Sweet Bee Gardens Means Bees-Ness
Gwen Akers
The Ashland Beacon
Homegrown and delicious, Sweet Bee Farms in Wurtland, Ky is your one-stop shop for organic food and goods.
“I grew up in Raceland, lived there all my life. My husband lived in the area too. He was in Ashland, and then he moved to Raceland. We graduated from Raceland High School,” explained Fields. “Other than his stint in the Air Force, we've lived here all of our lives.”
Sweet Bee Gardens began as a dream of Brenda Fields and her husband 41 years ago, and now it rests on 17 ½ acres of land with five acres being cultivated. What started as a gardening hobby that both Brenda and her husband loved growing up, soon sprawled into what we know today as Sweet Bee Gardens. Kentucky proud and locally owned, Sweet Bee Gardens is all about supporting the community.
“We have always been supporters of local businesses because we just think that's what runs America,” expressed Brenda Fields, owner of Sweet Bee Gardens.
Brenda Fields, a retired teacher, and her husband, retired military, began their garden with the idea of creating accessible organic goods for the community. Now, the gardens offer a host of services including naturally grown (no herbicides or pesticides) fruits and vegetables, hormone-free ducks, chickens and turkeys, honey from bee hives, firewood, and a variety of canned and baked goods. All of their goods are grown/raised/baked by the Fields and do not contain any artificial flavors or colors.
Now, their goods can be found all across the county as they do their best to support other local events and businesses including the Greenup County High School Farm to Table event, the Greenup County Farmers Market, and many more.
“We do lots of different venues around the area,” detailed Fields. “We are corporate sponsors of the McConnell House and help sponsor the Farm to Table Dinner.”
Linda Hieneman, Agriculture Extension Agent at the Boyd County Extension office has known Brenda and Jim Fields for many years and loves working with them as well as seeing the impact their work has in the community.
“I've really gotten to know them over the years in different programs that they've done and watched their farm evolve,” said Hieneman. “They are basically the catalyst in the community because not only have they developed their own products to stimulate the local ag economy, but they are encouraging to others.”
Hieneman detailed that the Fields often mentor other farmers at the local farmers market, and they always make a personal connection with their customers. It’s this personal connection that makes them stand out. Hieneman noted that Brenda Fields is always a great resource for recipes and ways to use her canned goods.
Their brand is also recognizable with their trademark bee they bring with them wherever they go.
“We stay as local as possible, and we stay as chemical-free as possible,” commented Fields.
Patrons can visit the farm on Tuesdays from noon to 5 p.m. and can even pick their food themselves from the garden! Make sure to make time in your busy bee schedule to check out Sweet Bee Gardens.
