In a message dated 12/1/99 7:05:54 AM Pacific Standard Time, [log in to unmask]
writes:

<< "Privet honey is ... distinctly bitter in taste ... the bitterness is
 liable to spoil good honey with which it may be mixed."   >>

   We have a LOT of privet here, some gone wild and grown into trees.  It
blooms profusely in late spring and make a dark, rich honey. I've never
detected any bitterness in it at all.

    Once in a while, a hive gets into something in the summer that is so
bitter you are tempted to eat some sand, just to get the taste out of your
mouth.  I have not identified the plant, as a yard of bees may be unaffected
except for one or two hives. The honey is usually ELA or white and comes in
late July or early August.

Dave Green    Hemingway, SC   USA
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