We shouldn't eat honey!

How do we know if a honey is truly organic? I mean how do know what plants the bees have visited?

I hate honey - yukky and sickly taste. I never knew I was also saving the planet!! Good for me!

Gran22boys

How do we know if a honey is truly organic? I mean how do know what plants the bees have visited?

We, I've always thought that was a good question!

Chestnut

Well I never knew this, but eating honey actually harms the eco system.

Google confirms it:
"Consuming honey, particularly commercially produced honey, can contribute to the decline of wild bee populations, largely because the honey industry drives a high demand for managed honey bees (Apis mellifera), which directly compete with wild, native bees for resources. While many people keep bees to "save the bees," conservation scientists argue that this often harms biodiversity because honey bees are agricultural livestock, not endangered wildlife."

There are over 270 species of bee in the UK and 24 types of bumble bee and they are endangered. So anyone who loves wild bees should try to save them rather than eating commercially produced honey.

Just to add, there is a programme on BBC iPlayer called 'My Garden of a Thousand Bees' which is absolutely amazing and deserves an award. Start watching and you won't be able to stop.

I watched the programme "My Garden of a thousand bees" and agree with you - it was absolutely enthralling!
As others have said, we just need to do what we can regarding the growing of flowers for all pollinators and there should be plenty for all.
I'm currently in the throes of converting half my lawn into a meadow - it's going to take a lot of patience, but in a few years I hope to watch the bees (and others) a buzzin'!

But not in great quantities or commercially produced

Yes. This is something that vegans have known for ages.

Whenever I have been exhorted to "Save the bees" I have never though tit meant "Eat more honey" but "Plant things that feed all pollinators, leave wild corners in your neat garden, and don't kill the wild bees that make nests underground in your pristine but sterile lawn"

Rather than cutting down honey consumption and thus the number of hives of "domesticated" bees, in an attempt to lessen the competition on wild bees and other pollinators, we should be increasing the resources they all need to encourage them all both to produce honey and to establish wild colonies full of thriving nurseries of grubs.

If you see bumblebees flying low over your lawn then vanishing, take note of where they were last seen. If you investigate, you will probably find a little round hole among the grass roots, out of which a big mamma bumble will pop up and fly off. She is raising baby bumbles in there, who when grown will join her in pollinating your fruit bushes and collecting pollen to feed their larval siblings.

Well, my eyes have been opened!
Yet as my wise mother used to say
"You buy cheap, you get cheap."
I have a jar of good Manuka honey that's over 10yrs old, that we only use for for sore, tickly thoats. It really seems to help too. 🐝

We mustn't forget that 'domestic' honey bees are also vital for pollination of commercial fruit producing crops. I suspect that if they were eliminated in large numbers it would seriously affect some of our food supplies as there wouldn't be enough wild bees to do the job (and yes, I do know that other pollinators exist)

There has to be a balance of some sort in this.

Also, raw honey is a valuable antiseptic and is used medically (we don't have to fly in quantities of overpriced New Zealand honey for this, we can use our own and cut some emissions ) Wild bees couldn't supply this.

Elegran

Whenever I have been exhorted to "Save the bees" I have never though tit meant "Eat more honey" but "Plant things that feed all pollinators, leave wild corners in your neat garden, and don't kill the wild bees that make nests underground in your pristine but sterile lawn"

Rather than cutting down honey consumption and thus the number of hives of "domesticated" bees, in an attempt to lessen the competition on wild bees and other pollinators, we should be increasing the resources they all need to encourage them all both to produce honey and to establish wild colonies full of thriving nurseries of grubs.

If you see bumblebees flying low over your lawn then vanishing, take note of where they were last seen. If you investigate, you will probably find a little round hole among the grass roots, out of which a big mamma bumble will pop up and fly off. She is raising baby bumbles in there, who when grown will join her in pollinating your fruit bushes and collecting pollen to feed their larval siblings.

Whenever I have been exhorted to "Save the bees" I have never though tit meant "Eat more honey" but "Plant things that feed all pollinators, leave wild corners in your neat garden, and don't kill the wild bees that make nests underground in your pristine but sterile lawn"

Yes, that is what I thought too.

I've tried t turn part of the lawn into a "wildflower meadow" but, despite seeding it, caring for it, it tends to get taken over by undesirable weeds rather than lovely wild flowers. My very knowledgeable neighbour pointed out that poppies etc grow best in ploughed land, good soil, and our lawn was laid on about half an inch of top soil on top of builder's rubble.

However, we do have bee friendly plants- and weeds wildflowers in abundance elsewhere in the garden.

I rescue every bee which ventures indoors, if I can.
Spider catchers are useful for catching bees and sending them on their way.
I can't post a picture for some reason.
www.diy.com/departments/katcha-humane-big-bug-catcher-pink/5020873135512_BQ.prd?&&&&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=20998096958&gbraid=0AAAAADt-XHnDOrCYXIgajUEbJI61r2jOZ&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI96Pe2fnOkwMVPJRQBh2-Yh2rEAQYBCABEgKK__D_BwE

Other makes available.

The plant in our garden which bees seem to love best are the lavender bushes. I'm not sure if someone has a hive around here.

Thank you Chestnut, I’ll be watching this. 🐝🐝🐝

If you haven't seen it then give it a go. You will be amazed.
My Garden of a Thousand Bees
BBC iPlayer.
Give it 5 mins and you won't be able to stop. 😍

Bumble Bees buzz so loudly it's quite alarming! But I love them dearly. If only you could stroke their furry backs.

