Bee Skeps and Honey


18th Century Bee Keeping and
the Ogden House Honey Project
A Whitdogg Production
Honey bees were important to the
colonists.
• Europeans did not drink
water
– Ale predominant in
England
• Barley sowing – Rum imported from
West Indies
– Cider more self
sufficient
• Brought apple trees and
honey bees
Honeybees were brought by early
settlers.
• Transported in straw skeps
in a wooden box. • The box sat on the deck at
the stern of the ship.
There were other important reasons for
bee keeping.
•
Medicinal value of honey
– Used with other herbs to cure many ailments (coughs)
– Applied to open wounds to prevent bacterial infection
•
Culinary value of honey
– Preservative for ham and fruits
– Quick energy source
– Mead, a drink made from honey
•
Beeswax value
–
–
–
–
Make candles
Waterproof leather
Preserve wood
Bind wounds
How the colonists made honey.
•
Early Spring
– Place the skeps surrounded by
bee-loving plants and empty
skeps
•
Summer
– Queen produces many new bees
– Population becomes too large for
the skep
– A number of bees create a new
queen and “hive off” to an empty
bee skep
•
Late Fall
– Using a burning rag, beekeeper
destroys all but one bee skep
•
Winter
– Protect bee skep for next year's
production
Two bee skeps in the Ogden House
garden will represent this practice.
• No bees inside
The Ogden House Honey Project
Goal:
• Bring public awareness to the historic importance of
honey and Ogden house
What's the buzz: the who, what, where.
• Tess Brown: beekeeper, adjunct
English professor, Fairfield University • Two hives to make raw honey
– Propolis
– Strengthens immune system
• Oaklawn Cemetery