Local honey in the South East
Orchards in Kent, chalk downland from the Chilterns to the South Downs, heathland, marshes and busy town gardens. Buy local honey in the South East straight from the beekeeper, and taste the difference a landscape makes.
A small corner with a lot of variety
The South East packs a surprising range of landscapes into a short drive, and bees only fly a few miles from the hive. Two beekeepers twenty miles apart can produce honey that looks and tastes completely different.
Orchards and farmland
Kent's orchards give bees a feast of apple, pear and cherry blossom in spring. Across the region, oilseed rape and field beans add early and midsummer crops, and some farms grow borage, which gives a light, delicate honey.
Chalk downland
The North and South Downs and the Chilterns are home to wildflower-rich chalk grassland. Clover, trefoil, thyme and marjoram make for fragrant summer honey with plenty of character.
Heath and woodland
Ashdown Forest, the Surrey heaths and the New Forest flower purple in August. Nearby, sweet chestnut coppice in Kent and Sussex blooms in July and gives a dark, bold honey unlike anything else in the region.
Coast, marsh and town
Romney Marsh and the coastal levels offer clover-rich grazing and wild coastal flowers. In towns like Oxford, Brighton, Guildford and Milton Keynes, parks, gardens and lime trees keep urban bees busy.
Chestnut and heather honey
Most South East honey is light and floral, but a few beekeepers near the woods and heaths can offer something rarer. Sweet chestnut honey is dark and rich, with a slightly bitter finish that people either love or don't. It also tends to stay runny for a long time.
Heathland heather honey is the region's other treat. The crop from Ashdown Forest, the Surrey heaths and the New Forest is small and depends heavily on an August without too much rain, so it's usually in short supply.
The South East honey year
The South East's milder weather means the season often starts a little earlier than further north, and what's on offer changes as the year goes on.
Spring honey
Orchard blossom, oilseed rape, hawthorn and sycamore. Often sold soft set, as it crystallises quickly.
Summer honey
Clover, bramble, lime, downland flowers and, near the woods, sweet chestnut. Usually runny and golden.
Heath and marsh
Heather on the heaths, plus late summer flowers on the marshes and in gardens. A small, precious crop.
Late season
Ivy, and not much else. Most beekeepers leave it for the bees to see them through winter.
South East beekeepers on Local Honey UK
Every beekeeper here has made the Local Honey Promise. Get in touch with them before you travel, as local honey often sells out.
SunnyCottage Honey
- Sunny Cottage Westergate Street Westergate Chichester WestSussex
- 07799 472114
Home Farm MK
- https://www.homefarmmk.co.uk/?utm_source=localhoney.uk
- Home Farm, Primrose Road, Bradwell
Woodside Farm Honey
- Down Street, Fletching, Piltdown, Wealden, East Sussex, England, TN22 3XU, United Kingdom
- 07931751556
Queen Bee HC
- http://www.queenbeehc.com/?utm_source=localhoney.uk
- HP14 4DN, Radnage, Buckinghamshire, England, United Kingdom
- 07894791233
Steve’s Bees
- Bramley, Basingstoke and Deane, Hampshire, England, United Kingdom
- 07909827809
- WhatsApp Link : https://wa.me/447909827809
Romney Marshes Honey
- https://www.facebook.com/groups/604036382196793%20
- 5, St John Close, Lydd, Folkestone and Hythe District, Kent, England, TN29 9AA, United Kingdom
Gav’s Bees
- Ox135eq
- 07771805767
High Trees Honey – Merstham, Surrey
- http://www.facebook.com/hightreeshoney
- London Road South, Merstham, Reigate and Banstead, Surrey, England, RH1 3DT, United Kingdom
- +447766203099
Papa John’s Bees
- Rusthall High Street, Rusthall, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England, TN4 8SG, United Kingdom
- 07811285150
Barney’s Honey- Strood
- Commissioners Road, Wainscott, Frindsbury, Medway, England, ME2 4EB, United Kingdom
- 07944559951
Orchard blossom
Downland clover
Heathland heather
Getting the real thing in the South East
The South East has plenty of shops selling "local" honey, and not all of it is. The surest bet is buying from the beekeeper, at farmers' markets, farm shops, honesty boxes at the garden gate, or at county and village shows, where beekeepers' associations often run a honey stall.
Local honey in the South East: common questions
Where can I buy local honey in the South East?
Buying straight from a beekeeper is the best way to know where your honey comes from. As well as the listings above, try farmers' markets, farm shops, honesty boxes and local shows.
Can you get heather honey in the South East?
Yes, in small amounts. Heather flowers in August on heathland like Ashdown Forest, the Surrey heaths and the New Forest. It's worth asking local beekeepers early in the autumn.
What is sweet chestnut honey?
Chestnut trees flower in July, and bees near chestnut woodland in Kent and Sussex can make a dark, rich honey with a slightly bitter finish. It stays runny for a long time and tastes like nothing else.
Does local honey help with hay fever?
Plenty of people swear by it, but there isn't strong evidence that it works. Most hay fever is caused by wind-blown grass and tree pollen, not the flowers bees visit. Speak to a pharmacist or GP about hay fever, and buy honey because it's delicious.
Keep bees in the South East? Get listed
We're building the best place to find genuine local honey across the South East, and we'd love you to be part of it. Listing is free. All we ask is that you make the Local Honey Promise.