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We are Mark and Thiên Gretchen
and together we operate the
Gretchen Bee Ranch, headquartered
in Guadalupe County, Texas.
We place our hives on ranches
and farms in Guadalupe, Gonzales
and surrounding counties. With
help from God, family, friends
and millions of bees, we produce
pure raw honey and other natural
products from the hive. We enjoy
providing products that are
beneficial to others and we
especially enjoy raising honeybees,
which are so important to our
world. Drop us a line if you
ever want to “talk bees” – we
always enjoy hearing your stories
and sharing what we’ve learned
with others.
In the Beginning…
I started keeping bees with
my uncle in Burnet County, Texas
in 1982. Using mostly borrowed
equipment, we extracted our
honey
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in
the late summer. We
learned that we had
to extract our crop
before the broomweed
and sumac bloomed, because
nectar from those flowers,
while prized by the
bees, produced a bitter
tasting honey. We both
read and memorized
First Lessons in
Beekeeping, the
classic book for beginning
beekeepers, and soon
graduated |
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to the more advanced reference
classic,
The Hive and the Honeybee.
In 1984 I joined a commercial
outfit called Clifford Apiaries.
Steve Clifford bred and sold
queen bees to beekeepers throughout
North America from his headquarters
in Sour Lake, Texas. |
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I helped him
and his crew in the large bee yard,
which was placed in a clearing of pine
trees. A novice, I was known for getting
stung more than the others – once 26
times from a single hive that was known
for its gentle behavior. We also spent
many days capturing queen bees along
the logging roads of the East Texas
swamps. The queens were found in “mating
nucs,” miniature beehives, really,
that shared the narrow dirt road with
alligators, fearless snapping turtles
and water moccasins. I spent evenings
doctoring my wounds and reading
Contemporary Queen Rearing and
American Honey Plants.
After the queens were sold and shipped,
we drove a large truckload of bees non-stop
to Steve’s honey producing operation
in Nipawin, Saskatchewan. Then we returned
to Texas and did the same thing again.
Those Texas bees thrived on the long
Canadian days and the abundant fields
of rapeseed. Hives there can grow to
a monstrous size and produce hundreds
of pounds of honey apiece. Dozens of
migratory bee operations still exist
today, despite the advent of Africanized
bees and a host of other problems and
bee diseases that weren’t around in
1982.
My uncle and I are older now, and he
is not able to work the bees as he used
to. But I call him often, not to talk
of days past, but of our beekeeping
glory days yet to come. |
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At the Gretchen
Bee Ranch our first commitment
is to provide you with fresh,
healthy products from our bee
hives and from the hives of
other beekeepers that we know
and trust. You can be assured
that when you buy our honey,
and other bee crafted products,
you will
know exactly where they come
from. All of our products are
presented to you as purely as
they come out of the hive. Nothing
added, nothing taken away.
Our second commitment at the
Gretchen Bee Ranch is to help
replenish the bees that have
disappeared from our area. Varroa
mites, colony collapse disorder
and small hive beetles are three
of the adversaries that imperil
bee hives today, and that have
taken a serious toll on our
world’s bee population. With
30% of our diet dependent on
pollination, the problem is
troubling.
At the Gretchen Bee Ranch we
are taking steps to remedy this
situation locally by strategically
placing our bee yards where
they can pollinate farms and
native plants throughout the
region. Unlike large migratory
bee companies, our hives stay
put throughout the year so that
they can pollinate the crops
and flowers that bloom in each
season. The way we see it, our
bees are adding beauty, color
and abundance to the world around
them.
By purchasing our products or
sponsoring a bee hive, you are
helping save honey bees as they
work to make our world just
a little sweeter. |
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