By Clara Roth ’21 and Zoe Muller ’22
Dickinson’s Center for Sustainability Education plays many roles on campus, including that of pollinator sanctuary. Depending on the time of year, the honeybees on campus can number well above 100,000 individuals, which means they easily outnumber the students 50:1. In addition to the honeybee hives, the Hive at Dickinson supports native pollinator homes, pollinator-friendly gardens and the health of our tiny neighbors around the grounds.
The Hive manages the beehives behind the Rector Science Complex and introduces students, staff and faculty to the bees—but not just through beekeeping. Volunteers assist with hive checks, help promote native bee populations, harvest honey and make value-added products. In recent semesters, the Hive has been expanding the value-added product activity offerings by hosting various “make your own” events. This past academic year, participants made deodorant, sunscreen, soap and candles. All these products include one very important ingredient: beeswax.
Beeswax is a precious resource for honeybees. Making one pound of beeswax requires over 30 million visits to flowers, 550,000 collective miles flown and 10 pounds of honey. Bees excrete the wax from special glands on their abdomen to help build their comb, making it an important commodity. It is also useful in creating your own cosmetics. To show you how, here are two of our more popular recipes to try at home!
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DIRECTIONS:
Note: When switching from a “regular” deodorant, your body may go through a detox phase in which you sweat more while your body rebalances its natural bacteria. This is normal and worth it to know exactly what you’re using on your body!
INGREDIENTS:
DIRECTIONS:
Email thehive@dickinson.edu to join our mailing list.
Visit Dickinson.edu/thehive, which has information about our working groups that focus on and plan activities around specific areas (beekeeping, honey harvest, native pollinators and value-added products).
Follow one or more of the Dickinson College bees by getting regular updates from the bees themselves through the Bee. F. F. program.
Read more from the summer 2019 issue of Dickinson Magazine.
Published August 21, 2019