----- Original Message -----
From: "Bill Truesdell" <[log in to unmask]> in regards to buckwheat
honey:

> The key phrase there is "It may not be what they are looking for" and I
> nominate it as the most understated comment ever posted on the BeeL :)
>
> I planted it as a cover crop but decided to let it flower and collect
> seeds for future planting. I understood that buckwheat honey was a
> delicacy in northern New York, so looked forward to trying it.
>
> I threw away the seeds.


FWIW our experience with buckwheat honey has been exactly the opposite.  We
market our honey as "Light,"  "Amber," "Dark Amber," and "Dark," in order to
stress the differences in taste, sorta like beer is brewed and marketed.
Buckwheat is a vital component, as are various nursery and wildflowers, to
the darker blends.  It is extremely rare to be able to harvest anything even
close to pure buckwheat honey with our spread-out nectar flow here, although
I wish we could.

Almost without exception folks will originally purchase the "Light" honey,
but after a free sample will quickly move on to the darker blends (at a
premium price, of course) due to the more distinct flavor - much like
comparing the beginning beer drinker to the veteran beer connoisseur.

IMHO buckwheat *can* provide a vital component in honey production as it is
an easy crop to cultivate, it produces a strong nectar flow and it has a
short growth cycle.  In addition, it can either be a timed planting to
provide a flow during what would otherwise be a slack time in production, or
multiple plantings can be spread out in order to spread the flow throughout
the year.

We throw away the seeds too - back into the seed bed...  :-)

Skip


 Skip & Christy Hensler
THE ROCK GARDEN
Newport, WA
http://www.povn.com/rock/