Question 1

What types of plants do Kauai honey bees forage from?

Accepted Answer

The pristine ecosystems and tropical weather on Kauai make it an ideal environment for a wide selection of flowering plants and trees to bloom year-round. Almost anything will grow here. This means our bees get an extraordinary variety of nectar sources without having to move locations or place them in orchards that utilize chemicals or pesticides. This is truly wildflower honey, but the wildflowers in Hawaii are not what you normally think of. Some examples of what our bees are feasting on are Guava, coconut, Christmas berry, lychee, mango, avocado, soursop, surinam cherry, java plum, palms, eucalyptus,  coffee, albizia, Keawe, acacia and albizia.

Question 2

What is nectar?

Accepted Answer

In its most literal terms, nectar is a liquid secreted by flowers to attract insects and encourage pollination. Mostly comprised of sugars and water, It is the raw material bees organize their whole lives around. Diligently foraging for it and then turning it into honey.

In Mythical terms, it is the drink of the gods.
In Greek and Roman mythology it was the fabled drink of eternal life.  It is derived from their word for "unkillable", thus “immortal”, like the gods. The first record of the word “nectar” being used to refer to the "sweet liquid in flowers", is in AD 1600.

The glands within the flower that produces nectar are actually called nectaries or nectarines. Too cute to not use as your next pet name.

Question 3

How do the bees turn nectar into honey?

Accepted Answer

After the arduous task of collecting nectar from the fresh flowers in their environment, and storing it in the honey stomachs. A bee may visit over 1,000 flowers before its honey stomach is completely full. Upon returning to the hive the foraging bee will pass its bounty off to another bee who will work with other bees in the hive to pack it away in hexagon-shaped cells made of beeswax. They then turn the nectar into honey by evaporating the water out of it using a warm breeze powered entirely by the coordinated beating of their wings. When the nectar's moisture content is reduced from 70 percent to about 20 percent, it becomes honey. They put a beeswax lid over the cell like a little honey jar. Without excess water, it is now chemically stable and perfectly preserved for eternity. During winter, or anytime flowers are unavailable, the bees can survive on the liquid gold that they have been hoarding in abundant times.

Question 4

How many apiaries do you have?

Accepted Answer

We currently have the honor of keeping 6 apiaries, in pristine locations, across the island of Kauai, known as The Garden Island. By spreading our hives out, from the south side to the north shore, our bees get to experience the many diverse microclimates this lush tropical island has to offer.

Question 5

Do you have any pesticides in your honey?

Accepted Answer

Our honey is pesticide free. We place our bees exclusively in locations that are isolated from chemical agriculture, or tainted water. We never use chemicals in our bee-keeping practices.

Question 6

I am interested in purchasing bulk, where do I start?

Accepted Answer

So exciting! Please fill out our Contact Form above!

Please be sure to include your shipping address and what you are interested in purchasing when filling out the Contact Form. We look forward to hearing from you.

Question 7

I am interested in purchasing for my retail store, who should I contact?

Accepted Answer

We love new business relationships! Please fill out our Contact Form above . Please be sure to include your shipping address and what you are interested in purchasing. We look forward to hearing from you.

Question 8

Do you carry manuka, honey?

Accepted Answer

No. Manuka honey is Produced in New Zealand by bees that pollinate the native manuka bush, this type of honey is potent in both taste and nutritional content.

Question 9

What is the difference between light and dark honey?

Accepted Answer

Honey gets its color from the nectar it's made of. Think of nectar like flower juice. Much like fruit juice, it can vary widely in flavor and color. Consider apple juice compared to cranberry juice.  Because plants blossom at different times of year and bees collect honey nearly year-round, a single hive can produce radically different colors of honey from season to season.

Honey can vary in color from “gin clear” to “motor oil black” with a flavor spectrum to match.
Although we can make generalizations about the correlation between color and taste there are always contradictions. In general lighter honey will be thinner, more floral, less flavorful, and more like white sugar. Darker honey will be thicker, have more caramel, and more flavor, and be more like brown sugar or molasses.

In her book The Honey Connoisseur, Marina Marchese describes the limit of what you can learn about honey from color alone: “Each varietal of honey generally falls within a color range, with slight variations…but the color does not always correspond to what we expect to taste.”
The common wisdom is that light honey is mild while dark honey is heavy and rich.

One is not better for you, or an indication of higher quality. If you have to buy honey off a shelf, raw and unfiltered is the best and look for a  bottle that has some cloudiness to it, regardless of color, these are true indications of quality.

Question 10

How do you eat Honeycomb?

Accepted Answer

Honeycomb is an exceptional example of nature's artistry and efficiency, and so it must first be said that honeycomb should always be eaten with a grateful heart and a sense of admiration. Other than that there are no rules. Honeycomb does not need to be cooked or combined with anything to be perfectly edible and incredibly delicious. When you eat it all by itself you get the unadulterated experience of feeling the honey burst out of each cell and the satisfaction of chewing on the wax. When paired with other foods, especially those with fat, the honey and wax emulsify and become a smoother, easier-to-swallow texture. Adding a whole other dimension of flavor and texture to whatever you pair it with. Some of our favorites are, charcuterie board, avocado toast, pizza, goat cheese salad, chocolate.

