The honeybees hum their key of C tunes, flitting from stem to stem and flower to flower. There are 20,000 lavender plants at this beautiful farm, and if there are at least 5 bees on every plant at any given time, there are 100,000 bees making their rounds for sweet pollen and nectar. At one point, we did the
math and found an average of 10 honeybees per lavender plant. With 200,000 bees singing as they worked, the farm was literally humming with life.

When the lavender blooms, the fields not only draw in visitors from far and near; they lure bumblebees, honeybees, wasps, butterflies, hummingbirds, moths, and even an elusive hummingbird moth or two to sip the sweet nectar and gather pollen. While the flowers are blooming and the sun is shining, there is
no shortage of pollinators flitting about in this beautiful garden and of all the buzzing friends visiting the lavender, it is the honeybee that goes above and beyond by producing the liquid gold we enjoy on our morning toast.

Lavender is the perfect plant for honeybees, as they are most attracted to the small blue and white flowers that have such a lovely, mild scent. Lavender has lots of nectar and pollen - two things that honeybees need to nourish themselves and to make honey, so once the bees find lavender they quickly take the message back to their hives and spread the word with their little wiggle dance.

Lavender honey straight from the hive has only a very subtle flavor of lavender, so most “lavender” honey is actually infused with the flowers. That soft, sweet taste evokes the warm scented sunshine of the fields and is a reminder to take the time to slow down and smell the lavender no matter the time of year.

Take care: With all the buzzing and flitting of pollinators among the lavender plants, one might think that bee and wasp stings happen every day. Fragrant Isle is a working lavender farm, and stinging insects are part of that package. However, if one moves slowly, quietly, and deliberately - without sudden motions that disturb them, the bees will tend to their own business and usually ignore the interruption.

Ann Marie Craig