P-O Gustafsson wrote: > What really is happening is a crystallization of the honey. This is best > and easiest done just below 15C. Agreed. Optimum is 57F or 13.9C. > However, honey get very difficult to stir at so low temp, so we usually use a higher temp for > mixing the starter in. Up to 27-28C is OK... Honey can be stirred easily at 15C with a mechanical stirrer in order to cream it, but I agree that the higher temperature is required to mix in the starter thoroughly. > Stirring large batches of honey for days is a waste of time, The point of stirring as the honey starts to set is to produce a soft set honey which does not frost. If you mix in the starter and then bottle immediately then two things will happen: the honey is likely to set very hard and, because honey shrinks as it sets, unless it is stored at a constant temperature, it will pull away from the side of the jar causing frosting. Dyce (who first invented a reliable process for producing set honey) suggested 'conditioning' honey by warming the jars to 84F for 3 days so that the honey could relax. However, it is much more reliable to 'cream' the honey in order to break the crystal structure. >...using a proper starter made as described here: > http://www.algonet.se/~beeman/research/krist-e-nf.htm I am struggling to understand this website. Firstly, it takes little power to stir honey at 15C because of the gearing - my motor is just a couple of hundred watts and therefore uses little power to stir, say, 5 times a day for 15 minutes for 3 days. However, my main problem is with the production of the 'living starter'. This is produced from starter that 'need not be fine grain'. So how do you get from coarse crystals to a final fine grain product? Seeding honey with a coarse-grained starter will produce a very coarse-grained end product. Commercial packers grind the starter in order to produce fine crystals. How does the Ekobi method achieve this? Peter Edwards [log in to unmask] www.stratford-upon-avon.freeserve.co.uk/ :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: -- Visit www.honeybeeworld.com/BEE-L for rules, FAQ and other info --- ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::