Niwot buzzes with activity during 3rd annual Honey Bee Harvest Festival

Whether you love them or fear them, insects make up approximately 80% of animals found on earth, and make up the majority of pollinators. This weekend, Niwot celebrated one of the most well-known and well-loved species of pollinators – bees. The over 900 species of bees found in Colorado play an integral part to the farming culture Niwot was built upon.

From 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept.16, 2nd Avenue and Cottonwood Square were taken over by various small businesses, artisans, and beekeepers in celebration of pollinators, particularly bees and the products they produce. At the forefront of the festival planning were Victoria Keen, Dawn Server, and Deborah Fowler, who started planning for this year's festival in March.

The Honey Bee Harvest Festival is an annual event that started in 2021 after a lot of brainstorming during the Covid pandemic. Conversations were largely headed by Tom Theobald, who owned Niwot Honey Farm for 40 years. "Tom was a fierce advocate for pollinators and recognized early on that pesticides, neonicotinoids in particular, were a major cause of the decline of pollinators," said Keen. "The festival seemed like a great vehicle for increasing awareness about pollinators through a fun community event."

The event has grown exponentially since its beginning, featuring over 50 vendors this year, with vendors sending applications for a booth space as close as a week before the event. Products for sale included wax products like candles and wax melts, honey made by the bees of Niwot, and bee-themed artwork and jewelry. One artist even uses real bees in her art. "I find all the bees at a local bee farm and then I give them life after death," explained Kari Bean of The Busy Bean LLC.

With how much the festival has grown, a lot of effort is required to make it run efficiently. The event is held together by 30 volunteers and the Niwot Community Association (NCA) road crew. It is generously funded by the Niwot Local Improvement District (LID) and the Niwot Business Association (NBA), as well as local sponsors Meadow Lake Honey and Deb Fowler's real estate office. As Keen emphasized, "Niwot is blessed with a rare community spirit - we couldn't do this without their help."

At the center of the festival was the Tom Theobald Speaker Series at the Left Hand Grange, featuring an array of topics that Theobald had advocated for before his passing in 2021. This included presentations on preserving and protecting pollinators, creating biodiverse habitats, and a hands-on showcase of beekeeping tools and equipment. Representatives of agriculture, biology, and ecology gave 20-30 minute presentations to a crowd of rapt listeners and answered questions from the audience afterwards.

Several tents were set up along the road and in Cottonwood Square for a line-up of musicians, including special guest and Grammy Award nominee "Dr. Banjo" Pete Wernick and his wife Joan Wernick. Performing in Cottonwood Square to open the event was the Niwot Community Semi-Marching Free Grange Band directed by Debbie Benson, with selections featuring environmental-themed music focusing on birds as pollinators ("Free Bird," "Chicken Dance," "Shake a Tail Feather"), plants (saffron in "Mellow Yellow"), animals at risk ("The Lion Sleeps Tonight," "Tusk," "Joy to the World") and the importance of addressing issues in a timely manner ("In the Midnight Hour," "25 or 6 to 4," "Already Gone").

A new event not present last year was the Open Studios Pollinator Art Show which consisted of thirty artists, and featured a live demonstration of encaustic art which is made with melted beeswax. Other art features included plein-air artists painting from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., and painting classes for kids on the patio at Adam Robinson's SevenWealth offices.

Two demonstration hives were set up with clear sides so that viewers could peek inside to watch the busy bees at work. Educators were stationed at these hives to share fun bee trivia and information.

In terms of food, special menus were available at Cimmini's Restaurant and at Farow. A Honey Bee Breakfast was served at Niwot Market, and a Honey Bee Brunch at La Musette Food Truck. Green chilis were roasted in front of Niwot Market, and for visitors aged 21 and older, there was mead tasting from five different Colorado meaderies.

The festival wasn't only for adults, however. There were a whole host of fun activities for kids. In the morning, they could pick up free bee antennae and join the Queen Bee on a flight around town. Later on was beeswax candle rolling at Niwot Emporium, storytime at the Wandering Jellyfish Bookstore, a spelling bee at Inkberry Books, and a puppet show at Blue Sky Craft Studio. During the duration of the festival, kids and families could hitch a ride from 2nd Avenue to Cottonwood Square on the Queen Bee's charming horse-drawn wagon for free.

The festival encompasses a sense of community that is required to pull off such an event. Keen likens the small town of Niwot to a busy hive of bees. "As far as inspiration goes," she said, "I can also say that bees demonstrate the epitome of cooperation in that all work together for the benefit of the hive."