» Listings for April 2018

1. What can Honey & Beeswax be used for?

   Posted on 12:00pm Saturday 21st Apr 2018

   

   The list of uses for honey and beeswax are endless but here are some: 

   Honey

   Cut comb and cappings are popular with hayfever sufferers as they tend to contain more pollen. If using honey for hayfever the advice is that you should take 1 teaspoon a day for a month before your symptoms usually start. Honey should be as local as possible. However, honey will not help hayfever sufferers if the allergies are grass pollen as bees do not forage on grass. 

   

   Honey and lemon for colds is a well known remedy. A recent study showed that children’s cough mixtures were ineffective, but that a spoonful of honey provided some relief from night time coughs. 

2. What is Beeswax?

   Posted on 12:00pm Saturday 14th Apr 2018

   

   Beeswax is a sustainable source of wax. 

   For centuries the only source of light was candle and the best candles have always been made from beeswax. Beeswax candles were always used by the church and monasteries as well as the rich and privileged. Wax for candles was one of the reasons monks kept bees.

   Natural beeswax candles produce a beautiful bright light. It is also smokeless so it won’t leave behind the dirty sooty marks a paraffin based candle will. Nor does it contain the carcinogenic compounds of paraffin. 

3. All Honey is NOT Equal

   Posted on 12:00pm Saturday 7th Apr 2018

   

   Unfortunately all honey is not equal.  A lot of the health giving properties of raw or natural honey are completely removed by the processing it goes through before it makes it on to the supermarket shelves. What is required by supermarkets is a honey which will remain runny and clear for a long shelf life and so often the honey is heat treated.

   Firstly, the honey is heated to around 71 degrees C which keeps the honey liquid indefinitely. The honey is then blasted through a fine mesh removing all grains of pollen and along with them all their health giving benefits and turning the honey into a sugary syrup.

   Natural local (or raw) honey can be found in plenty of places, local farm shops, farmers markets, butchers and greengrocers to name a few. The best way to find a source of natural local honey is to find your local beekeeping association.