Wildforest Honey with Royal Jelly and Pollen

Mother Nature is brilliant in her capacity to create natural healing opportunities. One such way is the ever-important bee and its beautiful by-products: bee pollen and royal jelly.

Clear wildflower honey is produced from hives placed in certified organic wildflower meadows. The honey is then fortified with the addition of Royal Jelly and Pollen, two of nature’s best known wonders. It is then tracked by the organic authorities to maintain its Organic integrity. The flavor is sensational with everything you could hope for and lots more all in a honey, all the scent and tastes of summer in a jar.

Bee Pollen Facts

The title of “worker bee” is appropriately termed given the lengths to which bee pollen is produced. It takes one bee approximately 240 hours of work to produce 6 grams of bee pollen. Young bees use this for nourishment, and it is full of nutrients required for humans—not the least of which is protein, lecithin, live enzymes, folic acid, vitamins, and trace minerals. Half of the protein found in bee pollen is even in its free amino acids form, meaning it is very bio-available.

Royal Jelly Facts

Royal jelly transforms a female worker bee into a Queen Bee. It is her main source of sustenance. In fact, for the first two days after the female hatches, royal jelly is all she is fed. On the third day, the other females are fed honey and pollen while the queen’s food continues to be royal jelly. It is created when a nurse bee combines masticated pollen with its own glandular secretions. The result is a vitalizing tonic that extends the Queen Bee’s life by at least twenty times the average bee.

Bee Pollen and Royal Jelly Health Benefits

While both bee pollen and royal jelly have similar healing and nutritional properties, royal jelly tends to have more potent effects because it has a higher concentration of nutrients. As a result of its high enzymatic count (believed to contain nearly 5000 live enzymes), bee pollen helps with various digestive disorders by healing and regulating the intestinal flora. Also, neither has a mucosal residue, so the body can assimilate and benefit from its high nutrient content.

Why Vasilissa Organic Honey ?

Vasilissa Organic honey is not only delicious, this natural sweetener has nutritional value that makes it a great alternative to white table sugar.

Honey is a natural product. It is basically manufactured by bees, either in the wild or on bee farms. The honeybees collect nectar from flowers and take it back to the beehive. Next worker bees chew the nectar, adding enzymes in the process. The honey is then spread into honeycombs and fanned by the wings of the bees to dry. Once the honey is concentrated enough, the bees seal off the honeycombs with a plug of wax. Beekeepers then smoke out the bees from the hive so they can retrieve the honeycombs and extract the sweet honey

Why Vasilissa Organic Honey?

Traditional honey farms use antibiotics on the bees to keep them healthy. This can sometimes lead to the contamination of the honey with antibiotics. At Stayia Organic farm, we don’t use antibiotics on our bees. 

Stayia Farm is also free from harmful pesticides that could also potentially contaminate the honey. On the other hand, there is much debate over whether or not organic farming practices prevent the contamination of honey by pesticides. Bees are free roaming creatures and could potentially encounter pesticides from neighboring areas and end up contaminating the honey anyway. One benefit of organic honey is that it is often sold raw (meaning unheated), which helps to ensure that you’re getting the most nutritional value out of the product.

Nutritional Value.

Honey is comprised of roughly 80 percent natural sugar and 18 percent water. The remaining 2 percent is made up of vitamins, minerals, pollens, and protein. The vitamins in honey include vitamin C, B6, riboflavin, niacin, and thiamin. The minerals present in honey include calcium, iron, copper, manganese, potassium, phosphorus, zinc and sodium. Honey also contains 22 amino acids. The nutritional value of honey can vary depending on the flowers that the bees used for the nectar.

Other Nutritional Benefits of Honey

• Has a lower rating on the Glycemic Index than table sugar, which means it is less likely to spike blood sugar level
• Is sweeter than table sugar, so you need less of it to sweeten foods
• Produces a natural laxative effect and can help relieve constipation
• May also help to alleviate symptoms of diarrhea and dysentery
• Has natural antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties
• Can be used as an appetite stimulant
• Is easy on the digestive system
• Has been shown to be one of the most effective forms of carbohydrates to ingest prior to exercise
• Has been known to help with post workout recuperation
• Contains antioxidants that help prevent against cellular damage
• Reduces the oxidation of LDL (bad cholesterol) which cuts down on the risk of developing atherosclerosis

Honey should not be given to babies under 12 months of age because it may contain bacteria that can cause infant botulism.

