All abuzz
Yorkshire Dales Moorland Group
It's that time of year when our beautiful managed uplands see beekeepers, or apiarists, tending to the hives they have brought to the moors to make heather honey. Heather honey is the champagne of honeys. In its raw state this honey has a mildly smokey flavour and a unique kind of sweetness that is much sought after. It possesses medicinal properties too, due in part to the flavonoids present and phenolic acids. Honey has been used for culinary and medical purposes for over 3,000 years and honey made by bees feasting on Calluna vulgaris (common heather) is probably the most prized of all. In late summer the bees reap the bountiful supply of nectar from the purple heather carpet that adorns the hills to create one of natures most amazing natural products. A healthy well maintained moor rich with heather blooms is not only heartlifting to the onlooker, but also an indicator that the moor is healthy and vibrant. Many beekeepers bring hives to our moors because they are chemical free environments, unpolluted and safe. From these moors the beekeepers can, in a good year produce large quantities of heather honey. With the UK holding around 75% of the worlds heather landscapes its easy to see why our managed moors are important to apiarists.
Raw honey has been shown to have beneficial effects on respiratory, gastrointestinal, cardio vascular and nervous systems. It's been used as an antioxidant, used as an antibacterial compound and even treated psoriasis as well as being a familiar treatment for sore throats. It is important to note that only raw honey straight from the hive possesses all these qualities. Many commercially available products are pasteurised or blended with sweeteners to make them more consistent in flavour, cheaper and more readily available.
Moorland managers and gamekeepers welcome the hives to the moors. The bees are excellent pollinators and it is estimated that one colony can pollinate up to 20 million flowers in one day.
It's not only honey bees that grace our managed moors. There are many species from the bumble bee family and also bees like the Heather mining bee (Andrena fuscipes) and the Heather colletes bee (Colletes succinctus). These latter bees require broken areas of ground to burrow into and they thrive well on our uplands proving they are not just a monoculture of pure ling. They are similar in appearance but have evolved quite differently to honey bees.
Our moors are amazing. They are full of diversity, be it birds, reptiles, arachnids or insects. They must be managed if we are to keep them healthy and sustainable for the future. If you're ever enjoying a piece of toast or even a slice of cake drizzled with heather honey, just remember where it came from and appreciate not only the work of the bees but the keepers who have protected these special places for generations.