40,000 Bees Invade Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort
Santa Ana Pueblo (PRWEB) August 19, 2014 -- Bees can bring to mind sci-fi like headlines, and thoughts of painful stings. In reality honeybees are important contributors to the many fruits and vegetables that we eat. Earlier this summer, Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort and Spa added two colonies containing 20,000 bees each to its grounds, furthering Tamaya’s mission of being an environmentally friendly resort.
Honeybees are the major pollinators of the resort’s many flower beds and its on-site orchard, vegetable and herb gardens. It’s estimated that in the first year, these bees will produce 70-80 pounds of honey as well as beeswax. While the bees will need much of this honey for the winter months, as much as 25-30 pounds will be harvested by the resort and used in the Tamaya Mist Spa and Salon and in the resort’s kitchens. According to Colleen Kareti, General Manager of Hyatt Regency Tamaya, “we happily welcomed our little buzzing friends to the resort, and our human guests can rest assured that there is virtually no danger of being stung from these bees.” Why? They are too busy gathering pollen and nectar. As a side note, honeybees rarely sting.
Every day, each worker bee flies within a 2-3 mile radius of the hive searching for food. Upon their return the bee does the “honey dance” which signals to the other bees where the good stuff is located. Pollen and nectar are collected and converted by the bees into an amber colored, all-natural honey that is deposited into honeycombs. This light, sweet and sticky organic honey is perfect for cooking and as an ingredient for body scrubs, wraps, facial masks and deep conditioning hair treatments.
Many operators hire a full time apiarist (a.k.a. beekeeper) to tend to their colonies. Hyatt Regency Tamaya in contrast, has a “Green Team” of volunteer employees who receive ongoing training on the care and handling of the bees from a locally contracted bee expert who visits regularly. In addition to the bee colony, this environmentally conscious team is responsible for planting and maintaining the veggie garden, herb garden and orchard. They support the kitchen and landscaping teams harvesting herbs, and work with the Santa Ana Pueblo’s Department of Natural Resources to maintain the resort grounds near the Rio Grande. The team’s ongoing plans will incorporate adding more bee-friendly plants into the resort’s landscaping to ensure the colony has enough food to live on and enough to produce honey for use at the resort.
Recipient of TripAdvisor’s GreenLeader Excellence Award, Tamaya continues to work to reduce its impact on the environment through compositing, recycling, use of low-consumption LEDs, water reduction programs, and adoption of Hyatt’s corporate food and beverage philosophy of “Food, thoughtfully sourced, carefully served” in all of its dining outlets. Tending 40,000 honeybees in the on-site colonies is a clear extension of this philosophy on a local level at Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort and Spa.
About Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort and Spa
Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort and Spa is located on 500 acres on the Pueblo of Santa Ana, situated between Santa Fe and Albuquerque New Mexico and is adjacent to the Sandia Mountains along the Rio Grande. 350 luxurious pueblo-style guestrooms showcase traditional designs created with natural materials along with the modern comforts and pampering amenities. Fascinating combinations of old and new are found along with a unique cultural environment offering traditional pueblo bread baking demonstrations and tribal dance performances. Also featured is the 12,000 square foot production-friendly Tamaya Ballroom; over 72,000 square feet of flexible meeting and function space; award winning Tamaya Mist Spa; 18-hole championship Twin Warriors Golf Club; The Stables at Tamaya; signature cuisine at Corn Maiden and Santa Ana Café, and the Tamaya Cultural Learning Center. For additional information about Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort and Spa or to make reservations, please visit http://www.tamaya.hyatt.com.
Kathleen Manicke, Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort and Spa, http://www.tamaya.hyatt.com/en/hotel/home.html, +1 505-771-6039, [email protected]
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