Re: funny honey
I remember reading back in 1977 of Russian experiments feeding bees all sorts of things to make "honey." Of course, it's possible; maybe even economical. But it is flat wrong. This is from N. Yoirish's book
THE EXPRESS (ACCELERATED) METH0D OF PRODUCING HONEY
Ivan Michurin said: "We are living at a time when
man's sacred duty is not merely to explain. but to remake
the world., to make it better ... now we are able to interfere
in nature's work."
The problem that interested us was whether bees could
made to produce different kinds of honey.
Since bees extract poisonous nectars from plant
process them in their honey-stomachs without suffering
any harm, we wondered if they could be compelled to
extract juices from medicinal plants or convert into honey
artificial medicinal solutions, fruit and vegetable juices,
and the like.
So at an apiary in the Far-Eastern taiga we started
our experiments with several bee colonie Feeders with
syrups containing various food-stuffs (milk, eggs, fruit
and vegetable juices, etc.) and drugs .(phytin, calcium
chloride, streptocide, vitamins, etc.) were introduced into
the hives. Four colonies received syrups containing var-
ious medicinal dyes such as brilliant green, methyl
blue and eosine, while three colonies were given endocrine
preparations in syrup (thyreoidine, hepatocrlne, ovarlne).
The artificial solutions were prepared in enameled vessels
and poured into the feeders from an enameled
kettle very carefully and quickly, so that bees from other
hives who were collecting nectar from blossoming plants
would not be attracted. The wooden feeders were filled
every day with a quantity of syrup that in ordinary conditions
would have necessitated 15,000,000 visits to the
flowers of, say, red clover. The bees evaporated the moisture
from the syrups and in precessing enriched them
with organic acids, enzymes, antibiotics, and so forth
The experiments lasted several months, but a few days
after they were started we observed the bees leaving bee·
spaces and coming to the feeder every time we opened
the cover to put in the syrup. Right from the very beginnlng,
scout-bees had tasted the syrup, informed their sisters
of their rich find and drawn them to it.
Soon the bees grew accustomed to the new conditions
when they did not have to leave the hive in search of
nectar and encounter birds, wasps and other enemies.
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