Honey
About Honey
Not all bees produce honey. Bees are categorized into seven families. The family containing "social" bees is the only bee species that produces honey. The bee species that make up this category are the honeybees, bumble bees, and stingless bees. Only honeybees make enough honey for large scale harvesting by humans.
In the spring when plants start to grow and flowers bloom, forger bees fly from blossom to blossom collecting nectar found at the base of the flower. Nectar is a sweet water made by the plant through the process of photosynthesis. Nectar flows through the plant carrying nutrients that are needed for plant growth. Excess nectar produced by a plant attracts pollinators such as hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees. Forger bees drink nectar from flowers and combine it with enzymes in a special stomach-like organ.
At the hive, forger bees regurgitate the nectar enzyme mixture and pass it to worker bees which store the mixture in cells in the combs. Worker bees fan the mixture causing water to evaporate and the solution to get thicker. Eventually the solution thickens enough and is capped by the worker bee. The capped solution is considered honey and is stored for later use by the hive.
As the bees collect the nectar, they also collect pollen in pouches on their legs. As forager bees fly from flower to flower the excess pollen on their bodies helps to cross pollinate different plants. Bees take both the collected pollen and nectar back to the hive where it is mixed with nectar and fermented into bee bread. Bee bread is the main source of food for worker bees and bee larva.
During the warm periods when plants are producing flowers, bees sustain themselves mostly on pollen and nectar. Honey is stored and consumed for winter months when pollen and nectar are not available. When hives are "strong" they produce an overabundance of honey which allows for humans to capture, purify, and market honey as a commodity without starving the hive.
A person who manages hives and collects honey is called an apiarist. Honey has different tastes depending on the time of year and type of nectar that is collected. Through the spring, summer, and fall different plants produce flowers. Each type of plant produces a different type of nectar, in turn, this creates a different flavor of honey. There are also different types of honey in different climates due to the natural fauna of a region. Many apiarists will rent their hives to farmers in different states across the US to pollinate crops and continue honey production during the winter months in New York when plants have gone dormant.
Farmers in New York depend on bees to help pollinate many of the crops found across the state. New York has many different climates and microecosystems. One of the most unique ecosystems for bees are dense urban areas such as New York City, and with innovative thinking, apiarists are starting rooftop hives across many urban neighborhoods.
Trip to the Hive
Take a virtual field trip to Kutik's Apiary, a real NY honey farm, to learn how NY bees are kept, how bees are bred, how honey is harvested, value added honey products, and how NY beekeepers work to conserve their environments while producing honey across the Empire State.
Fun Facts
- Modern honeybees are not considered native to the North American continent.
- Europeans brought honeybees to North America around the 17th century.
- Scientists have found fossilized evidence that there was a native species of honeybees on the North American continent at one time.