A true delicacy of nature

Organic Wildforest Honey with Honeycomb is a true delicacy of nature. The hexagonal cells that create the comb are made by bees from beeswax. 1100 bees have to visit 4 million flower blossoms to create 1 gram of honey, and then must consume 3 grams of honey to generate 0.5 gram of beeswax. Beeswax is an amazing substance that is entirely edible and contains a variety of healing and allergy-soothing properties. Into each beeswax cell, bees deposit the flower nectar they have gathered from thousands of flowers. The bees then stand over the cell and fan their wings to evaporate the water from the nectar, leaving behind a rich, syrupy, golden substance that we know as honey. The cell is capped with a thin layer of beeswax and reserved as food supply for the colony. Enjoy Vasilissa Organic Wildforest Honey with Honeycomb with slices of tart green apple and a wedge of salty artisan sharp cheddar for a delicious appetizer or dessert.

Vasilissa Organic Wildforest Honey with Honeycomb from Stayia Farm. Perfect on hot crunchy toast so the wax softens in the heat; equally stunning as a dessert with fruit and good ricotta. The ultimate addition to a chessboard, partnered with sharp, nutty and salty cheeses such as strong blues or semi hard Gouda style cheeses

A powerful combination

Organic Wildforest Honey with Royal Jelly and fresh Pollen is a powerful combination of natural foods derived from bees

The multivitamin of nature, royal jelly with pollen and wildforest honey, all certified organic from BioHellas.

It offers amazing, revitalizing effects after a few weeks use. It is an ideal food for athletes. It offers greater stamina and more energy to those who work excessively or work under stress conditions. Ideal for recovering patients. 

 A delicious natural product, appropriate for all ages. The only organic product which contains royal jelly, pollen and honey.

Wildpure Certified Organic Thyme Honey

It is logical that honey is healthy. It is pure and natural, contains enzymes and inhibits bacteria in some circumstances. However, Vasilissa thyme honey is special because of it’s powerful antioxdant properties. The type of antioxidants found in Vasilissa thyme honey have been labelled “defensive antioxidants” by the father of New Zealand honey research, Prof. Peter Nolan.  These antioxidants can bind damaging oxidants that form, stopping them turning to free radicals and causing cell damage. Professor Nolans’ research has suggested that some of the highest rating food for supplying defensive antioxidants is thyme honey.

A Greek study that was published in the peer-reviewed journal “Food Chemistry” (vol 116 issue 3) found that thyme reduced the viability of Ishikawa (endometrial) cancer cells and PC-3 (prostate) cancer cells in vitro. The authors suggest that a diet enriched with thyme honey “may prevent cancer-related processes in breast, prostate and endometrial cancer cells” (Tsiapara, Jaakkola, Chinou et al Food Chemistry 116.3 2009).

Vasilissa Wildpure Certified Organic thyme honey is extracted from the honey frames at temperatures less than 37ºC (less than 99ºF). This is in line with the organic standard. The reason for this low temperature during honey extraction is to keep alive all the naturally occurring enzymes in the honey. This ensures we have truly raw and natural honey. Honey that has been heated above 45ºC (113ºF) rapidly starts to become degraded, as the enzymes become denatured and other chemical reactions cause the production of toxins (HMF). That is why it is important to source “raw”    honey that preserves the health giving properties of that particular honey type.

Organic Fir of Vityna-Vanilla Honey

Greek honey from the mountains of Vytina in the central Peloponnese region of Greece. This rare ‘forest’ honey has a warm, woody flavor and hints of vanilla and caramel. Vytina is a little village in the mountains of central Peloponnese surrounded by enormous expanses of fir forests and pure mountain air - it is easy to confuse it with the Swiss Alps.  The bees around Vytina, in the mountains of the Peloponnese, produce a thick dark honey (the darker the honey the more anti-oxidants it has).  Different from the better known thyme honey of Greece, this is just as distinctive, delicious and nutritious.  It is raw, unheated and certified to originate purely from the fir trees in this area and to be pesticide free.  Rich in iron and calcium with a low total sugar content compared with flower honey.  The people of Vytina use fir honey to benefit their digestive and respiratory systems.   It is also thought to help anemia.  Complements well-aged goat cheeses. This is truly an exceptional Greek honey.

