How local is Aster Waves honey?

All of our honey is produced hyper-locally to the DMV region in suburban Rose Hill, Alexandria, Virginia, ensuring a direct connection to the nature around us.

What gives Aster Waves honey its unique flavor?

Aster Waves honey is truly a reflection of our suburban landscape, including the anise hyssop and mountain mint present in our native gardens.  Our customers have noticed a deeper floral note in our honey, which we believe is a result of these more unique (at least in a suburban context) plants.

How is Aster Waves different?

Aster Waves honey is produced on a certified wildlife sanctuary.  Certifying organizations include both the Audubon at Home program with the Northern Virginia Bird Alliance and the National Wildlife Federation.

Our Aster Waves founder also volunteers with the Northern Virginia Bird Alliance as an ambassador for wildlife.  She coaches her friends and neighbors on how to support nature with our suburban fragmented forest.

She carries these principles into her honey production, and she has invested many hours on reinventing her property into a haven for all forms of wildlife along with her honeybees.  She has done this through labor-intensive invasive plant removal, adding many native gardens, and adopting eco-friendly best practices to live in better harmony with the environment.  This is work she continues every day.  There is nothing more rewarding to her than seeing the biodiversity present even in her small apiary.  She often sees many native bees and butterflies foraging in addition to her honeybees.  There are also exciting sightings of American goldfinches and Carolina wrens, and this past Spring, Aster Waves hosted a robin’s nest in our native silver maple.

What is special about the way Aster Waves honey is processed?

Aster Waves honey is truly artisanal.  Every step of the process starting from the care of a new hive through honey extraction is done by hand by our founder.  We practice responsible beekeeping to protect the health of our hives and the wild hives that may be living around us through regular inspections and integrated pest management practices.  Honey is processed with minimal filtration and no heat to protect the delicate flavors, pollens, and enzymes naturally present in our honey.  Each jar is hand-filled and receives special attention from our founder to ensure quality.

Why is my new jar different from the first one I bought?

Like fine wine, honey has terroir, which means the local environment and climate influence the end product. Since we process by hand in small batches, we preserve this terroir and our honey may naturally fluctuate hive to hive and year to year.

Can you have biodiversity in a honeybee yard?

Yes! The scientific, peer reviewed research says that when forage is good, both honeybees and native pollinators can be found in abundance.  All pollinators are imperiled for similar reasons, perhaps the most significant are loss of habitat and overuse of pesticides.  If you can help, please do by avoiding all pesticides, even so called organic pesticides, and planting productive, native plants rich in nectar.