Well a BB came into my kitchen and I had to trap it on the window to get it outside. I have a little container with a sliding side and have used this for years to catch absolutely everything. But BBs are quite big and I accidentally trapped its leg which caused it to cry out. Now the leg was trapped but not really hard, yet the BB made this awful loud noise which was like a baby crying! I've never heard anything like it. Quite upsetting to hear.

Has anyone else heard a Bumble Bee cry out like a baby?

silverlining48

When my grandchildren were babies/ young they weren’t allowed to have honey. I was never sure why.

Because it is possible that there are botulism spores in honey. Very unlikely but under 1 s could become very ill if that honey actually had such spores

Gran22boys

How do we know if a honey is truly organic? I mean how do know what plants the bees have visited?

Very little honey from the UK could be guaranteed to be organic, because bees fly distances and could forage in crops that weren't organic. Maybe if it was from hives on the moors away from anywhere it could be, but you can't just call it organic, you'd have to pay to get it officially organic

Honey bees are very important for pollination. I know someone who kept a hive or 2 in an old.orchard while she was moving and apparently that autumn the trees produced so many more apples the owners pleased with her to bring them back!
Bumble bee (and other non honey bee) colonies are very different to honey bee colonies. Honeybees overwinter, and in the spring loads and loads of bees are out there foraging and building up the colony. Bumble bee (and other annual bee)queens are the only bees that overwinter . They come out in early spring and start gathering nectar and pollen for their brood of maybe 8 bees. They brood them like a hen does. When they hatch they go out and help mum bringing in nectar and pollen for their future siblings, and so it goes on, depending on the variety and conditions, maximum number of bees will be between 40 and 400 max.
Different varieties of bee have different length of tongue and for example a honeybees tongue isn't long enough to pollinate a runner bean. Teeny tiny bees, that maybe live in stalls or little holes in rocks need flowers with easily accessible nectar
We need both
And we need more natural vegetation and habitat for bumblebees. If we destroy the habitat we are preventing bumble bees from thriving, not honeybees. Bumble bees also buzz pollinate, so are good for some crops
Honey bees can pollinate vast fields of rape for example which bumblebees couldn't do because there are not enough of them. They need unimproved species rich grassland. Beekeepers bring colonies to crops such as rape, fkax, field beans, they couldn't survive in those fields permanently because they are basically deserts, once the crop has finished flowering, so they are brought home
We can help.bumble and.other non honey bees by providing a habitat for them to nest in and trees and flowers that feed them
www.fas.scot/downloads/tn700-bumblebees-and-the-importance-of-pollination/

I have a little container with a sliding side and have used this for years to catch absolutely everything. But BBs are quite big and I accidentally trapped its leg which caused it to cry out.

Yes, so have I, similar to the one in the link.

You have to be very careful when using them, best when they're buzzing away on a flat surface like a window, thinking they can get out through it. Then slowly and gently move the slider and wait for it to buzz into the other half on its own.

I caught a smaller bee 🤔 the other day too then realised it was a wasp. However, I let it go, it is a pollinator too. Hope it doesn't make a nest in the eaves.

Most cheap honey isn’t even proper honey. The test is if you put real honey into water it will fall to the bottom. Cheap honey dissolves. A lot of it comes from China and is rubbish. I buy from a local beekeeper.

I dont have a local beekeeper:

I adore honey: I have it on toast every night for supper and use it for stewing sour fruit

what should I buy

I just had look at my Sainsbury honey, and it was very vague about origins, and even says "not for EU" which probably means the EU have standards not being met.

Amazon has quite a few all UK honey including specifying "collected from bees in Somerset" etc etc" (I cant afford Manuka honey. Is this likely to be OK?

Wyllow3

Amazon has quite a few all UK honey including specifying "collected from bees in Somerset" etc etc" (I cant afford Manuka honey. Is this likely to be OK?

I don't know, Wyllow.

Nothing to do with honey but I bought a pot of my usual (not cheap) facecream from Amazon, whereas I normally buy it from Boots.

It looked exactly the same, the packaging was identical but the texture of the cream was different so I thought the formula had had changed. Then I got a slight rash on my face, thought it could be unconnected, perhaps from a cold.
Next time I bought it from Boots and it is just the same as it used to be. No rash either.

I do shop on Amazon (needs must) but am discerning.

Somerset honey is available online from various outlets.
Can you buy honey that is produced local to you?

Waitrose sells British summer honey, Littleover Apiary honeys (Derbyshire) and other British honeys.

Hope that's not advertising.

I looked it up,

"From Littleover Apiaries Ltd
"We are the UK’s leading honey producer and supplier of English honey along with good quality honeys from around the world. From delicate flavoured acacia honeycomb in honey to the robust taste of active Manuka honey with all of its natural properties. All of our honey is raw, cold extracted from the hives with minimal interference to the bees as possible. Our organic honey comes from vast tracts of wildflower pastures around the world, untouched by pesticides or chemicals and where the air is pure. Our own laboratories ensure the exceptional quality of our honey at all times."

It they get it from all over the world I suppose the question is how do we know its all they claim?

but yes it sounds good and no its not advertising to tell me where I can get it. 🙂

Ah, it's on Amazon as well, some is described as organic and some not from this brand. There is also Black Bee Honey

"Black Bee Honey - Pure British Spring Soft Set Honey, Creamy and Lightly Sweet, Unprocessed Single Source from Hive to Jar, Never Blended - Delicious on Toast, Soothing in Drinks, 227g Glass Jar"

thats £6.95.