Michelle Obama Goes Organic and Brings in the Bees
By Paul Bedard, Washington Whispers
Going organic in the White House was easy. Both Bubba's and W's kitchens did that with purchases from local farms and a nearby organic market. But homegrown fare, like what first lady Michelle Obama hopes to produce with her new spring vegetable garden on the South Lawn—now, that's more complicated. And not just because crops have to be planted and tended. Washington isn't really known for its population of honeybees, the buzzy bugs needed for pollination. So—you guessed it—the first-ever White House beehive has been installed.
Charlie Brandts, a White House carpenter for 25 years, is now the First Beekeeper. He got the ball rolling when he told some of the East Wing staff about his hobby. "I was thinking about how cool it would be to bring bees to the White House," Brandts says. Word made it to chef Sam Kass, who asked Brandts if he could make White House honey to use in Obama family recipes. On Tuesday, Brandts brought in one of his hives and put it near the garden.
While he's been in beekeeping for only three years, Brandts sounds like a longtime pro. "I'm trying to promote beekeeping," he tells Whispers. He started raising bees for the same reason the first lady dug her garden: "I wanted to eat healthier," he says. That meant shifting from sugar to honey. "But it kind of gets expensive," he says, "and I thought it can't be too hard to put together a few hives in my yard" in nearby Fairland, Md.
While the hive has been welcomed by the first family, Brandts concedes that some workers had to be convinced that honeybees are largely harmless. (Ironically, it was some of the security staff who worried about getting stung.) As with many people with access to hives, the first family might get hooked on bees, and Brandts hopes to bring more hives in. "And if they don't like them, we can always take them out."
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A BEE FRIENDLY COMPNAY WOULD LOVE TO SEE THAT HIVE
I am Michael Jordan, The BEE Whisperer. One of the founders of "A BEE FRIENDLY COMPANY"!
What is A BEE FRIENDLY COMPANY and what do we do? http://www.kgwn.tv/_videos/pages/200906064829.html
http://www.kdvr.com/videobeta/watch/?watch=9c514327-22d7-4f6a-afce-d53a72cb6ed9&src=front
A BEE FRIENDLY COMPANY is based in Cheyenne Wyoming. We have locations in Denver Colorado,and Sacramento California. We started out removing bees from building roofs, walls and floors, cars, construction sites, and barns, and placing the bees in to hives and new locations for them to live and work free of people trying to use pesticides to harm them. After 5 years A.B.F.C. had many beehives, in different styles and20different types of bees in them. Still doing hive and swarm removals, A.B.F.C. decided to get more in to the beekeeping business. Placing hives on organic, or natural farms and ranches, (like the FOY R ANCH in Glendo Wyoming), and producing honey, wax, and “propolis” with the net work of hive they had. We have just started BEE TRACKING. Where we place a ribbon on a bee from a field and track it back to a bee hive in the the wild. Letting us get stronger bees to work with. This will be on the Discovery Channel in the Worlds of Wonder Know as THE LAST BEEKEEPER.
After working with bees and beekeepers from around the globe, A.B.F.C. moved to saving the bees and teaching beekeeping skills. We have been working with a foundation called “The PEARL Foundation” to teach beekeeping to orphans in Ethiopia, and helping them build an environmentally safe orphanage. A.B.F.C. is working with a local Eagle Scout in Cheyenne Wyoming to bring back the beekeeping badge that was disbanded in the 1970’s, and “AG In The Class Rooms” to teach younger beekeepers in the hopes of refilling the lost art of beekeeping and establishing new laws for states to make better beekeepers. A.B.F.C teaches general top bar and Langsroth Beekeeping. A.B.F.C. teaches the use of wax for water proofing, the maki ng of lip balm, candles, wood polish, and ski/snow board wax. A.B.F.C. teaches How to collect pollen to help reduce allergies and to give high energy boost in athletes. A.B.F.C. sends propolis for cancer research in hopes of finding a cure for testicular and colon cancer. Sponering "The MEN in Kilts Poker walk to halp fund bee projects and cancer research. A.B.F.C. has classes in the making of mead and honey wines for hobbyists. A.B.F.C. is getting investors to open a MEAD winery, to sale a mead called THE KINGS MEAD, from Mayo Ireland. A.B.F.C. handles bees and sends them to acupuncturists for bee sting therapy in helping with MS, Arthritis, and Fibrmyalgiae. A.B.F.C. are BEE ACTIVESTS, having may work shops and traveling to many places teaching, giving seminars, learning, and supporting honey bees, beekeepers, bee guardians, and bee enthusiast around the world.
Michael Jordan THE BEE WHISPERER would love to meet and see that hive!!
RE: Second Post by ron g
"I for one love her arms and his smile." What the hell does that have to do with anything?!? Do you know what Americans are going through right now? The $787 billion stimulus package hasn't helping any of us... I've yet to see any change, except for the reinvention of GM, and you're calling us sore losers?!? Yeah, "we" voted for him, but only because we didn't want McCain, or God forbid Palin.
Bush - bah!
Hate to say it - but I will not refer to Bush II as President EVER! I voted for that guy TWICE only to have it confirmed that he is a puppet to large corporations - particularly the oil and the banking industry. A multi-billion dollar war for one and billion dollar bailouts for the other.
No oversight on riduculous mortgages to people that could not afford them. No oversight on credit card companies loaning money to people that had no ability to pay them. And guess who gets to bail all the abusers out - ME AND MY CHILDREN!!!
I blame the people that took out the loans/mortgages too - but that is why we LEGISLATE and provide OVERSIGHT - to protect the rest of us from morons and businesses who run themselves so far into debt that they can't survive then beg for everyone else to solve their problems for them! Here's an idea....let them deal with their own messes!
And yes, I served my time in the armed forces - I CAN SAY IT. As paying his dues....this country is paying his dues for his gross mismanagment of the county.
We are approaching debts the likes of which are terrifying to contemplate, we have created a generation overseas of "American haters" in other countries who view us as fat, lazy, unprincipled, blasphemous, warmongers and they would seriously LOVE to kill as many of our patriots as possible.
On America's side we have a generation of system abusers, lawbreakers, and apethetic non-voting, potato chip eating youth that need a two year stint in the Army to correct. Young adults that blame the system but don't graduate high school, lack discipline and won't get a job (but will get pregnant on the drop of a hat).
The thing that tears me apart is the only ones suffering in all this chaos is the very best of us. Our brave, selfless soldiers that are dying and have died for this stupid meaningless war. Yes Saddam was bad - but we are not his judges - Bush should have waited until he had a SOLID FRONT from the UN instead of jumping the gun. Heck, he couldv'e waited until he had a solid from from America!
And what possible connection did Iraq have to Pakistan - nadda.
Oh Saddam had weapons of mass destruction!!! Even if he did (no proof - but just supposing) so do most countries! Wanna go pick fights with them all?!?
And for all you people who love science. Behavior is being linked with genetic markers. Bravery, selflessness, kindness, sacrifice - the genetic material of our soldiers - GONE.
Quick question if you kill off a breed of people with those characteristics - what characteristics are left. The fat, lazy, scared, stupid, government abusing, over-reproducing, entitlement seeking dredges are left.
Greek Philosphopy "Democracy is over as soon as the people learn they can vote themselves the money from the public coffers." - what do you think is happening right now?!?
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