Get up close and personal with bees – without getting stung – at the 5th annual Bee Jubilee Saturday in Oxford.
Christi Henthorn, president of the Granville County Beekeepers Association, and event organizer said there will be something for everyone at the event, which will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Granville County Expo Center, 4185 Hwy 15 South in Oxford.
Henthorn told John C. Rose on Thursday’s Town Talk that, in addition to supporting local vendors and bee enthusiasts, the Bee Jubilee is an opportunity to learn about these mighty pollinators.
“The vast majority of our food is either directly or indirectly related to pollinated plants,” Henthorn said. That funny-looking cucumber in your summer garden or the ill-shaped zucchini is more than likely the result of inadequate pollination, she said.
Bees are not the only pollinators, she noted, adding that bats and birds, butterflies and even annoying wasps are pollinators. And just because it buzzes does not make it a honeybee, she said. Bumblebees and carpenter bees may be pollinators, but they are not honeybees, she added.
The local vendors all have a focus of bee- an agriculture-related items, Henthorn said. There will be a silent auction and a live auction that starts at noon. See photos of the items that will be auctioned on the beekeepers’ Facebook page.
The Oxford Farmers Market will set up at the Expo Center on Saturday as well, she said. So If you go to their normal market spot downtown, they won’t be there. There will be inflatables for the kids to play on and half a dozen or more food vendors, from gourmet coffee to frozen treats.
Bee documentaries will be shown indoors, and vendors will be outdoors under the covered arena space. The Granville Gardeners will be selling plants as well.
“Make sure when you come you mill around the whole facility,” Henthorn said.
Most counties in North Carolina have a beekeepers organization, she said, and it’s important to call a beekeeper if you find a swarm of bees on your property.
“Granville County beekeepers has a ‘swarm patrol,’ a group of beekeepers who are trained to capture swarms and remove them from wherever they are – in a tree or in a house. These people are comfortable around bees and they are willing to remove them safely. The hotline is 919.892.3670.
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