Poisonous honey

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Poisonous honey
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Joined: 30 Dec 2006
Posts: 11622
Location: truro

Posted: Sun May 10, 09 6:35 pm Post subject:

Ginkotree wrote:

We have just had a lovely afternoon here with the local bee keepers and I was able ask Maureen about the privat again.

The flowers do make poisonous honey but if it diluted with lots of other flowers it is only slight The bees will only go to it if they are really hungry or there is no choice, in some places privat is the main plant and thats when you have to watch out.It is not poisonous to the bees.
The bees love sycamore and if there are lots around it can give the honey a green tinge, it is the concentration of one plant species that counts on how the honey is affected.

When I was a nurse 30 years ago we used honey a lot in hospitals.We would use what was called Honeytulle, gauze soaked in honey that came in flat tins which was very precious .It would be layed over the wound making sure it came into contact with the sore.As it was moist it was easy to remove when changing the dressing. It was almost miraculous in healing open wounds as it helps granulation, forming new cells under the skin layer and then helps the skin to form,while staying sterile.A dry dressing was put over the top.
We also used to use egg white and oxygen for bed sores.Put a meringue on your bottom,the extra protien would aid healing it was thought.
I loved the old fashioned nursing
.

manuka honey is now used for such things

Hairyloon

Joined: 20 Nov 2008
Posts: 15425
Location: Today I are mostly being in Yorkshire.

Posted: Sun May 10, 09 10:39 pm Post subject:

Ginkotree wrote:

The bees love sycamore and if there are lots around it can give the honey a green tinge, it is the concentration of one plant species that counts on how the honey is affected.

Is it the sycamore itself they like, or do they milk the aphids that live on it?

TheGrange

Joined: 12 Apr 2009
Posts: 874

Posted: Sun May 10, 09 10:47 pm Post subject:

Ginkotree wrote:

When I was a nurse 30 years ago we used honey a lot in hospitals.We would use what was called Honeytulle, gauze soaked in honey that came in flat tins which was very precious .It would be layed over the wound making sure it came into contact with the sore.As it was moist it was easy to remove when changing the dressing. It was almost miraculous in healing open wounds as it helps granulation, forming new cells under the skin layer and then helps the skin to form,while staying sterile.A dry dressing was put over the top.
We also used to use egg white and oxygen for bed sores.Put a meringue on your bottom,the extra protien would aid healing it was thought.
I loved the old fashioned nursing
.

when my showjumper had an horrendous wire cut to his fetlock we used maggots at one point to clean the wound (an old medical method) and honey to reduce granulation, the wire cut was through to the bone and the vet gave us some ointment to put actually on the bone,,, i must admit i'm squeamish with the inside bits but the honey made it easy to change the dressings

beean

Joined: 04 Jun 2009
Posts: 254

Posted: Fri Jun 05, 09 10:18 am Post subject:
My trusty Ted Hooper book refers to Rhodedendron Thomsonii occasioanlly producing nectar which can produce poisonous honey (as the water evaporates from the nectar, the concentration of the toxins is higher), so only the honey is toxic, to both bee and beekeeper (if you eat enough). It seems to take a very particular set of circumstances which would be profoundly unusual to encounter.

Ginkotree

Joined: 26 Jun 2008
Posts: 2956
Location: south west wales

Posted: Fri Jun 05, 09 3:06 pm Post subject:

beean wrote:

My trusty Ted Hooper book refers to Rhodedendron Thomsonii occasioanlly producing nectar which can produce poisonous honey (as the water evaporates from the nectar, the concentration of the toxins is higher), so only the honey is toxic, to both bee and beekeeper (if you eat enough).
It seems to take a very particular set of circumstances which would be profoundly unusual to encounter.

Is that the rhodedendron that is all over the place and being got rid of now?

beean

Joined: 04 Jun 2009
Posts: 254

Posted: Tue Jun 09, 09 12:22 pm Post subject:
The rhodedendrons that try to take over the world - purple flowered ones - are rhodedendron ponticum. I don't know much about Thomsonii. I've heard ragwort honey is not toxic, but absolutely disgusting, unless you leave it for the smell to go (in which case you might as well eat sugar syrup!).

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