09/26/2026
I got some great questions about our honey today at the farmers market! I want to go over some of them here, because there's some interesting information that some may not know!
Does your honey ever crystallize? The answer to this question is YES. All raw honey will eventually crystalize. How long it takes to crystallize can vary, depending on what kind of nectar is predominant in the honey, the moisture content, and temperature it's kept at. But crystallization is a good thing...it means your honey is pure, raw, and unfiltered. Grocery store honey is pasteurized and then super-filtered, leaving basically liquid sugar that never crystallizes. To make it liquid again, gently heat it (I personally like my honey crystallized!).
Do you treat for mites? The answer to this question is also YES. Bees are livestock, and we take care of them just like we would take care of cattle or sheep. Varroa mites are invasive and extremely harmful to bees. We NEVER treat when the bees are storing honey, and we only treat with a natural treatment which is derived from plants and already exists naturally in bee colonies as an anti-parasitic. We just hit them with a large dose at once to help rid their hives of mites.
Is your honey local? YES, we only sell raw, natural north Texas honey.
Where are your bees located? During the honey flow, we keep our bees in Gunter, TX. They over-winter in northwestern Arkansas, where they can get a break from hive beetles and take advantage of their later summer bloom to stock up on nectar for the winter.
Do you ever have a problem with chemical drift? NO, we do not. We keep our bees on land that is surrounded by pasture, and not within 5 miles of any farmland. So we do not ever have to deal with chemical drift, thankfully!
When do you harvest honey? The Texas honey harvest is over and done with by early July, for two reasons: First, a flower called snow on the prairie begins to bloom around that time, which can give honey an unpleasant flavor. Second, that time of year begins what's known as the "Dearth", which is many months of hot, dry temperatures with very little food source, followed by winter. Harvesting any honey during this time would be harmful to the bees, as they need plenty of stores going into winter to last the many months with no food. Sometimes, Texas beekeepers can get an early Spring harvest and a late summer harvest, depending on the weather. Beekeeping in Texas is a challenge, for sure.
We hope you've learned something interesting, and I've included some videos of our bees and our honey harvest from this year.
