What’s new at the market are glowing golden jars of honey in the booth of the Elwha Apiary.

Sam and Dave Crossley have been messing around with bees for almost 25 years now. Each week, Sam brings a variety of honey and beeswax candles to our market while Dave goes off to sell at the Port Townsend market.

We are fortunate to have these hard-working beekeepers with us.

When I asked Sam how they got into beekeeping, she smiles and tells me, “My husband decided all of a sudden that he has always wanted to keep bees.” At the time they were living in Tacoma and they got a couple of hives.

“Dave started taking classes on the subject. When he gets into something, he goes crazy,” Sam explains.

As for her part, “I do help some but I try not to,” she says, laughing.

When it comes time to extract the honey from the hives or to move them around, Sam and Dave work together to get the job done. It is Dave who makes the lovely beeswax candles, some in the shape of corncobs, others like pine cones and bears … they smell heavenly.

You will notice there is variation of color in the honey. The darker one, Sam explains, is because the bees visited the plant buckwheat. The color varies with the nectar the bees have collected.

The couple live in the woods by the Elwha River and have bees at their home. They also have beehives around Port Angeles and Sequim.

Sam tells me that, “People come to the market and ask if we can put bees in their orchards or yards, so we do.”

I asked if they have trouble with bears, and she says they do, occasionally. She also informs me that although the bears do eat honey, they are really after the protein-rich larvae in the hives.

“They really make a mess of the hives when they show up,” Sam says.

A different problem arises in the spring because the bees swarm. It is when an old queen takes half of the hive and plans to relocate them. They load up on honey and take off.

“You lose lots of honey when you lose a swarm,” Sam says.

She explains the bees are rather docile when they swarm because, “they are carrying all their groceries with them.” They try to keep them from swarming, which isn’t always possible. Others set out to catch swarms; you can ask Garry Flynn at the market about that.

This year, Sam and Dave started with 35 hives and have since “lost lots of bees.” Sam tells me it is probably because of the pesticides people use in their yards. She also said that it is a terrible year for honey production due to the dryness of this summer.

“If there is no moisture, then the plants make less nectar which means there is less honey,” Sam says.

Alas, her table is full of the magical substance that never ever spoils.

“It is the only natural food that will never spoil,” Sam tells me. Apparently it has been found in ancient Egyptian tombs and it is still just fine for spreading on your toast thousands of years later.

I had to ask if Sam gets used to being stung. “No,” she says. “I never get used to it, but how would you feel if someone came into your house and started tearing it apart.”

She tells me they keep EpiPens (epinephrine injectors) in their house and trucks, not for them but in case someone else comes in contact with their hives.

I ask what she likes about the Sequim Farmers Market, and Sam says, “I have gotten to know lots of people here, lots of customers and the vendors are very friendly.”

And more …

In the Suzanne Arnold Community booth on Sept. 12, you can purchase the famous and fabulous fundraiser potholders from Peninsula Friends of Animals.

Also on Sept. 12, we will host the Alzheimer’s Walk organizers.

On Sept. 19, the Soroptimists will be on hand to teach us about their important work for women.

Finally, I hate to say it, but we are bidding farewell to Katherine Landoni, our magnificent market assistant. She has been an incredible asset to the farmers market these past two years and now she is leaving to start college in Oregon.

A huge thank you from the whole market community for your diligence and service to the Sequim Farmers Market. We wish you all the best!