Facts/Trivia Trivia
| Trivia about Honey |
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Literature: 21st Century B. C. How many flowers must honey bees tap to make one pound of honey? Two million. How far does a hive of bees fly to bring you one pound of honey? Over 55,000 miles. How much honey does the average worker honey bee make in her lifetime? 1/12 teaspoon. How fast does a honey bee fly? About 15 miles per hour. How much honey would it take to fuel a bee's flight around the world? About one ounce. Why are honey bees sometimes called "white man's flies? "North American natives called honey bees this because they were brought to North America by European colonists. What is mead? Honey wine. How long have bees been producing honey from flowering plants? 10-20 million years. What Scotch liqueur is made with honey? Drambuie How many sides does each honeycomb cell have? Six What is the U.S. per capita consumption of honey? 1.31 pounds. What state is known as the beehive state? Utah How many wings does a honey bee have? Four How many beekeepers are there in the United States? An estimated 211,600. How many honey-producing colonies of bees are there in the United States? The USDA estimates that there are approximately 3 million honey producing colonies. This estimate is based on beekeepers who manage five or more colonies. How many flowers does a honey bee visit during one collection trip? 50-100. How do honey bees communicate with one another? "Dancing." Honey bees do a dance which alerts other bees where nectar and pollen was located. The dance explains direction and distance. Bees also communicate with pheromones. What does "super" mean to a beekeeper? The super is the hive box in which honey is stored. ### "If you want to gather honey, don't kick over the beehive." - Abraham Lincoln "The only reason for being a bee that I know of is making honey... and the only reason for making honey is so I can eat it." - Winnie the Pooh House at Pooh Corner by A.A. Milne Does not concern the bee, A clover, any time, "The secret of my health is applying honey inside and oil outside." - Democritus (lived to be 109) "Honey is either the exudation of the sky or a sort of sap of stars, or a juice released by the air." - Pliny "When you shoot an arrow of truth, dip its point in honey." - Arab Proverb "Instead of dirt and poison we have rather chosen to fill our hives with honey and wax, thus furnishing mankind with the two noblest of things, which are sweetness and light." - The Battle of the Books by Jonathan Swift "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil and choose the good." - God (Isaiah 7:15) "And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a land flowing with milk and honey." - God (Exodus 3:8) "Eat honey, my son, for it is good." - King Solomon (Proverbs 24:13) "More Flies are taken with a Drop of Honey than a Tun of Vinegar." - Gnomologia by Thomas Fuller "Honey is a remedy for every illness and the Koran a remedy for the illness of the mind." - Muhammad (founder of Islam) "The sweetest honey is loathsome in its own deliciousness And in the taste confounds the appetite Therefore love moderately." - Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare "Who in his pocket hath no money, In his mouth must have honey." - Flamma Sine Fumo by Rowland Watkins "Thus may we gather honey from the weed, And make a moral of the devil himself." - King Henry V by William Shakespeare "Honey nourishes very much and breedeth good blood and prolongeth life and old age." - Sir Jonas Moore "The fruit of bees is desired by all, and is equally sweet to kings and beggars and it is not only pleasing but profitable and healthful; it sweetens their mouths, cures their wounds, and conveys remedies to inward ulcers." - Saint Ambrose Literature: 21st Century B. C. Honey is alluded to in the Sumerian and Babylonian cuneiform writings, the Hittite code, the sacred writings of India, the Vedas and in the ancient writings of Egypt. BIBLICAL Palestine is often referred to as "the land of milk and honey." (Exodus 3:8) EGYPT: 30th CENTURY B.C. Honey was used in most households as a sweetening agent. The people of this time valued honey highly, thus, it was commonly used as a tribute or payment. Honey was also used to feed sacred animals. SUMERIA, ASSYRIA AND BABYLONIA: 21st CENTURY B.C. Honey was poured over thresholds and stones bearing commemorative offerings. Honey and wine were also poured over bolts that were to be used in sacred buildings. GREECE: 7th CENTURY B.C. An ancient custom was the offering of honey to the gods and to spirits of the dead. Mead, an alcohol drink made with honey, was considered the drink of the gods. GERMANY: 11th CENTURY A.D. German beer was sweetened with honey. German peasants were required to give their feudal lords a payment of honey and beeswax. AMERICAS: 16th CENTURY A.D. Conquering Spaniards found that the natives of Mexico and Central America had already developed beekeeping. A distinct family of stingless bees (not true honey bees) was native to these regions. AMERICAN COLONIES: 17th CENTURY A.D. European settlers introduced European honey bees to New England in about 1638. North American natives called these honey bees the "white man's flies." Honey was used to prepare food and beverages, to make cement, to preserve fruits, to concoct furniture paste-polish and varnish and for medicinal purposes. *Courtesy of the National Honey Board * |