CasaSugar

Roundup: Busy Bees

CasaSugar — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 10:00:00 -0700

I may hate to find moths in my kitchen, but when it comes to bees, those little striped insects can do no wrong. That's why I'd gladly decorate my house with bee wallpaper, stock bee glasses in my cupboard, and sweep curtains back with bee curtain holders. Of course, it's probably due in part to the fact that I'm the daughter of a beekeeper. Bees are also thought to represent a happy, well-organized life, and satisfaction in love. Who can argue with that?

To see some of my favorite bee home accents, read more.

Casa Quickie: Keeping Bees Away From Your Pool

CasaSugar — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 15:00:02 -0700

It's hard to enjoy your endless Summer if bee stings come hand in hand with taking a dip in your pool. But bees have many uses for water, including drinking and using as material to build hives. So, unless there's another source of water nearby, you can bet your bottom dollar that they'll be making a poolside visit. According to the USDA, bees will forage any open water source, so the only way to detract them is by making the water unpalatable. You can do so by filling a spray bottle with a mix of 1/4 cup of dish soap or vinegar and a quart of water, and spraying bees that are at your pool. This will eliminate bees as they forage on water, and prevent others in the colony from learning about your pool's location.
Source

How-To: Say Welcome Home to Honeybees

CasaSugar — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 09:15:27 -0700

Are you worried about the frightening and mysterious rate of death in honeybees? If so, you're not alone. In the past two years, almost a third of the United States' beehives have disappeared or been destroyed, and no one knows quite why. But you don't have wait until all the data is in to do something about it. By planting trees, flowers, and plants that naturally attract bees, you can make your deck, patio, garden, or backyard a haven for honeybees.

Here are some things to remember: If you plant a variety of flowers and plants, you will have a greater chance of attracting honeybees. Also, by choosing native plants, you will be using plants that are naturally adapted to your home's region and weather conditions. If you're worried about getting stung, I can reassure you that honeybees will not try to sting you unless you slap at them. My dad's a beekeeper, and even when I've helped him move hives or sat within five feet of a buzzing, busy hive, I've rarely been stung. (By the way, to take the above photo, I was within four inches of this busy little fella, and he never wavered from the job at hand.)

For a list of plants that can help you make your home bee-friendly, read more.

This list, from The Daily Green is more than enough to get you started!

Annual Plants and Flowers Asters, Calliopsis, Clover, Marigolds, Poppies, Sunflowers, Zinnias
Perennial Plants and Flowers Buttercups, Clematis, Cosmos, Crocuses, Dahlias, Echinacea (Purple Cone Flower), English Ivy, Foxglove, Geraniums, Germander, Globe Thistle, Hollyhocks, Hyacinth, Rock Cress, Roses, Sedum, Snowdrops, Squills, Tansy, Yellow Hyssop
Garden Plants Blackberries, Cantaloupe, Cucumbers, Gourds, Peppers, Pumpkins, Raspberries, Squash, Strawberries, Watermelons, Wild Garlic
Herbs Bee Balm, Borage, Catnip, Coriander/Cilantro, Fennel, Lavender, Mints, Rosemary, Sage, Thyme
Shrubs Blueberry, Butterfly Bush, Button Bush, Honeysuckle, Indigo, Privet
Trees Alder, American, Holly, Basswood, Black Gum, Black Locust, Buckeyes, Catalpa, Eastern Redbud, Fruit Trees (especially Crabapples), Golden Rain Tree, Hawthorns, Hazels, Linden, Magnolia, Maples, Mountain Ash, Sycamore, Poplar, Willows

Etsy Find: Rae Dunn Little Bee Dish

CasaSugar — Tue, 20 May 2008 09:15:43 -0700

Reeled into a great local sale a few weekends ago, I treated myself to a pair of small Rae Dunn dishes that read "EAT" and a larger one with a chartreuse border, perfect for serving up cheese and crackers for a party of two. They've since become a favorite possession of mine. So, I was ecstatic to come across Rae Dunn's pottery in Etsy. This Rae Dunn Little Bee Dish ($25) is also fit for a bit of Brillat-Savarin and apricot compote, but would dole out a bar of lavender soap in the bathroom equally well. If bees aren't your thing, perhaps a little chicken, pig, or crown dish or her "Home Sweet Home" plaque would be more your speed — they're all solid, handmade, and one of a kind.

