HONEY is made by the bees from nectar to preserve this precious surplus for use during the winter when flowers are scarce and temperatures too low to fly. The bees keep the inside of the hive warm and ventilated so the excess moisture is evaporated off the watery nectar and the concentrated result is honey
In this picture of honeycomb, stored honey can be seen in the cells at the top of the picture.
Below this, you can see the many shades of stored pollen.
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What's in honey?
On average our bees have to fly 100 miles and visit 5000 blossoms to produce just 1g of honey, that's about 50,000 miles visiting over 2 million blossoms to make one pound!
It is a delicious source of natural sugars (glucose and fructose), high in antioxidants, and naturally sterile and antibiotic and has been used for millenia as an aid to external and internal health.
Most honey (depending on what species of flower the nectar has come from) remains liquid for some time before eventually the concentrated glucose will crystallise and the honey will set. Some prefer honey this way but it can easily be restored to its liquid state by gentle warming in hot water.
BEESWAX is secreted by the bees in the form of minute flakes, which they mould to make their honeycomb and to seal their honey with a cap. These cappings are removed when the honey is extracted and contain the finest beeswax, fresh and full of natural aroma. See how we hand dip our beeswax candles.
PROPOLIS consists of resins gathered by bees from trees and leaf buds that produce it to protect against bacterial and fungal infection. The bees line the inside of their hive with it, giving them protection too. It has been used for thousands of years for its naturally antifungal, antibiotic properties.
POLLEN is very nutritious, being high in protein, amino acids, vitamins and minerals. It is collected by the bees as their main source of protein and is an essential part of their diet.
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