, etc.

*Metal Coffee Filter (optional)
Use if the wax is dirty to filter prior to pouring. I didn't use it.

*Large Bobby Pins or Popsicle Sticks
They hold the wick at the center of the candle.

Directions

Melt the Wax
Remove dirt & debris if any
Dirt will sink to the bottom
Place the beeswax along with a wax thermometer into the pot and let it get to about 170 degrees (no higher than that!).

Steps to Prepare the Mold:

Spray the inside of the mold.
A spray release of some kind is needed or the candle will stick itself inside the mold and be too difficult to remove. Spray Pam cooking spray (found in your local grocery store) inside the mold before pouring. It aids with the release. I think another beekeeper said she uses dish soap but I'd have to confirm that.

Note: The Pam spray didn't coat the inside evenly which I think contributed to the uneven surface of the candle. See photo showing the uneven surface. (I didn't care, this was a fun project).

Insert the Wick
Keeping wicks straight can be an issue - I saw bobbie pins, popsicle sticks and elastics being used to hold the wicks upright. I used a metal knitting stitch holder.

Pour the Wax
If the wax has debris, a metal coffee filter (purchase at the grocery store) can be used to filter the wax. I used a glass Pyrex cup with a pour spout.

Pour the beeswax into the mold. Pour it slowly to avoid air bubbles from developing in the liquid beeswax. The wax cools amazingly quickly.

Tap the outside of the mold to release any trapped air.

Let the beeswax cool and harden. The larger the mold, the more time will be needed for the wax to harden.


Release the Candle from the Mold
Once the candle has hardened, put the candle, mold and all into the freezer for 10 or more minutes first. It helps with the release - probably the slight frost melts and helps to slide it out.

Slide the poured beeswax candle out of the candle mold. In candles with a wick hole, the last side to slide out of the mold is the top of the candle. Trim the wick on the top of the candle down to about 1/2 inch.

In my case the wax seemed to shrink from the sides and it slid out very easily - no freezing required.

Cut the wick
Leave a 1/4" wick at the top of the candle for lighting. Cut the tail of wick off at the bottom of the candle.

Rub candle bottom on a rough surface to smooth it out. If you're a beekeeper, the best thing to file the bottom is foundation - rub the bottom of the candle on a piece of foundation. The bees will love the extra wax.


Get a match and light it!

Now how about some advice from the experts out there? Feel free to post links to your blog for candle making directions.

7 Days to 95% Kill Rate of Varroa Mites

Below is an article forwarded by my bee club regarding a new 7 day formic acid gel treatment which gives 95% control of Varroa Mites. It looks like it'll be available in the spring. Yahoo!!!

PRESS RELEASE, January 26, 2010

A New Formic Acid Tool in the Varroa Mite Battle NOD Apiary Products Ltd., Frankford, Ontario, has developed a new, versatile form of treatment for the varroa mite in honey bee colonies. This treatment is called Mite-Away Quick-Strips™ (MAQS) and uses Formic Acid as the active ingredient. Formic acid is found naturally in honey and in the environment, so is considered an organic treatment. There are no residue issues in the honey or in the wax.

Easy to use and versatile, MAQS is only a 7 day treatment and requires no extra equipment.

MAQS is placed in the brood area of the hive, between the brood chambers. It uses the heat from within the hive to fumigate rather than the outside daytime temperature. This gives the treatment more direct action in the brood, therefore resulting in 95% mite kill both of the adult mites and the mites under the capped brood. The spent MAQS strips are biodegradable, the bees will remove them from the hive, or the strips can be removed and composted or thrown away. This is a definite step forward in varroa mite treatment. This product was tested in 2009 in Ontario, Hawaii, France, Texas and Florida with positive results.

The beekeepers of Hawaii obtained a Special Local Needs pesticide registration. Varroa have arrived only recently in Hawaii and due to the large number of queen breeders, soft chemical treatments, like formic acid are the preferred method of varroa control. The Hawaii Department of Agriculture purchased the product for their beekeepers and distributed it in late 2009. MAQS is proving to be a success and beekeepers are happy with the results. It is hopeful that most of Canada and the US will be able to use MAQS in time for spring treatment this year.

David VanderDussen, NOD’s CEO will give a Power Point presentation about the Mite-Away Quick Strips™ on Monday, February 8, 2010, 7:00 p.m. at the Fairfield Marriott Hotel, 407 N. Front St., Belleville, located directly off Hwy 401. Take the Highway 62 South exit. This meeting is hosted by the Quinte Beekeepers’ Association. For more information please call 613-398-8422 or email peterbussell@reztel.net. Everyone is welcome.


