Content-Transfer-Encoding: |
7bit |
Sender: |
|
Subject: |
|
From: |
|
Date: |
Sat, 2 Aug 2008 09:27:31 EDT |
Content-Type: |
text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" |
MIME-Version: |
1.0 |
Reply-To: |
|
Parts/Attachments: |
|
|
This is the additional information provided by my friend Adebisi Adekunle.
1.1 Harvesting Rules - follow the rules below to harvest honey successfully.
EQUIPMENT
1. Have all equipment ready! Harvest hive with top bars to replace bars
removed for harvest, smoker, containers, knife etc.
Containers: Use only aluminium, tin, galvanised iron or plastic
Do not use: copper, iron, steel or zinc, they dissolve into the honey and
may affect colour and flavour and might reach toxic levels.
Use a damp cloth over the t bars/ frames to control the bees and smoke bees
WHEN TO HARVEST
2. Harvest according to the conditions of the colony and the time of season.
Weather - pick a cooler day when temp is between 15C and 25C. Temp of less
than 25 C makes uncapping easier.
Choose time of day to help preserve the comb - early morning or evening when
weather hot (flowering season)
Strong colonies, you can harvest earlier
Harvesting can start 3 - 4 weeks after the start of a good honey flow.
DO NOT
Do not smoke too heavily as it will contaminate the honey. Do not burn
anyhting chemically treated, as chemiclas will be included in the smoke.
Do not harvest combs from brood area or combs containing brood
Do not harvest uncapped honey called green or unripe honey. It will ferment.
If honeycomb uncapped/wet, contains too much water. Must dry out or honey
will ferment.
Dry out by leaving honey supers/t bars in arm rooms at 30 - 35 C and
circulating warm air theough them or dry out by placing in a Langstroth super and
blowing air through the entrance.
WHAT TO HARVEST
3 KTBH Grade the combs as you remove t bars from the hive.
At the hive separate good combs to be further processed as first grade
beeswax
or Before extracting separate/grade combs > light (good) dark (old)
Separate combs containing uncapped honey ie wet green or unprimed honey,
empty t bars/ comb at the edges of the nest or on the ends of the hive.
****************************************************
* General Information About BEE-L is available at: *
* http://www.honeybeeworld.com/bee-l/default.htm *
****************************************************
|
|
|