The Saturday before Easter, the fields of Bees & Trees Farm were filled with children running around looking for candy and coin-filled Easter eggs, taking hay rides and pony rides and visiting the farm's own goats and donkeys! Almost 300 people attended the event which cost $3 per child and was free for adults.
"We tried to add a little something for adults to enjoy even though the event is really all about the children," said Jeff Gregson who with his wife, Teresa, own Bees & Trees.
Adults were welcome to enjoy a free tasting of hard cider from Son of a Bear Ciders and participate in six free raffle drawings which entitled folks to 10% of everything in the store including meats, wines, ciders and other provisions!
But, as it should be, the Easter bunny stole the show and spent time meeting children and taking photos with them.
Mark your calendar now! Next year's event is scheduled for Saturday, April 12, 2025 with a rain date of Saturday, April 19th.
What it means when you buy from Bees & Trees...
As a small business on a 43-acre farm in the Culpeper Community, you find out very quickly that you can't get it all done by yourself. People often say "it takes a village" to do this or to do that and that's exactly the case at Bees & Trees Farm.
Without the support of a number of part time people we have working with us, we wouldn't be what we are today. There's really just no way two people could keep up with the barn and care for the animals; tend to the honeybees; mow acres of fields; plant, weed and care for the vegetable and flower gardens; shear the Christmas trees; run the store; manage an Airbnb and get an event venue up and operational!
So, when you purchase something from The Farm Store, you are not only helping us keep the farm going, you're also supporting a small cottage industry that employees a number of part time folks throughout the year!
We are fortunate to have developed a strong support system which enables us to regularly depend on over a dozen people who help us accomplish a great deal each month.
Your purchase of our locally made products--those made by neighbors, friends and even some by our customers--is also greatly appreciated. In purchasing these products, you are directly helping local resident make their own ends meet. In an economy like ours, a little support really means a whole lot.
So, we thank you for buying local and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for supporting Bees & Trees with your purchases in The Farm Store.
Bees & Trees Farm Celebrates 10 Years in Culpeper County
Bees & Trees is celebrating their 10th year in business throughout 2023 and with that celebration will come a number sales and fun opportunities for our customers!
"It's really been a whirlwind, said Teresa. We originally purchased the farm--which used to be Crazy Joe's Christmas Tree Farm--in April of 2013 and we planned to just 'chill' here on weekends. We wanted to have a place away from the city where we could bring our Richmond friends and just hang out.
"But the farm's previous owners, Jocelyn and Joe Lampert, were tremendously gracious and offered to come back that first Thanksgiving weekend and help us sell the Christmas trees they had planted! We had such fun that weekend that we were hooked, after that, Jeff semi-retired, I fully retired, we sold our Richmond home and we moved here permanently to start the business!"
Over the years, and with the help of a lot of market research, The Farm Store at Bees & Trees has been able to identify who their customers are and what they want--what they want to buy and what they don't want to buy.
With that research in hand, Bees & Trees has been able to source other types of products that fit the needs and tastes of their market base and then target that base in follow-up advertising.
Now, The Farm Store at Bees & Trees has expanded its offerings to include more of their own products while also tapping the products of other local, small businesses. In doing so, they are constantly rotating their offerings with carefully sourced, local goods that fit the specific needs of their customer base.
The Gregsons have also found an additional source of revenue in their online store which sells many --but not all--of the products available in their brick and mortar store.
Be sure to follow them on Facebook at: beesandtreesfarm for last minute updates to the store's operations.
Visit Our Barn Animals!
Tigger and Eeyore are two of the farm's most popular pets. Be sure and head down to the barn on your next visit! They love seeing all visitors--big and small--and putting their nose into everyone's business!
Bees & Trees Most Visited Farm on 2023 Farm Tour!
Soar with Earthquest held its demonstration at Bees & Trees wedding venue during the 2023 Culpeper County Harvest Days Farm Tour
Bees & Trees Farm was excited to learn it was the most visited farm at the Culpeper County's 26th Annual Harvest Days Farm Tour. Thirty-eight percent of the over 2500 guests at the Tour visited Bees & Trees Saturday and Sunday, September 16th and 17th..
The event, organized by Culpeper County Business Development Coordinator, Winona Pritts, and sponsored by Culpeper Economic Development, was created to promote farms and help them gain a bigger foothold in the community. The promotional funds used for this event allow the Tour to reach out to the community and beyond in ways individual farm budgets wouldn't allow.
This year's tour boasted approximately 14 different farms and businesses, many offering unique activities that were all free to visitors!
