Each submitted honey sample receives a customized report summarizing the plants detected through DNA metabarcoding analysis.
Your report is designed to be informative, easy to understand, and useful for beekeepers, educators, researchers, and honey producers interested in learning more about the floral resources represented in their honey.
The primary component of your report is a list of the plants whose DNA was detected in the sample.
Whenever possible, results will include:
• Common name
• Scientific name
• Taxonomic classification
• Relative abundance information
Some plants can be identified to species, while others may only be identified to genus or family depending on the DNA sequence obtained and available reference data.
Your report will include graphical summaries showing the relative representation of different plant taxa detected in the sample.
These visualizations make it easy to identify dominant floral sources and compare the contribution of different plant groups within the honey.
Examples may include:
• Pie charts
• Bar graphs
• Ranked abundance tables
• Plant group summaries
Honey often contains DNA from a surprisingly diverse collection of flowering plants.
Your report provides a unique glimpse into the variety of floral resources visited by your bees and can reveal forage sources that may not have been obvious from field observations alone.
Each report is generated specifically for your honey sample.
Results can be useful for:
• Learning more about local forage resources
• Comparing different apiary locations
• Comparing spring and fall honey harvests
• Comparing individual hives
• Educational outreach and presentations
• Understanding seasonal changes in floral resource use
A typical HoneyDNA report may include:
✓ Summary page
✓ List of detected plants
✓ Relative abundance charts
✓ Common and scientific names
✓ Taxonomic classifications
✓ Notes on important forage species
✓ Data interpretation guidance
✓ Project information and acknowledgments
DNA metabarcoding identifies DNA that is present within a honey sample. While the technique is highly effective for detecting plant taxa, the results should not be interpreted as exact measurements of nectar contribution.
The detection of a plant indicates that DNA from that plant was present in the sample. Relative abundance values represent DNA sequence abundance and should be viewed as indicators of representation within the sample rather than exact percentages of nectar origin.
By participating in the Tennessee Tech HoneyDNA Project, you not only receive information about your own honey but also contribute to a growing effort to better understand bee forage resources across Tennessee.
Together, these data help build a clearer picture of the plants supporting honey bee populations throughout the state.