Ding Feng Apiary

The flowering seasons vary, so bees collect nectar from different flowers. Longan honey is the most common and best-selling flavor. Another unique-tasting honey is wildflower honey (Bai Hua Mi), whose primary nectar source is Bidens pilosa (Spanish needles). Many might not have heard of it, but if you mention a plant in the fields that pricks you and has burrs that stick to you, you might recall it. Bidens pilosa, commonly known as 'ghost needle grass' or 'Spanish needles', is sometimes playfully called 'Chai Cha Mu' (a 'naughty girl' or 'sticky burr') due to this characteristic. Bidens pilosa flowers have white petals and yellow anthers. Don't let its pesky nature fool you; the honey produced from it is delicious! Since other flowers usually grow near Bidens pilosa, bees gather nectar from a variety of flowers, hence it's also called 'wildflower honey'. Longan honey, produced only in spring, has a rich and mellow taste, offering a sweet aftertaste with just one sip. Wildflower honey is available year-round; its taste is more subtle but with a stronger floral aroma, a sweet and refreshing scent with a hint of tartness that stimulates saliva and quenches thirst. Don't mistake the slight tartness for spoilage! Honey, containing natural fructose, glucose, and enzymes, can be directly absorbed by the body, which is why more and more people are using it as a sugar substitute. The owner suggests dissolving it in warm or cool boiled water for long-term consumption. The white crystals that form in cold weather can be used as a jam for toast or crackers, or as a healthy ingredient in cooking. If you like to try new things, you can also mix the two types of honey to create unique flavors! Because there are many honey products on the market with varying quality, owner Wang specially shared two simple tips for consumers to distinguish genuine honey when purchasing. Pure honey has a deep color and is not easily translucent; you can test visibility by placing a finger behind the bottle, though wildflower honey naturally has a lighter color. Another method is to shake the honey bottle: pure honey will produce fine, dense bubbles, while artificially diluted honey will have fewer bubbles that dissipate quickly. The owner states that even with the same batch of bees, differences in water sources, soil, and climate will affect the honey's quality and taste, a knowledge gained through decades of experience. The honey produced has less than 20% water content, making it truly 'pure' honey, which earned him the first-place honor in Hsinchu County's Longan Honey Competition. When asked about beekeeping secrets, the owner, who produces and sells his own honey, spread his hands and said there are no tricks. In fact, he believes that by understanding and adapting to nature's order, one can receive its most abundant rewards.