Honey not crystallizing

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Joined
Dec 13, 2017
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Location
Monmouth
Hive Type
National
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My problem this year is quite the reverse of normal years. My main crop is spring honey with a high proportion of rape, so I usually extract in June and honey begins to crystallize within a month or so. Very little summer honey, which is mostly left for the bees.

But this year no spring honey at all, but a reasonable crop of summer honey. However, this honey is very runny (soaks straight through toast or runs straight over the sides. It's showing no signs at all of thickening up - wondering if there is any way of speeding things up? (There is no possibility of sugar syrup in the honey, nor of it being under ripe when extracted - capped and 17% on refractometer)
 
Soft set it. It's the ideal time. I have some on the go in my unheated sunroom.
Buy a jar of cheap OSR from the supermarket. Set a few pounds with it. (my soft set is done in a week) then use what you've made to set the rest. Keep a few jars to use to set the next batchIMG_7953.jpeg
 
My latest batch of set honey which used a seed honey is taking ages to set. I had it in my utility room which is always 16-18deg. I have now moved it to my garage which is likely to be much colder to see if it starts to set.
 
As Dani said, seed it with some decent supermarket soft set honey - the usual ratio is 10% seed, stirred in well and kept at 13-14°C, you should see the change in the honey overnight and the honey is usually ready to bottle within 48 hours to four days (depending on the honey) I like to leave it set until it's just at the stage of gloopiness it takes a while to pour.
 
As Dani said, seed it with some decent supermarket soft set honey -
I think Dani said "cheap" supermarket OSR honey! I would rather not contaminate my honey with some of unknown origin.
When I started doing this I asked around at the teaching apiary and bought a couple of pound of seed honey from someone who had produced the seed from grinding crystallised OSR honey. ( Too much like hard work for me!)
Once you start making set you just hold back a few jars as seed for your next batch.
 
I've started 100lbs of soft set this week, Ive seeded half a bucket with two jars of seed going to jar it today it has been kept in the parla at 14 c might of been warmer last night as both fires were going.
 
I think Dani said "cheap" supermarket OSR honey! I would rather not contaminate my honey with some of unknown origin.
When I started doing this I asked around at the teaching apiary and bought a couple of pound of seed honey from someone who had produced the seed from grinding crystallised OSR honey. ( Too much like hard work for me!)
Once you start making set you just hold back a few jars as seed for your next batch.
Your own seed is best of course. I presumed moobee had no crystallised honey of her own. 340g of supermarket OSR in 30lb of honey isn’t going to contaminate significantly.
I find seed kept back starts getting grainier after three seasons so I usually start again every other year.
 
Amazing year. Mine still hasn't set but it is sticky enough to be perfect. Never had that at my present location. Not complaining though!
 
I don't have enough to sell this year, but I guess, if I did, would have to change the wording on my labels to account for the fact I have added the bought-in seed?
 
I don't have enough to sell this year, but I guess, if I did, would have to change the wording on my labels to account for the fact I have added the bought-in seed?
No. Use only one 340g jar. Seed a kg or so then when that is ready use it to seed the rest of the bucket. Your honey contains 2.5% of the foreigner. Hardly worth declaring.
The following year you have some seed from this which is even more diluted.
 
I think Dani said "cheap" supermarket OSR honey! I would rather not contaminate my honey with some of unknown origin.
When I started doing this I asked around at the teaching apiary and bought a couple of pound of seed honey from someone who had produced the seed from grinding crystallised OSR honey. ( Too much like hard work for me!)
Once you start making set you just hold back a few jars as seed for your next batch.
They ground osr what for it is a seed in itself.
 
My problem this year is quite the reverse of normal years. My main crop is spring honey with a high proportion of rape, so I usually extract in June and honey begins to crystallize within a month or so. Very little summer honey, which is mostly left for the bees.

But this year no spring honey at all, but a reasonable crop of summer honey. However, this honey is very runny (soaks straight through toast or runs straight over the sides. It's showing no signs at all of thickening up - wondering if there is any way of speeding things up? (There is no possibility of sugar syrup in the honey, nor of it being under ripe when extracted - capped and 17% on refractometer)
If you haven’t bottled it yet you mix it with 10% soft set honey (some of last year’s) and make seeded soft set honey. My summer honey hardly ever crystallises. I put it down to a high level of blackberry nectar which has relatively high level of fructose.
 
my spring honey is solid and frosting!
Frosting on the sides is a sign of good quality naturally set honey, it happens when the set honey contracts slightly and moves away from the glass, leaving the frosting effect
 

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