The Wonderful Invasive Honeysuckle

-Posted by Isaac

I think this is a good time to blog about the honeysuckle.

There are several invasive honeysuckles 'round these parts, but the one that seems most prevalent is the Amur Honeysuckle. We call it bush honeysuckle.

And prevalent it is.

Native to China and southeast Asia, it found its way to the Ohio country in the 1950's. It was first spotted around Oxford in the southwest and seems to be on a tear to take over every woods, ditch and fence line in the state.

Farmers hate it!

This is a good time of year to see just how obnoxious this plant is-- you can pick it out. The bush honeysuckle is the first to green up in the spring and the very last to lose its leaves in the fall.

By mid November, honeysuckle is just about all the green we have left.

How does it take over? How does it so rapidly clog our forests, streams and roadsides?

Birds of course.

yum yum and bon appetit!

 Sightseers hate it!

And it's not only the forests, streams and roadsides.

If you don't watch out, it will sneak into your yard. Hiding behind trees and such.

Homeowners hate it!

There's no getting away from the stuff. What a nuisance!

Within a single season it can block your favorite trails.

Hikers hate it!

And divert your training on the cross country course.

Runners hate it!

Not to mention swallowing up the occasional mulligan ball far worse than any bunker.

Where's your ball, Bridger?

Golfers hate it!

"Don't know?? Must be lost in the honeysuckle!"

It's irritating. It's aggravating. It's annoying, troubling, and quite inconvenient.
Especially if you're trying to cast a line.

Fishermen hate it!

During its springtime bloom, about the middle of May, you've got a truckload of allergy triggering pollen coming your way.

People who breathe hate it!

As I said, around here it's really hard to avoid this awful stuff.

Even working the bees, it surrounds us!

I just can't fathom such a godawful thing having any value to anyone.

(Wink)

I'm with you, I totally agree. We should probably have a full-on eradication effort.

An onslaught aimed at this invasive obnoxious pest. Death to the honeysuckle!

(Wink Wink)

Because we all...

(Wink)

...Hate it!

Pumpkin Honey Pie Recipe

-posted by Jayne

It's that time of year again- time to try out some recipes for pumpkin pie!  Our favorite is loaded with honey, and we return to it each year because it never disappoints.  

Ingredients:  

3 eggs

2 cups pumpkin puree

3/4 cup honey

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1 9" single crust pie

Directions:  Beat eggs slightly in a large bowl.  Blend in pumpkin, milk, cream, honey, spices, and salt.  Pour the filling into the pie shell.  Cover edges of shell with strips of foil.  Bake at 400 degrees F for 35 minutes.  Remove foil, then continue to bake for 15 more minutes.  An inserted knife will come out clean when done.  Cool and serve.

I highly recommend finishing it with some freshly whipped cream!

And since we're on the topic of pumpkins, I'll share a few photos of some pumpkin highlights from the past few weeks.

Circleville Pumpkin Show - Giant pumpkins rolling into town.

Pictured Below:  our annual pumpkin carving ritual.  This year we actually got this done after Halloween.  Better late than never, right?

We had a visit from Portsmouth Brewing Co. who picked up several buckets of our Summer honey for an upcoming Christmas Ale.  They were kind enough to gift us some of the "Circleville Pumpkin Ale" which I had never tried before.  Made with REAL locally grown pumpkins.  

And now- to tell you about an upcoming event.  We'll be participating in the annual "Holiday Fest" which will take place at the Circleville Golf Course (Country Club) this year.  Check out the event webpage here for more details on location, hours, and other participating artists and crafters.