Susan Hessong of Horselick Creek Apiary is pictured at the Seymour Area Farmers Market selling honey, rendered beeswax, bee pollen and occasionally soap made with honey and wax from her husband Brian’s beekeeping. When in season, Susan sells fresh produce when they have an abundant harvest.
Lori McDonald | The Tribune
The Seymour Area Farmers Market will be open from 8 a.m. to noon Saturday in the Walnut Street Parking Lot located south of the railroad tracks near the Jackson County Public Library in Seymour.
The market also is open from 8 a.m. to noon Wednesdays.
Here’s a look at one of the vendors and their products.
Horselick Creek Apiary
Owners and names of the people who sell at the market: Brian Hessong is the beekeeper, and both he and his wife, Susan, work the market. On occasion, Zoe Wischmeier, a 14-year-old beekeeper-in-training, will man the booth for us while accompanied by one of her parents, Jeremy and Denise Wischmeier.
Residence: Seymour
Where is your farm or business located?
Horselick Creek Apiary, 190 S. County Road 475E, Seymour.
What items do you sell at the farmers market?
We present local, raw (unpasteurized) honey, cut comb honey (when available), rendered beeswax, bee pollen and occasionally soap made with our honey and wax. When in season, Susan makes available fresh produce when we have an abundant harvest. These items all come from our property.
What made you want to start your business?
I started the business several years ago as a way to support my hobby of beekeeping with my son, Kenny.
Where did you learn to produce your product?
My son, Kenny, and I got our start in beekeeping working with the late Doc (Warren) Keyser approximately 15 years ago. Kenny received grand champion honors for his beekeeping entries four consecutive years in 4-H. He has since gone to college and gotten married. I have pursued the career by learning queen rearing, growing the size of the apiary and becoming proficient with instrumental insemination of queens with the Indiana Queen Breeders Association.
Do you do this full time or is this a side business/hobby?
During the pandemic, I turned the hobby into a full-time venture due to an unexpected loss of employment. Since then, I have become a member of the Indiana Queen Breeders Association, which is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation organized to train beekeepers in queen rearing techniques and to facilitate greater value and production of genetically superior cold weather survivor stock, parasitic mite and virus resistant queens. I am also a member of The Beekeepers of Indiana and helped start the Jackson County Beekeepers of Indiana, a club to support beekeeping that meets monthly on the second Thursday at the Community Foundation of Jackson County in Seymour.
What do you enjoy about selling your goods locally?
Being involved in the farmers market allows me to meet more people within the community, market our business and buy fresh products, especially Lois Bryden’s homemade bagels, to take home. I always enjoy meeting folks interested in talking bees and try to help when possible.