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Times Advocate, 1993-07-21, Page 5Times -Advocate, July 21,1993 Page 5 Ferguson Apiaries Beekeeping more than a sweet business By Catherine O'Brien T -A staff ZURICH - It's been 26 years that Bill and Rosemary Ferguson have been together in the beekeeping business. And for the past 15 years 'Ferguson Apiaries has also been building up different product lines, but their specialty is still natural honey. "It was always a hobby of mine," Bill said. "When I was in high- school 1 had about 25 hives of my own." His wife, on the other hand, had never been around bees until she met Bill. "I thought it was a simple pro- cess. You just check on the bees a few times and then get the honey. "But that's not the case," she said. With 900 colonies in 35 different sites, beekeepingis a full-time task for the couple. And is a lot of work to do before they can package the honey for selling. It's similar to caring for any large stock of animals. The Ferguson's have to make sure the bees are tended to almost every- day to insure they are not sick. "Bees can get viruses 'too," Bill said. They also have keep an eye on breeding activities and maintain the colonies by cleaning and repairing equipment, for example. "It's a lot of work and there's a lot to know about bees if you' re going to be successful in the business," Rosemary said. The honey crop, Bill said, is just Rosemary Ferguson scrapes the wax off the tiny cells where the honey is stored before it is extracted by the machine. 1 Usborne & Hibbert Mutual Fire Insurance Company Exeter, Ontario NOM 1 S 1 (Established in ?876) Provides Full Insurance Coverage for Farm Properties New Applications are Welcomed DIRECTORS & ADJUSTE:HS Lorry Grrddnsr. RR2, Soda " .245-257e uoyd Morrison. RR t St. Marys 22,4¢77 Lome Feeney, Mitchel 2e11-41ee3 Jerk Hodgen. RR t . Keilon 2294153 Joseph Chile. RRS Mitchell ,3489706 Hideo O'Shea RR3 Gvw n .225-2800 AGENTS Ross Hodpsrt. E>tsc•r 235-3250 .bin Moore. 1 1' 1145-2512 Joseph tkrecAlishM 21S4012 Orion dot o Heed albs. Sumer SWIM A refund from surplus was do- o°M d for all policy hoidsra who qualify, are on record and in good standing as at Dian - bar 31, 1992. as dependant on good weather as other crops. 'We need about 10 days of the right weather when plants in bloom," he said. Sunshine is also irnpartant because the bees become more productive. The busiest time for the family business is from the beginning of March until November when they have to prepare for the bees to wake frinn a semi dormant winter slumber. By July, Bill estimates there is about 80,000 worker bees making honey forthe colony. "They collect nectar from flowers within a three mile radius of the colony," Bill said. "You could say they only have enough fuel fora one way trip and then they have to stop and fill UD." For the six weeks that worker bees are alive they spend their time 'making honey. "They work themselves to death," he said. By this time of the Ferguson's be- gin extracting the honey from the colonies and begin processing it for local sales. This involves travelling to the bee colony sites and removing spe- cialty frames slots that are stored in the colonies. Bill Ferguson sprays some smokenear the hives. It's a good way to let the bees know you're going to visit. on in -stock HARD SURFACE FLOORING & CARPET •PARA. P A I N T S & C O A T I N G S Interior Latex $1995 (4 L) at, suNWORTHY I4V WALLCOVERINGS' BOOK ORDERS 40" off BLUEWATER INTERIORS 117 King St. Hensall 262-3509 ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ'121112,ZXYT IZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ The bees fill tiny slots called cells that are in the frames with honey and then produce a wax film to protect it. "Each frame looks like it's filled with a million little mason jars," Bill said. The cells are filled with about a sixteenth of an ounce of honey that the bees produce. In each frame there is about five pounds of honey, Bill said. "We usually get a hundred pounds from a hive depending on the weather," he said. The Ferguson's then take the frames back to their shop which is about 5 km east of Zurich on High- way 84. In back of their store they begin the process of extracting the honey which is then stored in large tanks to wait packaging. The honey can be stored indefi- nitely as long as it is kept dry, Bill said. In the past few years the couple have been experimenting with packaging and product lines. "We use some containers that can be used as mugs, for example," Rosemary said. NVESTMENTS GIC/RSP 1Yr.-5.25% 3 Yr. -6.50% 5Yr.-7.125% •rt Segregated Funds 1YR. - 11.66% 3YR. -11.70% I, lig23 Gaiser-Kneale S-2420,2384484 • GIC rates subject to cleanse. Short- term rafts available. Segregatedfield sates reflect aural pan perforneance. Future retorter will vary. But, she said, their main concern is the quality of the product first and then creative packaging. They decided to develop new product lines such as honey mus- tard, barbecue sauce, butters and spreads to encourage people to ex- periment with different uses for honey. "There are so many uses for it," Rosemary said. She uses it as a substitute for sug- ar in specialty cakes that her and daughters Serri and Susan make for customers. The couple have a lot of new products they would like to begin marketing. "We just have to find the time to develop them," Bill said. FARMERS 1992 NISA FORMS DUE JULY 31, 1993 HOMUTH, TAYLOR, PINDER & McNEILLY Chartered Accountants 71 Main Street N: Exeter, Ontario NOM 153 (519) 235-0101 Z.11,N1 nti•Ji,:r,::i. ",d LUHCT©LRY CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS Kime, Mills, Dunlop. Chartered Accountants Daniel B. Daum, B.A., M.Acc., C.A. Manager 412 Main St., P.O. 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