Got Seasonal Allergies? Eat the Local Honey

FitSugar — Wed, 16 May 2007 17:15:00 -0700

Honey is all the buzz. Not only does it taste like summer, but it has some amazing qualities that help your body.

It's antimicrobial because of its high sugar content, so it's great for treating cuts and burns to prevent scarring. You can keep a jar in your medicine cabinet for years - it's slightly acidic, so it never goes bad.

I've also heard that honey can be used to treat seasonal allergy symptoms. In order to understand why, you need to know how honey is made.

Honey bees (the female worker bees) travel from flower to flower, drinking nectar, and storing it in sacs in their little bee bodies. Then they buzz back to their hive and use their "honey stomachs" to regurgitate and ingest the nectar a number of times until it is partially digested. They then store the nectar in the honeycombs, fanning it with their wings to evaporate the water, and turning it into the thick sweet honey we know and love.

The reason it may help with seasonal allergies, is because honey contains a bit of pollen from the plants. So if you eat the sweet treat that is made by bees in your area, the honey will often act as an immune booster, reducing your allergy symptoms to the local flowering plants. It's a good idea to take 2-3 spoonfuls each day for several months prior to pollen season.

Fit's Tips: Eating local honey works for some people, and may not for others. It's a folk remedy, with no scientific research to back it up, but if you suffer from seasonal allergies, it's worth a try. If it doesn't help with your sniffles and sneezing, well at least you're getting vitamins B6, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid and minerals like calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, potassium, and zinc. Honey also contains antioxidants and vitamin C. All that and it tastes good too!

Source

What's the Deal With Bee Venom Therapy?

FitSugar — Mon, 11 May 2009 08:00:00 -0700

I have an irrational fear of bees and was certainly surprised to learn that some people choose to be stung in what is somewhat euphemistically called bee venom therapy. The procedure works like this: a bee, raised solely for therapeutic reasons, is picked up with tweezers and held against skin until it stings. Some people undergo 80 stings a day or more.

It's hard to believe anyone would purposely subject themselves to this kind of pain, but bee stings are thought to ease the symptoms of a variety of conditions. Bee venom contains melittin, an anti-inflammatory substance said to be 100 times stronger than hydrocortisone. Melittin can also help activate the body's adrenal glands enhancing the natural healing process. Also found in bee venom, adolapin is a powerful pain reliever.

People suffering from arthritis, multiple sclerosis, tendinitis, and fibromyalgia claim they've benefited from the healing power of bee stings. Do you think you could handle bee venom therapy?

Reader Review of the Day: Burt's Bees Super Shiny Grapefruit and Sugar Beet Shampoo

BellaSugar — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 09:00:00 -0800

The shampoo part aside, Burt's Bees Super Shiny Grapefruit and Sugar Beet Shampoo ($8) sounds straight up like something you'd see on the kitchen table. And after trying out this cleanser, which is free of sulfates and parabens, reader steen has nothing but positive things to say.

"Trying to find an affordable sulfate-free shampoo has been difficult for me. All the ones I've tried have left my hair dried out or greasy. I stumbled upon Burt's Bees Super Shiny Grapefruit and Sugar Beet Shampoo and Conditioner while perusing the products at the drugstore and I am in love. The shampoo lathers really well, rinses easily, and smells great - like sugared grapefruit. It also actually makes my hair incredibly shiny. (Too often products claim to, but I don't see any difference.) I love that I can get it just about anywhere and it's only $8 a bottle - sometimes less if it's in a value set or on sale."

Be sure to check out steen's review for the conditioner, too, and then check out all of the other reviews on our wildly-popular Product Reviews pages. Who knows what you might discover.

