Honey is collected by the bees along with local pollen and stored in a hive as the bees’ food source during the winter. During the summer months, a beekeeper increases the size of the hive by adding boxes called honey supers so the bees collect extra honey. A bee hive will fill the frames in these boxes, and then cap off the cells with beeswax. Honey can vary greatly in colour, aroma, and texture depending on the nectar the bees collect. There are a wide range of flowers¹, trees, and food crops in the farming and Mennonite communities surrounding our hives.

Once the honey is collected from the hives, it is extracted from the beeswax frames and put through a multiple screen filtering process. The smallest filter sizing is selected to leave natural pollen in the honey. The result is Raw Honey. Depending on the local nectar collected, this raw honey may vary from a liquid or solid crystallized form, although over time all honey tends to crystallize into a solid form.

To keep honey in a liquid state for longer it can be gently heated, often called pasteurized honey. This honey is typically used for liquid consumption and baking, and is recommended for young children. Both raw and pasteurized honey can be formed into creamed honey, which is a thicker spreadable honey; great of eating on toast! This is done by adding a small amount of crystallized honey to a honey batch and regularly mixing the honey over a few weeks.

¹Some local Nectar Sources Include:
Flowers: Clover/Alfalfa, New England Aster, Knapweed, Golden Rod, Queen Anne’s Lace, Ragweed, Thistle, Daisy, Milkweed, Dandelion
Trees: Maple, Beech, Ash, Basswood, Various Fruits
Food Crops: Vegetables, Strawberries, Pumpkin, Soybean, Raspberry, Blackberry