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First Honey Bee Festival Taking Place June 3, 2017 at Linville Falls Winery

By Katelyn Jenkins

On Saturday, June 3 Linville Falls Winery is hosting its first Honey Bee Festival. The festival will take place from 12-6 p.m. at 9557 Linville Falls Highway. It will host live music, a food truck, vendors and wine tastings.

This festival is aiming to raise awareness about the importance of honey bees in the environment and agriculture while educating the community about beekeeping.

“The idea of the Honey Bee Festival started through wine club members that are also beekeepers,” said Jessica Wiseman, a coordinator of the festival. “We started hearing about the honey bee and how it affects the agriculture and the environment and wanted to celebrate something that is really important and crucial to the both beekeepers and the winery.”

There will be a large presence from the North Carolina beekeeping community to answer questions for anyone interested in started their own hive or looking to get involved with bees in other ways.

Many new hives in the High Country have been built and are active as interest continues to grow. Honey bees are extremely important to the vineyards as well and provide pollination to the non-grape plants. Linville Falls Winery is a 40 acre vineyard and farm and is a half mile from the famous Linville Gorge and Linville Falls attractions.

Live music will be played by the Corklickers from 3-6 p.m. An addition to the Red Barn, the winery’s event venue, was recently added, making it easier to enjoy the entertainment and activities rain or shine. A food truck will be present and beekeepers will also be selling honey. This is a great way to support local honey harvesters.

“The goal is to support local honey growers but also educate the public about the honey bees,” said Wiseman. “Members from the App State Beekeeping Club will be coming in and discussing how honey is made and how the honey bee works.”

The honey bee is endangered so it is important to understand the difference between the roles of the regular bees versus the honeybees to help keep them thriving.

The event is free to the public. For more information visit www.linvillefallswinery.com, visit the Facebook page Linville Falls Winery or call 828-765-1400.