Bees and Trees Farm, which has raised honeybees for over ten years, hosted demonstrations that opened their hives for visitors to inspect in the morning and demonstrated how honey is actually extracted from their hives in the afternoon.
Gates & Valerie Bierhuizen hold frames loaded with honey, pollen and honeybees during their Farm Tour demonstration
Tasting honey straight from the hive is a tasty treat for all ages!
"Guests always enjoy seeing these two demonstrations," said Teresa Gregson a beekeeper herself who, with her husband, Jeff, own Bees & Trees Farm.
"It's particularly useful for folks thinking about raising bees and especially interesting to youngsters wanting to see what goes on inside those 'secret boxes.'
"Gates and Valerie Bierhuizen have worked with us and our bees for a number of years and--at our age--we have a mutual appreciation for both their bee knowledge AND their youth," said Gregson.
"They are truly a dynamic bee duo, they love working with the bees, they raise their own bees and now are even making and selling creamed honey, under their own label--Spirit Hill!"
Delicious on crackers and cheese, biscuits, or toast, their creamed honey was a big hit at this year's Farm Tour where guests had an opportunity to taste a free sample at their vendor booth!
Soar With Earthquest"was another demonstration that was well received during the Tour. This amazing nonprofit educated visitors on the capabilities of their rescued but non-releasable birds of pray. Featuring an owl, a hawk and a vulture, Earthquest stole the show at their demonstration Saturday afternoon.
Clean Your Air With Our Beeswax Candles!
Little known fact--burning burning beeswax candles will purify the air in your home.
Yep, it's just another amazing fact about honeybees--their beeswax is a slow burning, no- drip wax that is also a natural ionizer!
When beeswax is burned, it emits negative ions which go up into the air and attach themselves to positively charged ions like dust, pollen, viruses, bacteria, smells and germs.
Once the positive and negative ions meet, they form a complete molecule that is heavier than air and therefore falls to the ground which, in turn, cleans the air and makes it very easy for you to remove with a vacuum.
Short of buying an expensive electric ionizer, burning 100% beeswax candles a few hours each week is the simplest and most cost-effective way to purifying the air that you breathe!
The Garden View Suite Earns Superhost Status For the Ninth Consecutive Quarter!
Bees & Trees is pleased to announce that, for the ninth consecutive quarter, their Airbnb property--The Garden View Suite--has earned the coveted Superhost status from Airbnb!
This status comes directly from guests' reviews and rankings on value, cleanliness and communication with the property's host. In addition, a minimum number of 12 guest stays must have occurred at the property during the four-month period being reviewed with little to no cancellations and the host must have secured an overall rating of 4.8 or higher out of 5.0 from their guests.
The Garden View Suite maintains an overall ranking of 4.98 and has had zero cancellations!
"We are so grateful to our guests for this distinction," said Teresa Gregson who with her husband, Jeff, manages the property. "We have enjoyed getting to know our guests and are honored by their ranking of our accommodations."
"You know you're doing something right when you have so many repeat guests who return to celebrate their anniversaries and birthdays. We've enjoyed getting to know our guests and always look forward to their return."
Bees & Trees Farm Launches "The Gazebo" For Small Wedding Ceremonies
Bees & Trees Farm has finished their event space which will be available to host small, wedding ceremonies and vow renewals.
"For years, we've been asked if we would consider allowing weddings, anniversary parties, baby showers or reunion picnics on our farm, but we hesitated because we didn't feel we were set up to do it right," said owner, Teresa Gregson.
"Weddings, in particular, are one of the most important events in a couple's life and we want to offer a venue that will be unique and attractive and create those lasting memories that every young couple deserves to have."
Now, with the addition of the Airbnb on the property, and now the completion of their Gazebo area for ceremonies, Gregson believes she will be able to offer a unique and beautiful event space at Bees & Trees.
"There are plenty of lovely farms and wedding venues that cater to large-scale weddings. There are plenty more that just throw up a tent and say 'you can have an event here'--offering few actual amenities" said Gregson, "but we want to book special events--those that cater to small, intimate groups. We want to be the venue that provides an intimate experience, in a beautiful location, at an affordable price."
With the landscaping and electrical work now complete, and a lovely stone path to the gazebo, Bees & Trees is ready to go and has already begun booking wedding ceremonies.
With The Gazebo overlooking the Blue Ridge Mountains and framed by a grove of gorgeous Christmas trees, blooming landscaping and lush grass, Bees & Trees Farm offers a unique and idyllic location for any celebration.
Check back for more updates on The Gazebo--the name for the Bees & Trees event venue.
Come visit our Bees & Trees! Stay in our Airbnb, see our apiary, pet our barn critters