# Bad tasting honey?



## jarrod (Jul 18, 2007)

So I'm finally getting to harvesting this year, start cutting into the capped comb, take a small taste and blech! Tastes like medicine. Anyone have any idea?

All hives had predominantly made excellent tasting honey. The only thing I can think of is that it sat capped for too long. It could also be they were into some nasty blooms, but this is horrible.

Thoughts


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## NeilV (Nov 18, 2006)

There is a flower called bitterweed that will do that to honey.

I once had some honey that the beekeeper said was from ragweed that was truly nasty, to the point that I thought it could be poisonous. 

When extracting, sample each frame once uncapped so you don't ruin the whole bucket.


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## jarrod (Jul 18, 2007)

Thanks. Did that. Wow that was disgusting. I just gave it back to the hives it was so terrible.

I think the problem was that we had a horrible month and a half dearth, so the hives resorted to anything the could find, which in this case may have been ragweed, which survives drought better than anything surrounding.

Beekeeper beware. Taste before you spin!


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## BuzzyBee (May 28, 2008)

The worst tasting honey I've ever had came from a plastic packet with a major food companies name on it!


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## jbford (Apr 17, 2009)

Bet it is bitterweed. Grows on overgrazed land. Bitterweed is the reason many folks harvest in June or July and leave the rest for the bees.


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## nathan (Jun 10, 2010)

As dry as it's been around here, I'd venture either bitterweed or ragweed. Not much else has been going on flowerwise that I can tell. Talked to my mom, she remembers a couple of other times over the years that the bees didn't have anything else to work and we had bitter honey.


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## nathan (Jun 10, 2010)

As dry as it's been around here, I'd also say bitterweed or ragweed. In years past, we've had bitter honey after a drought when the bees had nothing else to work. Bitterweed loves horse pastures and dry weather, and there's plenty of both this year in NWA.


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## beebiker (May 5, 2009)

i can well imagine that bitterweed would taste terrible, would rabbit brush make poor honey too or is it ok ??i am asking becouse the rabbit brush is just now starting to flower here along the ditch banks.

bee biker


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## franktrujillo (Jan 22, 2009)

rabbit brush is part of the aster family.part of the fall flow my bees are all over them i let them keep it for winter .


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