The hives of Rio San Pedro are located in native woodland from October through to April. The first harvest is at the end of January before the Ulmo starts to flower. This first harvest produces an aromatic honey that looks very similar to Ulmo honey and is often sold as such.

This honey is a rich mixture, principally of 3 native trees of southern Chile: Tiaca (Caldcluvia paniculata), Tineo (Weinmannia trichosperma) y Olivillo (Aetoxicon punctatum). This analysis is from the honey produced by Virginia Oliveri, one of the producers working with Rio San Pedro.

Tiaca (Caldcluvia paniculata) is often seen as a shrub but where the native forest is still untouched it can grow very slowly to 20 m high. Its leaves were prized to make a herb tea that was said to be good for intestinal infections but its biggest prize is the nectar collected from its sweet smelling flowers.

Tineo (Weinmannia trichosperma) is a very slow growing tree that can eventually reach 25 to 30 m high. It thrives in humid areas, a tree perfect for the temperate rain forest areas of the Chilean Lake Region. It is well known for the high quality honey that it produces.

Olivillo (Aetoxicon punctatum) is another slow growing tree that will reach 20 to 25 m high. It has small white flowers and an observer would not expect it to be an important source of nectar. The analysis shows that the bees know better.

This rich mixture of native trees produces a very special honey that Rio San Pedro is now studying in depth with the Universidad Catolica de Chile to understand more about the unique properties this honey has.