Spring is always a lovely time, and that’s no exception at Wild Nectar! The hives are coming out of their winter state, and so are the trees, as the buds burst and the season for nectar gathering and pollination begins. This is of course followed quickly by the harvest of the first delicious, local honey of the ‘honey year’. We have been fortunate, our hives have made it through the winter in good health and with enough natural food to forage on the South Coast with no supplementary feeding, and very fortunately out of the Varroa emergency areas.
Our bees (and beekeepers!) are now at their busiest as their first job for the spring is to help pollinate the lush almond orchards of the Riverina in NSW Central West. The Riverina is famous for its abundant fresh produce with wineries, crops and many different orchards found throughout the area. Interestingly, the bees don’t produce any honey while pollinating the almonds, but their work is vital to the health of the crop and production of delicious, local almonds for the Australian market.
While in the area, there are plenty of food sources for our bees in the nation’s foodbowl. Native flora like the Red Gum or River Gum on the Murrumbidgee and citrus blossoms later in the spring produce a fragrant, delicate, golden honey that through our cold extraction process creates a raw honey which is full of natural flavour. The bees foraging helps both native and orchard trees pollinate which is vital for their lifecycles and the wider ecosystem.