mazola

[peteinwilts]

Hi Guys
Today, I have started medicating some of my remote bees. I have left them a little later as they are sat next to fields of game cover which is currently fully in bloom with random weeds, but also mostly rape and sunflowers.

I performed a final harvest at the same time. I have never had rape honey before, and now I know why it is known as mazola.
It is darker than I has expecting, but is currently the consistancy of veg oil, smells like veg oil and tastes like veg oil. Suprisingly not in the slightest bit sweet.

How do people use it? Does it taste better when set, should it be blended, made into mead, saved for cooking or just fed back to the bees?

Cheers
Pete

 

[itma]

Mazola is 'corn' (maize) oil.
Canola, however, is rape seed oil.



OSR shouldn't be in flower at this time of year …
Any Rape honey would have been expected to have granulated/set long ago.
Pure, it is pale, and sets nearly white.

 

[YorkshireBees]

Mazola is 'corn' (maize) oil.
Canola, however, is rape seed oil.



OSR shouldn't be in flower at this time of year …
Any Rape honey would have been expected to have granulated/set long ago.
Pure, it is pale, and sets nearly white.

I think it's definitely NOT OSR

 

[peteinwilts]

I know OSR is one of a huge family of plants. I presume the plant that looks like it is a family member?

I took these today before inspecting\medicating.

There is about 40 acres worth at the top and bottom of two large fields.

http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=10937&stc=1&d=1411856794

 

[Mrs Shoot]

Could they be mustard, I know it is popular as part of cover crop mixes.

 

[Amari]

Looks like it - both OSR and mustard are brassicas.

 

[masterBK]

The honey from all the brassicas, as far as I understand, it is light in colour. Maybe it is Ivy or ragwort honey or even honeydew that has been coming in

 

[peteinwilts]

I thought bees only take ragwort if there is little else available?

Does not taste like ivy (or anything else edible!).

the field is humming and shimmering with bees, and have no doubt it is responsible for the honey.

On the bright side, I only moved the bees there a few weeks ago and were mid-sized colony's. Now almost all are enormous, and have collected a good amount for Winter already, although if it does not cool down soon, I may need to do another harvest.

I only took about 250lb honey from these and will probably feed it back to some of my other bees....

 

[Margaret Elisabeth]

Looks like a Brassica of some kind The sunflowers should be attracting some attention from the bees.

 

[dclewis]

Rape English
Canola US
Colza French

We get a flowering late here on the stuff that has self-seeded from the main crop taken in July, but not enough to produce a crop of honey as the farmers tend to kill it off(herbicide) or plough it in.

 

[Fatbee]

I agree with Mrs Shoot that's mustard not OSR