The Beeswax Department at Gretchen Bee Ranch — Local services in Seguin

Mark and Thien Gretchen love and care for their bees and bee products as much as they do the aspiring beekeepers and honey-lovers who flock to the Ranch on Saturday mornings -- which is to say, with tender devotion. I had the pleasure of meeting the Gretchens while looking for my first package bees. Little did I know that I would soon be the proud keeper of two nucleus hives, able to rely on the support and fellowship not just of the Gretchens, but also of their large beekeeping community. My bees are quite gentle, and the Italian queens are largely responsible for this. Each Saturday that I am able, I make the two hour round trip drive to the Ranch for an illuminating workshop on important issues in beekeeping, tailored to the hive's needs during that time of the season. Whether an aspiring novice, a seasoned beekeeper, or a casual visitor, no one leaves without a generous helping of Mark's bee wisdom, or that of ardent and willing assistants. My fear and inexperience have been replaced with love for and fascination with the complex and beautiful social structure of these little wonders of nature. Bless the bees and...

My wife and I were recommended by a friend to go here. We have been wanting to start keeping bees for some time now and we were looking for support, advice and supplies. We found all of that here. The owners spent at least 30 minutes with us and showed us around. They gave us many tips and advice. I signed up for thier November New bee keeping class for novices. I am quite excited to get started and the owners are super friendly. I am very happy that our friend recommended the Gretchen Bee Ranch to us and look forward to a long relationship with them. They also sell alot of nice products such as bee pollen which is excellent for your health, different types of honey, beeswax candles and everything you could need for keeping your bees. If you are looking for help or any product for bee keeping I definitely recommend you take your...

The honey is fantastic. The service, however, is inadequate. Back in the day when they used to sell their honey at Pearl's Farmer's Market, the wife, Thiên Gretchen, was rude and impatient when I had been asking questions about their honey. She became irritated, defensive and refused to thoroughly answer my questions. These kinds of people should not be working with the general public. Those who ask questions shouldn't be shamed or stifled, but rather encouraged and understood. People want to know what they are buying! From years of working with the general public myself, even a bad day wouldn't prevent me from having a good positive rapport with my customers. Keep your problems at home, please...