Vasilissa Greek Wildforest Honey with Lavender blossom

Vasilissa Greek organic honey is a precious and aromatic blend of valuable nectar from various spring flowers growing on the sunny slopes of the Dyrfis mountain slopes in Evia island, combined with whole organic lavender blossoms. A combination that is beneficial when you are feeling restless, exhausted or have trouble sleeping.

Organic honey with lavender blossom:
98% organic wildforest and blossom honey, 2% organic lavender blossoms.

Vasilissa Honey with Large Tears of Mastic Chios

The greek pine honey meets the Chios mastic and we get the ideal combination of two highly natural products. Those who are fans of unique tastes will appreciate its delicious smell and viscid texture, while at the same time enjoy its high nutritional value. The collection period starts at the end of summer and lasts till early automn and it takes place in the island of Evia.
It is of high nutritional value because of its high concentration in minerals and vitamins. Chios mastic is famous for its antibacterial, antioxidant and anti- inflammatory role and contributes to proper function and better health of the digestive system.

Vasilissa Gold Honey

Honey is often referred to as "liquid gold."
So to emphasize the point, Stayia Farm's beekeepers have added shimmering flecks of edible 24K gold leaf to their finest varieties, encased in tall, slim, graceful bottles to heighten the effect. Stunning to the eye, sublime to the tongue...

www.stayiafarm.com

Bee Labor or Industrial Product: How to Distinguish Natural Honey

What Are the Benefits of Honey in Weight Loss?

It might be easy to discount the idea of a honey diet amongst the plethora of fad diets that proliferate the internet. However, the use of ultra-nutritious honey as a balancing agent in a weight-reduction diet has its basis in serious science (not to mention the fact that it's been used for weight support in Ayurvedic practice since ancient times).

1. Features

   • When undertaking a weight-reduction diet, you limit the amount of food you eat, so the nutritional "punch" that each ounce of food packs becomes more important to overall heath. Honey is a healthy substitute for refined sugar, as it's a natural source for a wide variety of micronutrients, including amino acids, riboflavin, niacin, calcium, copper, potassium, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus and zinc. The amounts are proportionally small, but these micronutrients add up in a balanced diet.

   Effects

   • Healthy digestion is absolutely necessary for effective and lasting weight loss, and honey is a potent digestive. One of the reasons this is true is honey's natural support of the digestive tract's Bifidobacteria (one of the body's most important types of "good bacteria"). Honey is classified as a "prebiotic." This term means that honey contains several substances that increase the population of the bacteria and allow it to thrive in the system, balancing out the "bad bacteria" that slow digestion and keep weight in the stomach.

   Considerations

   • The sugars in honey are technically simple sugars, which weight-watchers have historically been advised against, because of the spike these sugars tend to cause in blood sugar. However, studies have shown that the sugar combination in honey produces a lower glucose response than refined sugars and flours. This means that honey in moderate amounts gives a satisfying sweetness to a balanced diet, instead of causing the blood sugar to spike sharply and dissipate quickly (leaving a desire for more sugar in its wake.)

   Theories/Speculation

   • Though calorie-free, chemical sweeteners (such as saccharine and aspartame) have been linked to overeating in scientific studies, scientists have theorized that this is because chemical sweeteners interfere with the body's ability to "count its own calories," or determine the balance of how much energy it's taking in and expending. Honey satisfies the body's natural need for sweetness, while providing about 1.5 times the sweetness of refined sugar, allowing the dieter to reduce the amount used, while not impeding the body's ability to balance itself.

   Expert Insight

   • A New Zealand study compared the weights of three different groups of rats over time. One group was fed no sugar calories at all, the second group was fed a diet from which 8 percent of the total calories came from non-honey sugar sources, and the third group was fed a diet in which 10 percent of the calories came from honey. The honey-fed rats gained as much weight as the rats that were fed no sugar calories whatsoever, while the sugar-fed rats gained significantly more weight than the other two groups.