Question 11

What is crystallized honey?

Accepted Answer

All raw honey will crystallize given time. How much time varies widely, and is dependent on 2 main factors: the type of nectar the honey is composed of, and the temperature at which the honey is stored. The colder the temperature, the faster the honey will crystallize. Crystallized honey is perfectly fine to eat. It never spoils. You Don’t need to refrigerate honey unless you prefer it in its solid, spreadable form. Otherwise, honey should be stored at room temperature. To restore crystallized honey to its liquid form, place the bottle in a bath of very warm water. If you are looking for more spreadable crystallized honey check out our entire line of smooth, spreadable honey infused with fine culinary ingredients.

Question 12

Can I eat bee pollen and honey if I am allergic to bees?

Accepted Answer

If you're allergic to bees or pollen there is a very small risk when consuming raw or unfiltered honey,  although in rare cases you can have an anaphylactic or systemic response to it,”. For the vast majority of people who have these allergies eating honey or pollen does not have any negative side effects. If it's your first time trying real honey or pollen,  Start with small amounts to test your body tolerance.

Question 13

Can I have honey if I am a vegan?

Accepted Answer

We believe that eating honey is in alignment with the values of a vegan lifestyle. Honey is not animal flesh, like meat, or an animal secretion, like milk. It is a nectar reduction, harvested from flowers, by bees.  If you are concerned that bees are harmed in the making of honey I encourage you to buy your honey from a small local beekeeper. These hardworking humans are saving far more bees than they are accidentally squishing on occasion. Furthermore, they are usually the beekeepers working most in harmony with nature as compared to large commercial operations.

Question 14

What is bee pollen?

Accepted Answer

Bee pollen is, like honey, not a product of the honey bee, but of the wild tropical flowers honey bees forage from. As they pass from flower to flower collecting the nectar they turn into honey, they collect pollen on their legs like little saddle bags. When returning to the hive, the pollen is humanly brushed off into collection bins we harvest from twice weekly to maintain freshness and nutrients. Although bee pollen health benefits have yet to be scientifically studied on humans, benefits of studies done on animals have shown:

“Bee pollen is a valuable API therapeutic product greatly appreciated by natural medicine because of its potential medical and nutritional applications. It demonstrates a series of actions such as antifungal, antimicrobial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, anticancer immunostimulant, and local analgesic. Its radical scavenging potential has also been reported. Beneficial properties of bee pollen and the validity for their therapeutic use in various pathological conditions have been discussed in this study and with the currently known mechanisms, by which bee pollen modulates burn wound healing process” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4377380/

Question 15

What is bee sting therapy?

Accepted Answer

Bee sting therapy has reportedly been in practice for over 2500 years as a treatment for several types of rheumatic diseases. The therapy is typically done through injection through desensitization shots to the affected area, but you can achieve the same results using targeted bee stings.

https://www.beeculture.com/bee-venom-therapy

Question 16

Do you provide bee sting therapy?

Accepted Answer

While we are big believers in this healing practice we cannot officially offer it to the public. Someday we hope to though! For now, we offer to ourselves by ourselves for ourselves.

Question 17

Do bee stings hurt?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Just like love hurts.

Question 18

What is propolis?

Accepted Answer

“Propolis is a natural resinous mixture produced by honey bees from substances collected from parts of plants, buds, and exudates. Due to its waxy nature and mechanical properties, bees use propolis in the construction and repair of their hives for sealing openings and cracks and smoothing out the internal walls and as a protective barrier against external invaders like snakes, lizards, and so forth, or against weathering threats like wind and rain”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3872021/

Question 19

What is propolis good for?

Accepted Answer

Current antimicrobial applications of propolis include formulations for the cold syndrome (upper respiratory tract infections, common cold, and flu-like infections), wound healing, and treatment of burns, acne, herpes simplex, and neurodermatitis.

Question 20

Do you sell propolis?

Accepted Answer

We do! Currently, we do not stock it at our online store, but please feel free to contact us with your needs and wants and we will be happy to contact you regarding pricing.

Question 21

Why do bees swarm?

Accepted Answer

Bees generally swarm when they are overflowing with good things. There are more swarms in the spring and summer because this is when the flowers are blooming and the bees are storing an overabundance of honey. When they run out of space to store any more honey they will start making preparations to swarm. After they have established queen cells, but before any of those queens are born, roughly half the bees will leave with the original queen to go find accommodations elsewhere. Before they leave they will gorge themselves on honey to fuel the journey ahead. This leaves the original hive with more space and a new queen who will emerge shortly and carry on without slowing down the flow of nectar.

Question 22

Are swarming bees dangerous?

Accepted Answer

In general bees can always be dangerous, give them space. But while they are actively swarming they are actually less likely to chase or pursue. They are focused on keeping the queen safe and getting to a permanent dwelling as quickly as possible. If you see a cloud of bees moving through the sky there is no need to run in fear, stop and stare, it's a beautiful thing.

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