Reader Review of the Day: Burt's Bees Shea and Grapefruit Deep Conditioner

BellaSugar — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 11:00:49 -0700

I like so many Burt's Bees products, but I'd never even heard of Burt's Bees Shea and Grapefruit Deep Conditioner ($8) until reader Yogaforlife reviewed it. It sounds great, though, and I'm really glad she mentioned it. She says:

"I normally use Pureology shampoo/conditioners to protect my color-treated hair in between salon visits, but I noticed that my hair felt really dry lately. I wanted to try a hair treatment and a friend recommended this. I shampooed like normal and then put this conditioner on. I left it on for about 20 minutes and then rinsed it using cold water. When my hair was wet and I tried combing it, I must admit I got a little scared that it didn't feel super slick like most conditioners leave my hair. Once my hair was dry, though, it felt incredibly soft and shiny and smelled so good. I now use this once or twice a week, and it's made such a difference."

Got a product you don't hear about much that's actually really great? Want to know what other readers' hair, makeup, and skincare saviors are? Just pop over to the Product Reviews pages, then. We have more than 50,000 products up for review, and we're adding new ones daily. It's a great way to inform others and learn a little yourself.

Bee Wary? Honey Bees Disappearing, Food Supply in Danger

CitizenSugar — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 14:30:09 -0700

Some people get their news from fancy newspapers and high falutin' websites, and some, if you're like me, learn things from the lid of a pint of Haagen-Dazs. Would that I were kidding, this is the truth folks: did you know that honey bees are disappearing like size 8 shoes at a sale? It's true. And without bees to pollinate the plants producing our fruits, vegetables, nuts - you know, the good stuff - we're about to get pretty hungry.

Since 2006, honeybees began to mysteriously disappear from their colonies destroying nearly a third of US hives - and the rate of decline is increasing, reaching 36 percent last Winter. About a third of our food sources require pollination, and plants cannot grow without it. During a hearing by the House subcommittee on Horticulture and Organic Agriculture, one expert asked the very worrying question: “How would our federal government respond if one out of every three cows was dying?” To see what might be behind this bee-witching development, read more.

Because this phenomena is fairly recent, research and the money to do so have yet to blossom; though money is starting to roll in as the repercussions of this decline in pollination are beginning to be fully realized. Although no conclusive data has been ascertained, scientists suspect several culprits, among them:

Loss of habitat and a combination of pesticides that disrupt the bees neurology. One study of 108 pollen samples exposed 46 pesticides and as many as 17 in one sample.
Single crop cultures create a so-called “floral desert” with little diversity. One of these floral deserts is the 660,000 thousand acres in the San Joaquin Valley that offers cross-pollinators only almond trees as their only diet. It's like gorging yourself on hamburgers for a month and then starving the rest of the year. Not so great for productivity.

Here's where the ice cream comes in: Haagen Dazs is attempting to alert the public to this crisis and is awarding a $250,000 grant to UC Davis and the University of Pennsylvania. They’ve also started a public education campaign and have begun making a limited (hopefully) edition flavor called Vanilla Honey Bee in the hope to distribute 1 million flower seeds to groups and individuals to plant flora that will aid native pollinators.

Now that might have some people buzzing. Where have all the flowers (and bees!) gone? Come back, busy bees!

Source

Reader Review of the Day: Burt's Bees Facial Cleanser

BellaSugar — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 08:00:35 -0700

I love Burt's Bees, but given how essential oils like orange can affect my skin, I was hesitant to try its Burt's Bees Facial Cleanser ($8). Reader a million suns, however, actually saw her skin irritation go down when she used the product. She says:

"My skin has been extremely sensitive and reactive lately-and always fairly dry, since I live in Nevada-and every time I'd use my Neutrogena cleanser, my face would look red and blotchy. Then I picked up this cleanser at the store and gave it a try. No redness, no blotchiness, nada. Plus, my skin felt totally refreshed. It is a little bit thick, but all I have to do is mix it with water (squeeze a nickel-sized amount onto your hand, run it under the faucet, rub your hands together) to get it to spread easily. Plus, I love the orange scent!"

New cleanser you're crazy about? Thinking about making a switch and want to know what other people think? Then our Product Reviews pages are the place to be! You can see reviews of more than 50,000 products, and write some of your own.