August Tips for the Beekeeping Year
Taking off Honey
Once your bees have produced a crop of honey, you must remove it and get it processed. When you take honey off there are a few mistakes, you can make which hurt worse than any sting you have ever received, First, you must be concerned with the moisture content of the honey. Should you process honey that has too much moisture in it fermentation will occur and your crop will be ruined. Fortunately the bees know when the honey is just right and when it is they cap it. Do not take any honey off until it is full capped. When honey is capped the cappings are white and as the honey ages the cappings get darker and darker as the bees walk over the comb. When you are extracting this isn't a problem. But when you are packing comb honey you want the cappings and comb to be as white as possible. In addition to the moisture problem you must be concerned with the Wax Moth. There are eggs from the wax moth present in your beehives all year long. When you remove honey these eggs are still present and if you do nothing the eggs will hatch out and ruin the honey. Do not let your honey sit for any time before you process it. In the case of section honey you have to put the finished sections in a freezer to kill the eggs. When you are packing comb honey and pouring strained honey over the comb there is no problem. You must process your crop immediately. When extracting do not leave a mess. Clean up cappings and all debris. Do not leave anything out that would attract pests or you will have problems. Following these few guidelines will make processing your crop enjoyable.
Mite Levels
· Be sure to monitor your mite levels. Now is the time of year when the populations are exploding, which means your bee population us taking the hit. Many colonies are lost because beekeepers chase the fall goldenrod flow while the mites exceed the colonies' ability to cope. Try to have all of the honey off by the end of August and the treatments wrapped up by mid to late September.
Removing Honey Tips:
· Test moisture content--use a refractometer. Honey should be no higher than 18.5. If it is you may need to dehydrate it.
· Harvest your earliest, lightest honey and keep it separate from later darker harvests. The contrast will make both honeys more valuable.
· Take care to cover your supers when driving on unpaved roads-keep dirt out. Honey cleanliness is most important.
· Always cover your supers after you remove them, this keeps robbing to a minimum. It also keeps bees from going back into the supers.
· When you get back to the house keep the honey in a warm place. Use the garage rather than the basement. The warmer it is when you extract it, the more honey you get out of the frames.
· Choose an extracting location that is bee tight--if there is a hole, the bees will find it, get in and be a huge nuisance.
· Have your extracting area all cleaned up and ready to extract before you pull honey so your honey doesn't sit around a long time.
