Four years ago I got my first beehive. My brother Eric got a hive also the next spring and we were off on our backyard beekeeping adventure. We try to keep two hives going in each of our backyards. Since we just have a few hives, we just use the crush and strain method of extracting our honey from our honey frames. Here is a previous post about this method. This is the first time Eric has had a chance to actually participate, so this is a little picture post about Pooh’s honey harvesting adventure tonight!
This was some of the honey from our 2009 harvest. Good thing we had a good harvest that year as this one was not near as bountiful. I have found that the honey keeps just fine in the comb until it is needed. Since we keep our honey raw, and unheated, it has a tendency to crystallize a bit fast, so we only remove it from the comb when we run out:) Now to make some garlic honey and some sage honey:) And other yummy herbal medicines besides just as part of our diet:)
Big hugs to all who visit Comfrey Cottages
12 comments:
Interesting how the year's harvest changea. Over here last year was a dreadful year. There is a beekeeper in the next road to me and last year I missed the one week when she had honey for sale - very poor crop all round, for swarms as well. This year many more swarms and much more honey. I stocked up on 20lbs honey and she made me 12 ozs wax as well.
Glad you were able to get stocked up Sarah. Yes, it was a bad honey year for several reasons here. We had rain every day or two clear until July. So the bees were stuck at home eating up what stores they could stock between rains. Plants take a bit of time to recover nectar after rains also, many times. We bee farmers are at the whim of the elements and nature just like any other farmer. Thanks for stopping byxx
I had such a good time havesting the honey! Don't know/remember why I couldn't do it before; Probably because I was working my job :(
I was glad to see that this type of extracting honey was so easy, anyone can do it. I like how we can extract just the amount we need; We don't have to spend hours/days doing it. Simple! and Pooh says it tastes so good! ~ brother Eric
Oh yumm and delight! I love raw honey and I miss the folks down the road from us (when we lived in Lancaster) who had apiaries. Wonderful pictures, thank you!
Welcome Village Wisewoman! Thanks for stopping by:)
Yumie,delicious honey :)
A very interesting post Leslie,your brother did well.
Have a nice day Leslie XXX
Love your blog, Leslie! Marci
thanks Marci! Just a wee blog for family and friends!!
Hubby found a spinner one year that he attached a motor to so we use it most of the times. We did not get that much honey this year either. Our bees made it through last winter, and then one day this past spring, poof, all but one hive left. So we now have new bees, very gentle ones I might add. Four hives now, but very little honey. We had lots of rain too. Hubby left one super full of honey on the box with the out entrance board on it instead of bringing it in like (ahem) I told him. The bees found an outside hole, and robbed the whole thing. So, very little honey this year!
Hi Rita! Had fun doing this too. Glad to be able to do it finally. Nice to be able to have your own honey. Were going to try to make candles from the wax next! ~ Erik
Hi Rita!! xxxx Eric did do a good job;o)
Ulrike, did you see your bees swarm when you lost your hives. Or did they just disappear one day like in Colony Collapse Disorder?
Hi Erik, I hope that it will be a successful candle making - have fun together :)
Rita
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