Inside Our Honey Harvest Process
Harvest days start early, while the bees are still drowsy and the meadow is wet with dew. We move quietly between the hives with smokers lit, lifting each frame to check whether the bees have finished their work. Only fully capped frames — honey the bees have ripened and sealed themselves — come back to the honey house.
That patience is the whole secret. Uncapped honey holds too much water and can ferment in the jar, so we never rush a frame. If a colony needs its stores for the weeks ahead, the frames stay exactly where they are.
From capped frames to golden jars
Back at the honey house we slice the wax cappings with a warm knife and lay the frames in the extractor, which spins the honey out gently without breaking the comb. The drawn comb goes straight back to the hives, so the bees can refill it instead of rebuilding from scratch.
The spun honey settles in a tank for a few days while tiny wax flecks and bubbles rise to the top. Then we jar it by hand, write the yard and date on every lid, and stack the cases for the farm shop and our Saturday market stall.
Why slow honey tastes better
Gentle handling keeps the honey raw from hive to jar — never heated, never rushed. Taste a spoonful of the new season next to last year's jar and you will notice the difference the flowers make: clover is mild and buttery, wildflower is deep and almost spicy.
