 |
Iowa Honey Producers Association |
The Buzz Newsletter September 2004 |
 |
|
Removing Honey Supers Late August is a good time to remove honey from bee colonies if it has not been done at an earlier date. With the honey supers removed the colonies are ready to receive medication for mite and foulbrood control in early September. What little nectar comes in after the supers are removed will be a welcome addition to the winter feed supply. Here is a simple method for removing honey and supers from a few colonies of bees. The only extra equipment needed is an empty super, two pieces of plywood about the size of the inner cover, a piece of board about 12” long and a white rag about the size of a wash cloth. If possible pick a nice sunny afternoon when it is 75 degrees or warmer. Cloudy and warm works well also. The bees tolerate honey removal nicely in this kind of weather. Proceed as follows: Place the 12 inch piece of board on the ground beside and near the front of the colony from which honey is to be removed. Place one piece of plywood on the ground within easy reach of colony being worked. Place the empty super on the plywood and the second piece of plywood on top of the empty super. Remove outer and inner cover from the colony and smoke the bees lightly. Remove a frame of honey from the super and tap the ear of the frame of bees and honey on the piece of board lying on the ground near the front of the colony. Most of the bees will easily fall off the frame of honey on the ground and return to their hive. If there are some uncapped cells it may be necessary to tap the ear of the frame on the board 2 or 3 times. If there are a few bees clinging to the comb, use the white rag to brush them off. With the frame of honey free of bees, place in the empty super. Repeat until all frames are free of bees. After using this procedure a time or two you will be able to remove a super and make it free of bees within a few minutes. It is worth stating again that one is well advised to pick a warm sunny day when using this method to harvest honey. Under these weather conditions, the bees are calm and docile. If the weather is cool and cloudy, they will be less agreeable. Of course, there are other methods of removing bees from honey supers. The fume board available from most bee supply sources is used by some. It is easy to use and works okay. But, it requires a purchase and depending on what one buys, the odor may be considered unpleasant. A bee blower is used by most beekeepers with a considerable number of colonies. It is fast and it works. It costs several hundred dollars for a new one, it is rather cumbersome to use and there are frequently a few bees left in the super. When the supers are removed from the colony and free of bees, extract the honey from the combs as soon as possible. If they must be stored a few days before extracting, carefully locate and protect them from bees, bugs, mice and moisture. Honey in the comb which has been removed from the bees can absorb moisture and if the moisture content is above 18.6% it will not keep for long. A good place to store supers for a few days if needed is in an air conditioned room away from creatures mentioned above. A non air conditioned garage or similar location is not a good choice.
Ames, Iowa
|
|
|
 |