beekeeping

[Bird]

[Honey is the only known food that will not spoil: it has all sorts of healing qualities too:

Yep, I've heard that. Of course I only eat it because I like it. But I do wonder about it at times. I've lost the recipe, but when my parents moved to Alaska in 1965, they learned to make something they called "Homestead Honey" and I later made some, my sister made it many times. It was, of course, a huge amount of sugar and a small amount of water boiled together, add some red rose petals, white clover blossoms, after boiling awhile, strain out the flower petals, and add a tiny bit of alum. Now I figure it could not be as healthy for you, but I'll guarantee no one could tell the difference by taste.

I just looked at Google and found this recipe for Homestead Honey that is very similar to what we used to make.

 

[srjones]

Honey is the only known food that will not spoil
heehaw

IF (and only if) it's not exposed to moisture. If there's too much moisture in the honey, the yeast will take over.

But you're correct. If properly stored, it will last forever. Crystalization is a normal process and not an indicator of honey gone bad. Legend has it (maybe an urban legend) that honey was recovered from one of the Pharoh's tombs in Egypt, and was still edible.

 

[heehaw]

doesn't the moisture cause it to ferment?? i don't think that counts, because it hasn't reached the point to be capped by bees until the moisture content is low enough to keep it from doing that?? so its still in the process of "becoming honey"..i've heard that about the honey in tombs: i wonder what it tasted like?? if it was from plants that no longer exist??
heehaw

 

[Chuck52]

I've got a buddy who has kept bees for years off and on. He's "off" at the moment because he lost four hives in the past two years. He's still working on his honey, though. His honey is particularly good. For some reason, it has a kind of cinnamon taste to it. We never could figure out what flowers that might come from, and there's a wide variety of wild flowers and flowering crops they could use around here. Bill makes mead with some of his honey. I don't care for the straight mead, but he's made some raspberry flavored stuff that's real tasty, and he adds some to homebrew beer, too.

If the current problems with honeybees get better I'll probably give them a go. I like honey, and would probably use quite a bit more than I do if I had my own bees. I've helped my buddy with his and don't get TOO worked up about it.

Chuck