MY STORY
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A lifelong relationship with the little self sacrificial servants called bees
Nurturing Learners in the Art & Science
Nurturing learners in the art and science of beekeeping in the Long Island context is Chris Kelly’s passion. As a committed educator, he has reached a broad spectrum of beekeepers, from novice to the advanced. His depth of experience at both the hobbyist and professional levels gives Chris a unique ability to address the concerns of both. The onset of colony collapse disorder has highlighted the critical need to be able to bridge the historical perspective with current day needs. Chris excels at this.
The bee management philosophy of Promised Land Apiaries may run counter to the popular philosophy of the day. This is not feed-lot beekeeping. Feed-lot
beekeeping promotes artificial supplements as a mechanism to maximizing honey production. While this encourages the use of supplemental feeds it invariably reduces the purity of the end-product. Promised Land Apiaries is focused on providing an artisanal, original product, both through the process and in the finished product. The primary drive for Promised Land Apiaries is the health of the honeybee hive, without the intrusion of artificial supplements. This requires a present and active beekeeper focused on bee-health, not end-game production statistics.
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Like a fine wine, honey expresses itself in nuanced layers.
And if you were able to track the flight path of a single honeybee, you would be able to reveal each layer.
Honey is a remarkably fragile commodity. To retain the maximum flavors and complexity of honey, less is more. A truly organic honey is never heated nor filtered. Honey that has the consistency of syrup has been overheated.
The ontology of honey begins with the scent of the flower. It is followed by the unique flavor-profile of that flower. On Long Island, two specialty honeys are the Black Locust and Golden Rod varieties. Black Locust honey is an early summer honey. It’s a light, lemon-yellow color with a distinctive floral component. When you taste Black Locust honey you can envision the blossoms - delicate and light to the taste. By contrast, Golden Rod honey is bold, much like a full-bodied red wine. It is recognized by its treacly dark color and caramel nose.