Hello from Windmill Hill Farm! Our beekeeping story began in 2002, though it’s truly a continuation of a family legacy. In the late 1800s, my great-grandfather Isaac T. Shumard raised bees on our homestead near Sarasota, Florida, where he bred queen bees and shipped honey throughout Florida aboard The Phantom. Today, we carry on that tradition across 260 acres of Michigan wildflowers, hand-bottling each jar with the same care Isaac practiced.

Our honey also honors my grandfather Guy Ragan, who married into the beekeeping tradition in 1913. At Windmill Hill, each jar captures this heritage, staying raw and unpasteurized, just as it’s been for generations. Thank you for being a part of our journey!

About The Honey

Windmill Hill Farm honey is non pasteurized honey straight from the bees to you! The bees feed on an abundance of natural Michigan wildflowers and apple trees supplemented with some local clover fields. If you're interested in trying some of our honey, you may find it convenient to visit one of our retail outlets. Or, you can visit our online store.

Floral Sources

Bees will forage in a 5 mile area around their hive. As a result, most Michigan honey is "wildflower," meaning it originates from a whole variety of plants. Our honey is predominately alfalfa, clover, maple, dandelion, rape, goldenrod, soy bean, thistle, etc. As a result, it has a robust sweet taste that is more flavorful than grocery store honey and not as strong as some varietal honeys.

Key Benefits

• Natural non pasteurized
• No chemicals added
• Warmed and strained but not cooked or filtered

Pesticide levels

We've had our honey analyzed by the USDA and we're GREAT! The results are given in detail on the attached page. Of the over 150 pesticides tested, we were below detectable levels in all except 2. These two were Coumaphos and Coumaphos oxon. As a result of this analysis we no longer use coumaphos and haven't for years.

Pollination

Windmill Hill Farm has approximately 3000 active beehives. 2400 of these hives are available for pollination. All hives are guaranteed to contain strong colonies. The fee for pollination within 75 miles of the Farm is $60/hive plus $5/week. This comes out to $75/hive for a typical 3 week pollination contract. Adjustment of this price may be made for very large (down) or very small (up) contracts. Outside of the 75 mile circle, we charge a transportation fee of 2 cents per mile. For example, in western Michigan about 200 miles away this would add $4/hive. Start 'em young and start early to get ready for spring pollination service!