Nagano Prefecture runs from valley floors at around 350 metres to mountain ridges above 3,000 metres. That range of altitude means the flowering season is long and varied, with different plants coming into bloom at different elevations through spring, summer, and into early autumn. For a beekeeper, it is one of the better places in Japan to work with single-origin varieties.
April and early May: fruit blossoms in the valleys ¶
The Azumino valley and the surrounding apple-growing areas are the first major nectar source of the year. Apple blossom typically peaks in the first two weeks of May at around 550 metres elevation. Plum and cherry blossom come earlier, in April, but the nectar yield is lower and the flowering period is short. We place hives in the Azumino orchard in late April and leave them through the blossom period. The resulting honey is light amber to almost water-white, with a clean floral sweetness.
Late May and June: acacia along the riversides ¶
Black locust trees, known in Japan as nise-akashia, flower along riverbanks and roadsides in late May and June. The Azumino riverside has a good population of them. Acacia nectar produces a pale, slow-to-crystallise honey with a mild, clean flavour. It is one of the most recognisable honey types in Japan and one of the most popular for everyday use. The flowering window is short, usually ten to fourteen days, so timing the hive placement matters.
July and August: soba fields near Hotaka ¶
Buckwheat, grown for soba noodles, is a significant crop in the Hotaka area. The fields flower in mid-July and the bees work them intensively through August. Soba honey is distinctive: dark, almost molasses-coloured, with a strong earthy flavour that is quite different from blossom honeys. It is an acquired taste, but people who like it tend to like it a lot. The late-summer harvest from the Hotaka site is almost entirely soba flower honey.
August and September: mixed forest above Shiojiri ¶
The forest site above Shiojiri at around 900 metres produces a more complex honey because the bees are foraging across multiple species simultaneously: linden, chestnut, wild cherry, and various understory plants. The honey is medium to dark amber with a resinous, woody note and a long finish. It is the hardest of our varieties to describe and the one that generates the most questions from customers. The forest flowering period extends into September, making it the last significant nectar source of our season.
October onwards: the bees prepare for winter ¶
We do not extract after the late-summer harvest. From October onwards, the bees are reducing colony size and consuming their stores to prepare for winter. We check the hive weights to make sure each colony has enough honey to get through to spring without supplemental feeding. A colony needs roughly 15 to 20 kilograms of honey to overwinter safely in Nagano's climate. We do not take from the hives in autumn, which is why we only produce two harvests per year.
If you want to follow the season with us, signing up for the newsletter means you will hear about each harvest as it happens, usually a week or two before the honey goes on general sale.