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Come visit Wake Robin’s Corner Shop and you’ll probably notice several glass jars filled with liquid gold. The jars contain honey produced on-site by our honey bees.
What makes our honey special? Happy bees! At some point in the history of Wake Robin, “someone really thought about what to plant to encourage the honey bees,” said Dr. Helen Young, a noted biologist, professor and bee researcher at Middlebury College. She recently visited Wake Robin to discuss pollinators and was impressed with our “bee friendly” landscape.
Little known bee facts like - there are 15 different varieties of bees in Vermont (over 70 varieties nationwide), were interesting, but, the fact of all facts was this: the key to successful pollination, and thus agricultural sustainability, is largely dependent on the length of the bee’s tongue. That’s right. Tongue length does matter.
Bumble bees have long tongues and fuzzy bodies suitable for pollinating agricultural crops like blueberries, beans, and peppers. Honey bees have shorter tongues, thus shorter flowers are favored; bee balm, clover, and mint are good examples. Honey bees focus on visiting as many flowers as possible and bringing nectar back to the hive.
The good news for honey connoisseurs is that honey bees are largely overachievers, saving more honey than they will ever use. That’s when the Wake Robin beekeepers enter the scene, in bee suits of course, to siphon off what will end up in those glass jars in the Corner Shop.
July 26, 2010
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Summer at Wake Robin is truly the season for great music. Over the course of the next two months, July and August, Wake Robin residents will enjoy several area concerts; the Craftsbury Chamber Players, Vermont Mozart Festival, and the newly established Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival. All feature world-renowned musicians, no doubt anxious to exit the big city to perform in the Green Mountains.
Other musicians are happy to come directly to Wake Robin and perform. So far this season, the community has seen a diverse array of musicians perform right here including the advanced piano students of Elaine Greenfield; Onion River Jazz Band (featuring one of Wake Robin's very own!); and the Green Mountain Barbershop Quartet and Chorus.
Next up, clarinet quartets, mezzo sopranos, and the resumption of our own Wake Robin Singers and Bell Choir.
Stay tuned, and in tune! More music news to come in the near future.
July 9, 2010
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Community Life 
