HONEY ?

We 'foster' bees. A local bee keeper and enthusiast keeps one of his hives in our garden as it's large, sunny and packed with bee friendly plants and he was looking for other sites.He does the work and we get a few jars a year.It's delicious and lovely to know it's completely local.I have since found him another home happy to have a hive.Proud to say our hive had his best ever yield a couple of years ago.I was at first less keen because of grandchildren but am now a total bee lover,and both DH and myself have donned a spare suit and learnt some basics of beekeeping so we know what to do should our bee man be unavailable in an emergency. I talk to them each morning when I feed the birds!

We do not have bees but near where my parents live there is a honey farm. We like to go there when we visit and buy honey and related products from there.

Bees are amazing we have had them on the farm with every generation, when my dad died a year ago his bees died a week later. We have just renewed the hives ready to begin again this year. Both dad and grandad never used protective clothing and as a child I would help in shorts and t shirt I don't ever remember getting stung. We talked to the bees every night and they gave us wonderful honey.

I did know about the Chinese honey.

I do buy Greek honey, hope that is not blended.
But I know a local beekeeper whose honey is sold in local shops, market stalls etc.

Thankyou for this thread. We do all we can to include bee friendly plants and leave out shallow saucers of drinking water for bees. I’m hoping to do a course on beekeeping this year, what I know about bees and beekeeping already is really fascinating, but I didn’t know about the Chinese honey.

Talking of mozzie bites, my daughter had a lot after camping. I cut a leaf off my aloe vera plant, cut it open and she rubbed it on her bites. It helped a great deal and stopped the itching.

You should start taking the honey a couple of weeks before you go to Australia.

Honey spread on ulcers is supposed to be good, though I have never seen it for myself.

I thought you were going to say she spread it on the bites! Very sticky

That's interesting! I get terrible mozzie bites when I go to Australia, perhaps I should eat more of DD's own honey.

Someone from elsewhere had really bad gnat bites when she moved here.

The doctor told her our gnats are particularly nasty, but that the locals have more immunity to their bites.

He told her to eat locally produced honey, and it solved the problem.

After reading this with interest..I had to go to morrisons..so decided to check out the different honeys...probably about 95% said non EU ..am shocked..will now also look for local honey ..

Our neighbours have a cotoneaster growing along a rock wall and in the spring it sings with all the bee activity! It's fascinating to watch.

I don't have any local producers near me, but will pick some up at farmers' markets when I see them. Canadian honey is quite strictly regulated, so even if I purchase it at the grocery store I make sure it is Canadian.

We’re lucky that we have local producers so only use local honey. I was told once that eating local honey helps with allergies and asthma caused by locally grown crops such as oil seed rape. I suffered badly from coughing when rape was in flower all around us, but eating local honey from rape has helped enormously.

Grammaretto, yes, honey is a fabulous natural healing agent. I treated second degree burns on one of my feet once, after reading about it. Result was a completely healed skin with no sign of scarring, etc.

Thanks for that Marmight. I had no idea honey from China was used. Can't say I'm surprised that they doctor it though, given their track record for animal abuse etc

I do miss my garden at times. But not since retirement when hopping between here & Spain.

I don’t know about planting a new ceanothus GrannyGravy13 I’m not much of a gardener to be honest. We just had wonderfully nutrient rich soil - old farmland - where we lived!

Bees are amazing and we should cherish them. What a lovely story Squiffy ?
Yes, local honey is best or choose very carefully if not.

Some years ago I heard loud buzzing in a graveyard and there was a swarm of bees nesting in an old yew tree. ? I watched them for some time. It was a small country church in a village so I just hope no-one complained.

chicken I'm sure you're right - in the main! I know someone who was attacked by a swarm, but I don't know the circumstances - perhaps he disturbed them in some way. He survived, but I've never forgotten or taken a chance!!

My daughter has bee hives, collects her own honey, gives talks to schools and interested groups.

She Always warns against buying foreign honey, please don’t leave any residue of foreign honey in jars, if British bees get in there, and take any back to their hives it can kill a whole colony, thousands of bees.

That’s most interesting, Marmight. I looked at a jar of Tiptrees honey this afternoon and lo, it said Eu and non-EU honey.

I guess organic honey won’t have chemicals but otherwise it’s only local honey for me now.

⁷*squiffy*, you probably would have been safe staying out near the swarm. Bees tank up on honey before swarming which makes them docile and unlikely to sting. When I used to keep bees,I rehomed many a swarm and didn't get stung.

Am I allowed out before June/July?
Please?

Having been quite poorly I treated myself to three jars of Manuka honey when it was on offer.

I also have a tree pollen allergy so have some local honey too. I had some trouble finding a source so this will be the first spring I can try it.

I have one of those in the garden Urmstongran. A beautiful shrub which flourishes each year.
It's next to the bottle-brush " tree " and you can hear the buzzing when both are in flower. The ceanothus is out in May/June and the bottle-brush, June/July.

Next shrub I want is a Wattle/ Mimosa/Acacia.

DH has just returned from having his nasty cut festering hand dressed by the district nurse. He proudly showed me the dressing she had used. Manuka honey! That's a honey dressing but also a glob of honey directly on the wound. I hope it works.