California Honey Festival features "Yard Crasher" Ahmad Hassan

WOODLAND CA – Celebrity landscaper Ahmad Hassan will host the pollinator garden at the third Annual California Honey Festival, May 4, in Woodland, CA. Hassan is an American TV host, landscape contractor and certified horticulturalist. He's best known as the original host and real-life personality on HGTV and DIY Networks Yard Crashers. Visitors to the Pollinator Garden will learn how to plant their own bee-friendly habitats.

Ahmad Hassan has been landscaping and creating aesthetically enhanced environments inside and out for over 25 years. His expertise is in integrating alternative, responsible and sustainable horticultural practices into his designs. His formal education in horticulture and management spanned 16 years and helped pave the way for a five-year television career as a green industry expert in the Home and Garden genre.

After eight seasons of Yard Crashers and several guest appearances, Hassan decided to remain true to his first love of landscaping and education. His reputation as a professional is what he valued most.

“Being a TV host is great, but my identity will always be that of a hard-working landscape professional. Television or not, it's who I am,” said Hassan.

Ahmed continues to operate his small business as a landscape design/build contractor in Northern California and regularly travels the country hosting workshops, speaking engagements and performing philanthropy with his group of “Sustainable Heroes.” Ahmed enlisted 3D Designer Duane Draughon of VizX Design studios and together they organized and developed Sustainable Heroes, in order to partner with other green industry professionals and support charitable organizations in building outdoor living spaces and gardening projects nationwide.

“If you have a passion for living and creating sustainably, now's the time to do both. My experience as a TV personality and motivational speaker makes me uniquely positioned to excite audiences and individuals interested in home and garden or the trades. The Green Industry is my passion, my livelihood and where I best relate,” stated Hassan.

The California Honey Festival combines education, cooking demonstrations, honey-inspired cuisine and beverages, entertainment, kids’ activities and exhibits into a honey-filled day in Woodland. Collaborating with the Honey and Pollination Center at Robert Mondavi Institute UC Davis, this sweet event turns bee education into serious fun - and it's free.

Are you Iinterested in beekeeping? There will be a variety of exhibitors offering educational aspects for new beekeepers. There will also be a giant beehive, 100 square feet, and fully-enclosed with three demonstrations during the day with a beekeeper.

The Festival also features a Mead and Beer Garden. The queen bee in this garden is flavorful honey-infused beverages. Honey gains its subtle flavor varieties from the flora that the bee pollinates like sage or orange blossom. This is the flavor that infuses Meads and Honey Wines.
Mead has its roots in ancient history and mythology. It is an alcoholic beverage made by fermenting honey with water and yeast. While mead and honey wine are often used synonymously, mead’s flavoring generally comes from the core flavor of the honey. Honey wine, however, is watered honey that is fermented with various fruits and spices.

Dan Slort, owner of Strad Meadery in Rancho Cordova, will talk about mead, how it is made and what makes mead good. His Barbara Pyment was named Best of Show at Winemaker Magazine's amateur wine competition. He will be one of many instructional talks on the UC Davis educational stage.

The California Honey Festival’s mission is to promote honey, honey bees and their products, and beekeeping through this unique educational platform, to the broader public. Through lectures and demonstrations, the festival will help develop an interest in beekeeping by the younger generation. The California Honey Festival, benefits select bee and pollinator non-profits doing the hard work of research and education to ensure bee health worldwide.

The California Honey Festival is held on Main Street between Third and Walnut Street. This honey-of-a-time runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. There is free public parking in designated areas, and admission is free. For more information see www.californiahoneyfestival.com or call 530-668-8839.