Back Forty Honey

05/17/2026

Old Honey dog decided to join me while checking for queens in the new increase colonies.

05/16/2026

Made it over to Greene county yesterday to check the Iowa Cover Crop hives. The bees were loving the heat and had made a lot of growth since being placed. So we added some boxes. Time to start making honey.

05/13/2026

Pulled into one of the bee yards this afternoon just as a swarm was leaving the cut comb colony. Luckily I caught them from a low hanging mulberry tree branch before they decided to move further down the road.

05/07/2026

Come see us at Grinnell Farm To Table 4-6 today 5/7/2026

05/07/2026

We are here with the 🐝 🐝 s

05/07/2026

Now that the April showers are past, let the May flowers take off. With the warm forecast coming I’m hoping to see the honey boxes I got put out last week start to fill up.

05/04/2026

If you haven’t seen the bees in the observation hive yet here is your next opportunity, Thursday 4-6 at Grinnell Farm To Table

A community event to meet local producers and gather on a (fingers crossed) beautiful spring evening as we enter outdoor market season. Grinnell Farmers Market opens the following week, Thursday May 14.

We’ll have local producers popping up inside and outside the store to sell plants, produce, baked goods, jams, and more.

Our indoor retail space will also be open with frozen meat & veggies, dairy, eggs, and more.

Confirmed vendors include:
FLOUR at the Farmhouse
Olson Garden Market
Golden Pear Kitchen
Crust & Crumb
Van’s Crafts

And we’ll be adding more before the 7th!

Adam Ledvina of Iowa Kiko Goats will have baby goats here to enjoy.

Andy Cody from Back Forty Honey will be bringing the demonstration hive.

Live music by local musicians.

There will be a pot up your own plant and take home activity for kids and adults.

And more!

04/30/2026

Forget to take a picture of the frame of queen cells from last week, but here is one of the last four cells going into new bee colonies

04/30/2026

Sounds yummy

You guys, this special is a game-changer! Through tomorrow Friday May 1 get your own Dole bowl with mango, pomegranate, or twist Dole and pick 4 toppings from strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, bananas, coconut, or sourdough s’mores granola from , finished with a sweet honey drizzle from

04/28/2026

I took some colonies over to an Iowa Cover Crop farm in Greene County yesterday. These are the only colonies we run for honey production that aren’t located in the Grinnell area. We keep the Greene County honey separate from the rest because although there is no such thing as domestic organic honey (no USDA classification, so if honey is legally labeled organic it comes from outside of the USA) these bees are placed in the middle of a certified organic farm. We’ve even gotten a bit of buckwheat honey in Greene county in the past.