Never heard of it but googled it and it is true. Anybody else heard of it? Harold
sure. rhododendron honey and it's even been used as a weapon way back in the day.
I saw it for sale as an aphrodisiac in Turkey...
might give new meaning to 'thrill kill'. :-D
I have tasted it...not enough to produce the effect that Michael alludes too...LOL.. tastes AWFUL I cant imagine anyone eating enough to die from it !
Basic information about plant, honey, side effects and usage purposes for health could be see at abstract:
http://www.uludagaricilik.org.tr/dergi/2011/2011-4/mak3.pdf (http://www.uludagaricilik.org.tr/dergi/2011/2011-4/mak3.pdf)
Thanks. I was about to give up when I found the abstract at the end in English. :)
Don't waste your good money on this stuff...I've been feeding it to my Mother in law for years and it hasn't worked yet!
Scott
I thought the bees would leave Rhodies alone if they had other forage????? I have a bunch of Rhodies close to my hives and all over the neighborhood. Haven't seen a bee on any of them, but with so many flowers..........
Quote from: hardwood on May 25, 2012, 08:44:19 AM
Don't waste your good money on this stuff...I've been feeding it to my Mother in law for years and it hasn't worked yet!
Scott
Long walk, short pier? :drowning: :devilbanana: :lau:
The only time I have seen it around here was about 7 years ago when we had a late Easter freeze. Everything got killed except the Rhodo blossoms. Even then not everyone had nasty honey..just depended on where you lived.
I guess that's one reason to appreciate our high pH limestone-based soils where I live. Rhododendrons don't grow very well at all in it. They look great at the garden centers, where they sell lots of them each spring, but after you plant them they slowly decline.
There are several types of honey that are known to be toxic to humans. The most common of these in the northern hemisphere, popularly known as Mad Honey, is produced from the flowers of Rhododendrons, Mountain Laurels and azaleas. The nectar of these plants may contain Grayanotoxin, a compound which is both psychoactive and poisonous to humans but harmless to bees. The effects of Mad Honey have been reported in Western literature as early as 401 BC (See Xenophon's description of the effects of toxic honey in the Anabasis [1]) The shape of the Azalea flower, however, makes access to nectar difficult for honeybees. And during the time at which Azaleas bloom, there are usually other flowers available which are more appealing to the honeybee. So lethal honey is rarely encountered.