Read more about the release of this product on NOD's website at: Miteaway.com

The Latest Research: Affects of Monoculture on Bees

Usually I write the story but since this one is already posted on-line I thought it'd be more effective to bring it to your attention and link to it.

The article on the BBC News, UK web site talks about how scientists are discovering that bees' immune systems don't do well when they forage from just a single pollen source. They need diversity.

It makes sense. We know that our health is usually better when we consume a variety of foods - it's part of good nutrition.

Anyway, here's the article.

What are your impressions? In North America especially we've gone monoculture crazy.... Can you imagine what it would take for us to switch and diversify?

In my area, southwestern Ontario, most farmers are sowing corn to make ethanol and bees don't forage that corn - so all those fields that used to have other types of pollen plants are now put to corn.

Beauty Treatment: Rich Milk & Honey Body Mask

Rich Milk & Honey Body Mask

Ingredients

½ cup Warmed unpasteurized Ontario Honey
¼ cup Cream or Half and Half
1 raw egg
4 Vitamin E Caplets
20 drops Vanilla Extract (Optional)
20 drops Sweet Orange Essential Oil (Optional

The honey, cream and eggs in this recipe are rich in vitamins, protein and minerals. The Vanilla and Sweet Orange provide an exquisite rich aroma to this body mask


Directions

Warm the honey by placing it in a heat proof glass in a pot of boiled water or heat for a few seconds in the microwave. Add the other ingredients and mix well. Snip the vitamin E caplets and squeeze out the oil. Mix well. Apply to your whole body with a paint brush. Use a sheet (which can be washed later) to cover yourself and relax 30 minutes while the body mask dries. Shower to remove the mask and pat dry with a towel.

(Confession: This one is so good, I drank half of it before I used it. Mmmm delicious!).

Celebrating Rev. L. L. Langstroth 1810 to 1895

If you've hovered around the topic of beekeeping it won't be long until you hear this man's name: The Reverend Lorenzo Lorraine Langstroth.

He was born two hundred years ago in Pennsylvania, P.A., USA. He is recognized for designing and creating the hive boxes that we use today all over the world. That's why the deep and medium hive boxes are referred to as Langstroth hives.

He took up beekeeping mostly to distract himself from the dog days of depression that he suffered from time to time.

Mr. Langstroth is often also credited with the discovery of the bee space, that precise 1 cm measurement (3/8 of an inch) that bees like to have around the edges of their combs and the top of the hive.

Actually, the bee space had already been previously reported on in Europe at the time and bee boxes were already being invented but what Langstroth did was come up with the concept of the top opening hive and that was totally new.

Keeping bees in boxes or containers was not new. At that time bees were kept in skeps, bee gum trees and various types of boxes.

No matter the design, if the bees had any gaps in their hive that were greater than the precise bee space, they would glue everything together by filling those spaces with comb.

It made beekeeping practises often unpleasant as the bees' home was torn apart when collecting honey or if inspecting the hive, resulting in angry bees and lots of stings for the beekeeper. It was more common than not that hives were never inspected.

The top opening hive that honoured the bee space may not seem such a big deal, but it was. With the top cover leaving the bee space above the frames, the cover was no longer glued down by the bees and could be easily lifted off. Langstroth also used removable frames.

This resulted in bees remaining very calm when the hive was opened. That in turn led to further observation of the life and the habits of bees. As well, it allowed for full inspections of the health of the hive and our knowledge of the honey bee grew exponentially. The secret life of bees was no longer so secret.

In time the new hive design was accepted and bee skeps were used less and less. Eventually it became law that all hives must have removable frames in order to conduct inspections. The Langstroth hive became the standard bee hive that is used all over the world and Rev. Langstroth became known as the Father of American Beekeeping.

He also shared his knowledge, publishing a book called The Hive and the Honey Bee. The photos on this page were taken from the book which was first published in 1878, and is still in print today.

His epitaph reads as follows:

Inscribed to the memory of Rev. L. L. Langstroth, "Father of American Beekeeping", by his affectionate beneficiaries who, in the remembrance of the services rendered by his persistent and painstaking observations and experiments with the honey bee, his improvements in the hive, and the literary ability shown in the first scientific and popular book on the subject of beekeeping in the United States, gratefully erect this monument.