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Fireweed honey is made in the clear mountain air.Types of Honey
Last Updated on Monday, 20 June 2011 12:45 Sunday, 25 January 2009 21:37
To collect the various kinds of honey, our bees are moved around the Fraser Valley to where the flowers are at different times of the year. Variation in the weather or the flowers can cause some variation in the colour and taste.
Clover is used to improve soil quality as well as forage for cows. This honey is probably our most popular and commands a premium price because of its white to light amber colour and mild, aromatic flavor.
Alfalfa has small, colourful, purple and yellow flowers and is used as forage for cows and horses. The honey is also light in colour, with a pleasingly mild aroma and flavour. Because it granulates slowly, it makes excellent chunk, comb and section honey.
Blackberries grow wild all over the Fraser Valley. The pink-tinted white flowers line fences, roads and creeks in June and July. The bees collect lots of nectar and pollen from them. The honey is medium-light and fragrant. The berries are sweet and delicious and you will find people picking them everywhere despite the sharp thorns.
Blueberry bushes are cultivated in the entire valley from Rosedale to the ocean. The hardy shrubs need bees to pollinate the small flowers in order to produce many large juicy blueberries. The bees are moved to the blueberry fields in the middle of April and stay there for about 5 weeks. In the last few weeks the bees can collect 20 kg of honey. This honey is darker than blackberry honey and has a stronger flavour that is well liked. Blueberry honey will crystallize faster than many other kinds of honey. This is a natural process and does not alter the health benefits. Honey can be reliquified by gentle heating, but do not heat above 37°C as this can reduce the health benefits.
Raspberries are an important commercial crop and are cultivated in large fields in the southern central Fraser Valley. They bloom through May and June. The beehives are placed in the fields so they may pollinate the white flowers and improve the yield and quality of the fruit. The honey is light and fragrant.
Mountain honey is gathered by the bees in July and August. The bees are moved into the mountains around Harrison Lake where they forage on the wildflowers growing there. These include fireweed, pearly everlasting, goldenrod and honeydew.
Fireweed is an early colonising plant that grows quickly in the mountains after forest fires or logging. The bright pink flowers are very distinctive and produce a light-colored honey that is highly prized for its flavour.