How to Check Pure Honey

Much of the honey you see on store shelves is not pure honey. Even honey that is labeled as "pure" or "100% honey" can include additives. The most common additives are water and syrup made from jiggery (also known as palm sugar) --- an unrefined sugar often used in India. Many testing methods to determine the purity of honey involve using chemicals not commonly found at home, but you can check honey purity with little more than water.

 

 

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Water
• Glass
• Spoon

1. • 1
     Pour several inches of cool water into your glass.
   • 2
     Scoop out approximately 1 tsp. of honey from its jar with a spoon. Pour this honey into the glass of cool water and stir gently for several seconds, then leave the glass alone for several minutes.
   • 3
     Examine the glass after several minutes. If the honey is still resting on the bottom of the glass as it was when you left it, the honey is probably pure. If, however, it has dissolved significantly into the water, it is probably not pure honey.

Tips & Warnings

• You can use several other methods to test the purity of honey. Try drizzling some honey over blotting paper and leaving it for several minutes; if the paper absorbs the honey, it is not pure. Another option is to dip a cotton swab or piece of rolled paper in honey, then hold the honeyed end in a flame for a moment to try to light it. If the honey burns cleanly and quietly, it is pure. If it sputters or does not burn, it is not pure.

Resources

• Read this Article in UK English
• The National Honey Board: Home

How to Use Raw Honey

Raw honey is honey that has not been pasteurized or filtered. Its cloudy appearance is due to crystals, bits of wax and bee pollen. Raw honey can be used like processed honey as a sweetener for a sweeter substitute for sugar. In addition to its food value, raw honey has powerful medicinal properties that fight inflammation, infection and allergic responses.

 

 

 

 

 

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Spoon
• Gauze

1. Wound Healing

   • 1
     Clean the wound. The method of cleaning does not matter; it just has to be clear of debris and infectious material.
   • 2
     Soften the honey. Vigorous stirring will soften the honey. If you are spreading the honey over a large area, you may want to make it even thinner. Do this by gently heating the honey until it is runnier. Do not overheat, as the healing properties of the honey can be destroyed. Alternatively, you can add a little mineral oil or petroleum jelly to the honey.
   • 3
     Apply the honey liberally to the wound.
   • 4
     Cover the wound with a gauze dressing.
   • 5
     Change the dressing at least once every one to three days, adding more honey if necessary.

   Allergy Treatment

   • 1
     Purchase locally-produced honey. Local honey contains pollen that boosts the immune response and combats allergies to the plants that produce the pollen.
   • 2
     Ingest a tablespoon of raw honey to combat seasonal allergies.
   • 3
     Repeat daily prior to and throughout allergy season.

Tips & Warnings

• Do not feed raw honey to an infant under one year of age. Spores in raw honey may cause botulism in children that young.

Resources

How to Make a Honey Comb Section

Beekeeping is increasing in popularity as many people are interested in harvesting their own honey for home use. Large commercial beekeepers use extractors to separate the honey from the waxy comb, but if you only have one or two hives you may want to keep some of the honeycomb whole when you harvest. These honeycomb sections make attractive and interesting gifts that let you share your delicious honey and promote beekeeping as a hobby.

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Protective bee gear
• Comb slicing pan
• Knife
• Storage containers

1. • 1
     Remove the wooden frame from the hive and place it in the pan.
   • 2
     Cut around the inside of the frame with a knife to remove the honeycomb.
   • 3
     Cut the comb into sections of any size using a knife. Place smaller pieces in jars that are then filled with honey. Put larger squares in flat containers with tight-sealing lids.
   • 4
     Remove the comb sections from storage when you are ready to use the honey. Cut the caps off the honeycomb cells with a sharp knife and allow the honey to drain out.

Tips & Warnings

• Use a thin wax foundation for comb honey in the hive to get high quality honeycomb sections.

How to Harvest Honey Without an Extractor

Many man-made beehives are rectangular boxes that can have 10 or more aluminum frames for bees to create their combs. These combs are usually covered with wax once the bee has filled it with honey. Some bee keepers use machinery to extract the honey from the comb, but there is another way to harvest honey. After crushing these combs and removing the wax, the honey can be procured without the need for heavy machinery.










Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Hive
• 10 Frames
• Bee brush
• Smoker
• Knife (6 inch chef knife)
• 1 Sheet pan (18 by 24 inches)
• Wooden pestle
• Straining Bucket (5 gallon)
• Cheese cloth (10 sheets)
• 10 wide mouth jars (1 liter)
• Protective Gear (coveralls, helmet, netting and gloves)

1. • 1
     Smoke the hive and remove the honey comb frames. A smoker is a tin or plastic canister that emits smoke, which helps to calm the bees as the keeper is tampering with the hive. Once each comb is removed from the hive, the bees are shaken and brushed off with a bee brush or stiff broad brush in front of the hive so they can return to the hive.
   • 2
     Cut the honey comb off of the frame with a chef knife. Leave about an inch of the comb all around, so that the bees can have a good starting point to rebuild the comb. Break the comb in half, fit it onto the sheet pan and return the frame to the hive. Repeat this with all the other saturated combs in the hive, disregarding the ones that are not ready. One hive can render close to 3 gallons of honey combs filled with honey.
   • 3
     Crush the combs with a wooden pestle, which will break apart the wax that is covering each comb, freeing the honey that is inside. Scoop the mashed comb and honey into a straining bucket. This specially designed container has a spout at the bottom, with a filter that keeps the debris, which is the mashed comb and wax, inside of the bucket.
   • 4
     Prep wide mouth jars by placing one sheet of cheese cloth over the top, pressing the cloth about 1 inch inside of the jar, before secure it with a rubber band. The cheese cloth will help to catch any fine particles that the straining bucket missed. Pour the honey slowly from the straining bucket through the spout into the jar. Be sure not to overflow the cheese cloth during this process. When the bottle is filled, remove the cloth and secure it with a lid, before moving on to the next bottle.
   • 5
     Store the bottles of honey at room temperature. Three gallons of honey and comb should yield about 10 one-liter bottles of fresh honey.

Tips & Warnings

• Honey pours slowly, so the dual straining process might take up to 10 minutes per bottle.
• When dealing with bees, protective gear can help prevent injury. A bee keeping suit, complete with coveralls, hat, netting and gloves is the normal gear worn during honey harvesting

Thyme Organic Honey with 24K edible gold leafs

 Thyme Organic Honey with 24K edible gold leafs @STAYIAFARM Copyright

Throughout history, gold has been recognized for its luxurious and beautifying properties. Historians have long maintained that Cleopatra used pure gold as a tool to maintain youthful skin by reportedly sleeping in a gold mask every night. In ancient Rome, gold salves were used for the treatment of a variety of skin problems. In ancient Chinese medicine gold was a key to youth, as the queen of the Ch’ing dynasty used a gold massage roller on her face every day. Egyptians believed the healing powers of gold could cure all manner of physical, mental and spiritual aliments. The application of gold compounds to medicine, called chrysotherapy, reduces inflammation beneficial in the treatment of a variety of diseases, but this therapy often causes adverse gold-related skin reactions.

Vasilissa Greek Honey

It is a product of Nature which does not take any procession. Plays a great deal of role in metabolism and nourish, in the components of bones and cells, regulates the acidity of the stomach, has antiseptic properties, is a tonic, helps to restore health faster and has antimicrobial activity. The attributes of honey is the aroma and taste. The color of honey is characteristic of its origin and is considered one of the main criteria that affect the quality of consumer preference. The dark-colored honey is rich in minerals and therefore have high nutritional value while the pale-colored honey have a nice color and flavor.
The honey produced is divided into two major categories:
flower honey, produced from the nectar of flowers (thyme, orange, cotton, sunflower, heather, etc.), and honey from honeydew produced by scale insects secretions that suck plants. In this category belong pine honey, fir honey and honey from other forest plants.

Stayia Farm design beehives

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This working model of sustainable, hyper-local urban agriculture demonstrates bio-intensive growing methods

Here at Stayia Farm, we are committed to producing nothing less than the most natural, wholesome. Everything we grow is grown without the use of any sort of harmful, toxic, or otherwise (even minutely) human-harming pesticides. All produce is sold locally, directly to consumers, and 100% of what we sell, we grow, as we refuse to buy and resell any produce whatsoever.

New rosemary plants in Stayia Farm's facilities

Our goal is to grow exciting, beautiful, healthy plants in harmony with nature-plants that provide enrichment for body and soul...

New Vasilissa Hotspot in Athens