Types of Honey
Oilseed Rape
Oilseed rape (Brassica napus) is
one of the most widely grown crops in
East Yorkshire. The Autumn sown crop brings a bright yellow
patchwork of fields colour to the countryside in Spring and will
flower into Summer for the Spring sown crops. Oilseed rape produces a
seed which is pressed to release the oil for use as vegetable oil,
animal feed and the production of bio diesel.
Bees love it and collect vast quantities of nectar and pollen. Oilseed
rape honey is quick to crystallize and produces a set honey with a fine
texture. For this reason it is mostly reserved for set honey but is
rarely labeled as rape honey. In the early days of rape harvests, the
quick setting rape honey was a problem to beekeepers as it tended to
set in the hive. More recent Rapeseed varieties are much less of a problem
although they do seem to yield less nectar and so less honey.
As oilseed rape is so widely grown it is rare for beekeepers to move
their hives to rape but they rely on their bees flying to it from home.
Borage Honey
Borage (Borago officianalis) is grown for its small black seeds which
are harvested and crushed to make borage oil, or starflower oil, which
has similar properties to evening primrose oil. The oil is very
valuable and farmers and Beekeepers have a mutually beneficial
relationship; we get lots of honey and farmers get increased yields as
the flowers are pollinated by the Bees.
Beekeepers travel with their bees from far afield. If the summer is particularly hot, a
hive of bees can collect prodigious quantities of honey from the
borage. Farmers like one hive for every acre so that there are
sufficient bees to pollinate all the flowers. A large number of bees is
necessary as each of the flowers opens for just one day. It’s a
wonderful see and hear the bees working from dawn
till dusk.
Borage honey, with its very distinctive clear appearance, has a subtle
aromatic aroma and has rapidly become a favourite honey in this area.
Heather Honey
In the late summer the North Yorkshire Moors are a picture with heather in full bloom. This provides local beekeepers with their last harvest of the season. There are two main types of heather plants growing on the moors; the earlier flowering bell heather (Erica species) and ling (Caluna vulgaris) which flowers in August and September. It is the ling which produces the famous strong tasting dark brown honey with a gelled consistency and entrapped air bubbles.
The moors are very popular and Beekeepers travel great distances to let their Bees forage the heather.
Moving hives of bees this far and fetching them back a few weeks later
can be fraught. And the moors, even in August, can suffer poor weather
with especially cold nights so heather honey crops are rarely
substantial.
The jelly-like consistency of heather honey makes it difficult to remove from the honeycomb and special techniques are needed. This difficulty in harvesting, transport, and small yields mean that heather honey commands a higher price than all other local honeys.