Farm Life
Farm Life
A Year in the Bee Yard
One of the things I didn’t fully understand before keeping bees is how much hive management changes throughout the year. The bees are doing different things each season, which means...
A Year in the Bee Yard
One of the things I didn’t fully understand before keeping bees is how much hive management changes throughout the year. The bees are doing different things each season, which means...
From Honey Harvest to Winter Prep
It still feels very much like summer outside, but in the bee yard, I’m already starting to think about winter. I often find myself thinking...
From Honey Harvest to Winter Prep
It still feels very much like summer outside, but in the bee yard, I’m already starting to think about winter. I often find myself thinking...
A Slightly Early Honey Harvest
We normally expect to harvest honey sometime in August, but the bees moved that schedule up this year! They have been bringing in so much nectar that they were filling...
A Slightly Early Honey Harvest
We normally expect to harvest honey sometime in August, but the bees moved that schedule up this year! They have been bringing in so much nectar that they were filling...
What We Do in the Summer
A look at what summer really means on the farm — repairs, weeding, cover crops, bees, honey harvest, and all the planning that sets up next season.
What We Do in the Summer
A look at what summer really means on the farm — repairs, weeding, cover crops, bees, honey harvest, and all the planning that sets up next season.
Prairie Fire and New Beginnings
This week I burned the prairie as part of a conservation project on the farm. Fire clears the way for native grasses and wildflowers, and the next step will be...
Prairie Fire and New Beginnings
This week I burned the prairie as part of a conservation project on the farm. Fire clears the way for native grasses and wildflowers, and the next step will be...
Caring for Bees, Season by Season
January doesn’t slow things down for us. If anything, this is when everything overlaps — flowers, seed trays, greenhouse checks — and somehow the bees are always part of the...
Caring for Bees, Season by Season
January doesn’t slow things down for us. If anything, this is when everything overlaps — flowers, seed trays, greenhouse checks — and somehow the bees are always part of the...
About the Author
I’m Catherine, the heart behind Hive & Petal—a boutique flower farm and apiary in Prairie City, Iowa. When I’m not harvesting blooms or tending honeybees, I’m often crafting something beautiful, cooking something delicious, or watching hens explore the field. I believe in wide open skies, good books, and sharing farm life—one story (or bouquet) at a time.