From about the last week of October (after we harvest the Wildflower Autumn Honey) thru April some of our hives are trucked to The Delmarva Peninsula to winter over in a milder climate and to get an earlier start in the spring than they would in Upstate NY. Tulip Poplar and Black Locust trees bloom about the same time down there and this honey is derived form the nectar of their blossoms. Like buckwheat honey, it’s dark color is due to its high mineral content.
Our raw Tulip Poplar-Black Locust honey is unheated, unpasteurized, unfiltered, unprocessed unblended and in the same condition as it was in the hive
The tulip poplar is a large deciduous tree also called “tulip tree” for its large flowers that somewhat resembles tulips; however it is closely related to magnolias rather than lilies, the plant family to which true tulips belong.
The tree is also called “yellow poplar” “canoe wood”, “saddle-leaf tree” or “white wood” and The Onondaga tribe call it Ko-yen-ta-ka-ah-tas (the white tree). The name “canoe wood” most likely refers to the tree’s use for building dugout canoes by Eastern Native Americans.
Black Locust flowers are pollinated by bees and hummingbirds and although it’s blooming period is short (about 1 to 2 weeks), it is a major honey plant in eastern USA.
Black Locust, (botanical name Robinia pseudoacacia), is a tree native to the southeastern United States that has been widely planted and naturalized elsewhere in the temperate zone of North America. It has an insistent growth pattern and extensive root system that discourages soil erosion.