Norwood Beekeeper Howard C. Ayer Shares Two Decades of Expertise-August 13, 1976

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For Howard C. Ayer, beekeeping has grown far beyond a simple pastime over the past 20 years, transforming into a deeply rewarding avocation that blends science, nature, and craftsmanship. Ayer, who has worked in electronics at Harvard University for 30 years and currently oversees audio-visual equipment at the Harvard School of Public Health, keeps three thriving colonies in his backyard at 117 Winslow Ave. alongside his wife, the former Helen Mattson of Norwood. Maintaining well-tempered hives that support between 30,000 and 75,000 bees each, Ayer notes that a typical colony yields about 50 pounds of honey annually—though he has harvested as much as 150 pounds in a banner year—while leaving sufficient stores for the bees to survive the winter.

Beyond producing honey and beeswax, Ayer has become a prominent regional authority on apiculture, lecturing at institutions like the Norfolk County Agricultural School in Walpole, attending national conventions, and writing articles for the American Bee Journal. Both he and his wife have earned numerous ribbons and awards at fairs and conventions: Helen for her honey-sweetened cakes and cookies and decorative beeswax candles, and Howard for his traditional mead, a semi-sweet Viking-era wine crafted from honey, water, and yeast. Emphasizing the vital modern role of bees as agricultural pollinators—especially as insecticides diminish wild bee populations—Ayer also reassures the public that fears of migrating African killer bees are largely overblown due to climate limitations.

In other local news, Norwood taxpayers received a major financial boost when Assessor James J. Drummey announced yesterday that the town will receive a $348,000 supplemental state reimbursement listed on the state cherry sheet. Drummey stated that the windfall will have a direct downward impact of roughly one dollar on the upcoming 1976-77 tax rate—which stood at $41 the previous year—reversing earlier fears from finance officials who had projected a potential $3 tax rate hike. Assessors plan to officially set and announce the new tax rate the following week.

(Reporting by Nona Dearth and photography by Larry Welsh for The Patriot Ledger).

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger

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