Honeydew honeys are unique. In fact, many consider them to be the most exceptional honeys in the entire world. All the honey connoisseurs from around the planet will agree that this is indeed a special food. In this piece we look at the reasons behind the fascination with honeydew honeys.
My Notes
We're all familiar with honey that comes from bees that collect the nectar of flowering plants. Honeydew honey is completely different insomuch that it's a honey of animal origin, not plant. It's a much loved food around the world, particularly in Asia and Europe.
Here are a few interesting facts about this fascination product of nature.
- Honeydew is a sugar-rich, sticky liquid
- It's secreted (pooped) by aphids (small sap-sucking bugs)
- Aphids leave the liquid (honeydew) on the leaves and branches of trees
- Honey bees collect the honeydew from the leaves and branches of trees
- Honey bees suck or lick up the honeydew, depending on its thickness
- Honeybees can store up to 7-8 kg of honeydew in their hive each day
- Honeydew honey is very dense
The little insects that do most of the eating and pooping are the aphids, but they're not the only ones. There are also a few scale insects, some caterpillars and a few moths that also do the same job. Aphids are the main contributors though. These aphids are better known as plant lice. Most of us are familiar with these; they are those pesky greenflies, blackflies and whiteflies.
Aphids have a mutualistic relationship with tree ants. What this means is that the aphids provide food (honeydew) for the ants to feed on. Because of this, the ants allow the aphids to live on the plant. However, the aphids are not totally protected because they – like all other insects – have their predators. Lady bugs, parasitic wasps, midge larvae and crab spiders will all make a meal out of the aphids if they can.
Making the Honey
Bees love honeydew because of its high sugar content. The way they make honey out of honeydew is about the same as when they produce honey from the nectar of flowers. This simple process looks like this:
- Bees eat the honeydew
- They mix it with some enzymes from their body
- They place it in their special honey stomach
- They regurgitate the honey-to-be-liquid back at the hive, and place it into cells
- It's then taken care of by other bees that are in charge of making the honey
Honeydew honey manages to remain liquid and resists crystallization. This is because of high fructose and low glucose levels. It is also due to a low glucose to water ratio. Some research suggests that honeydew honey has higher than average antibiotic properties. The reason is because of the higher levels of Glucose Oxidase, which leads to the creation of Hydrogen Peroxide.
The World of Honeydew
Any plants where the insects that secrete honeydew live will provide honeydew for bees. This includes coniferous (cone-bearing) trees in particular, which yield the highest amounts of honeydew of them all. There are other plants too, such as cotton, lucerne and sunflower. The most common honeydew honey comes from fir, beech, oak, willow and pine. Others are white poplar, plum, peach and metcalfa.
Here are some of the characteristics of this fine honey:
- Acidity: weak
- Aftertaste: medium
- Bitterness: none
- Color: dark to very dark
- Crystallization rate: slow
- Odor: medium
- Sweetness: medium
Good for Us Not so Good for the Bees
Honeydew honey is not a good winter feed for bees. The reason is because it can be quite high in ash. Ash is a main cause of honey bee dysentery. Therefore, beekeepers will usually remove all honeydew honey from their hives before winter sets in.
Further reading of interest:
Honeydew Honeys Are Better Antioxidants than Nectar Honeys
Source: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. | February 27, 2007 | Published Science Daily
Summary
Honeydew honey is chemically dissimilar to standard blossom honeys. This is a special food of animal, not plant origin. It is a fine honey that's the remarkable combined work of two insects. It boasts some exceptional health benefits as well as its contribution as a world class food. This is a honey that's even considered “special” among the snobs of the honey world. The taste is exotic and one that's very pleasing to the palate.