'Bee' part of the fun at the free Honey Bee Festival

Like honey? Well, you’re in luck, because National Honey Bee Day is upon us, and if you happen to arrive dressed up as a bee at the bee-intensive festival hosted by Brevard Backyard Beekeepers, you will be personally handed a jar of fresh, yummy honey from club secretary Matt Thompson.

Don’t own a bee outfit? No problem. There will be plenty of honey samplings at the Saturday, Aug. 10, event, held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the UF/IFAS Extension campus at 3695 Lake Drive, Cocoa.

Believe us, honey will flow. Should you wish for even more to take home, vendors will gladly supply you with the sweet stuff, right from hives owned by the 70 members of Brevard Backyard Beekeepers.

In addition to honey, there will be products such as honey soaps and local crafts. But National Honey Bee Day also provides the opportunity to acquaint yourself with a very cool and industrious insect that plays a critical role in global environmental health and food security.

Starting at 9:30 a.m. and running throughout the day UF researchers, and UF/IFAS extension agents, citizen-scientists and honey bee enthusiasts will be “bee” talking. Mrs. Mango, for example, will discuss the medicinal aspects of honey, while Brevard’s favorite gardener, Sally Scalera, will focus on how homeowners can attract pollinators to their yards.

Matt Thompson took up the hobby five years ago for two important reasons.

“I wanted to do my part for the environment and get me off the hook for Christmas and birthday presents,” said the Melbourne resident and owner of four hives.

Thompson’s family and friends now look forward to the different flavors of honey his bees produce. As for Thompson himself, he never tires of the scope of flavors of honey.

“I’ve become a honey snob,” he joked, explaining that honey will taste according to the forage the bees find at different times of year.

In the spring, it’s the citrusy taste of orange blossoms, while summers are sweet from the flavors of seagrapes, elderberries and mangoes. Come fall, it’s time for the spicy honey produced courtesy of Brazilian Pepper flowers.

“The tastes can be very different,” said Thompson, who despite owning hives, will stock up with additional jars of honey purchased at National Honey Bee Day.

Admission is free to the event, which also includes two Spelling Bees - complete with nifty prizes - for grades one to five and six to eight. A special program for kids ages three to 12 begins at 11:15 a.m. and includes make-and-take activities. Games, activities, face painting and more will be available throughout the days.

Kids and grownups alike can visit the "Ask the Beekeeper" tent for a meet-and-greet, and can see a self-contained live beehive in action. Stick around for a live honey extraction and free honey samples to take home.

Hot dogs, coffee, lemonade, sno-cones and bake sale goodies will be available for purchase.

Add live music and free admission, too, plus a “Honey Taste-Off” to help club members decide who has the best honey. No registration is necessary, but if you feel like it, the organizers would appreciate it if you let them know you’re planning to attend by signing up at brevardbackyardbeekeepers.org.

Florida bees have the edge over most of their relatives throughout the country, because while bees in most states have as much as six months without available nectar and pollen, Sunshine State bees only have two lean months out of the year.

“Florida is a great state in which to be a bee,” Thompson said.