Contents
Collecting honey is an important final stage of the apiary’s work throughout the year. The quality of honey depends on the time it is pumped out of the hives. If harvested too early, it will be immature and turn sour quickly. The unripe product contains a lot of water and few enzymes. You can collect honey from wild or domestic hives.
Is it possible to collect honey from wild bees
In nature, honey is produced by bees and bumblebees. The bumblebee product has a more liquid consistency, slightly different in composition (less minerals, sucrose), and is stored for a short time, only in the refrigerator. Bortevoy (wild) honey does not contain artificial impurities, so it is often recommended for the elderly, children, and the sick.
Differences of on-board honey from homemade:
- density is higher;
- sweet, tart taste;
- amber;
- smells of herbs, wood, resin are felt;
- contains impurities of bee bread, wax, propolis;
- not easy to assemble;
- high price (due to difficult collection).
The selection of honey from wild bees is called beekeeping. Bort is the inner cavity of a tree trunk, where insects equip their hives. Often, beekeepers have to create artificial boards and attract bees there (it is more convenient to collect the product from such boards). It is difficult to collect wild honey – beekeepers manage to extract only a small amount of it, therefore the cost of such a product is higher.
How to collect honey from wild bees
Wrestling is a dying craft. The secrets of craftsmanship are carefully passed on to the next generations. You can learn how to collect honey correctly only from a practicing beekeeper: there is no special training.
Collecting tools are made in a handicraft way – by hand. Kiram is a leather braided rope that helps to climb the trunk, its length is up to 5 meters. Batman is a hollow made from a solid linden trunk. Lange – a portable side, fixed with a kiram, allows the beekeeper to stand during the collection.
Little workers are soothed with smoke so that they do not attack. Previously, brooms were used from dry and wet branches, leaves. Today, beekeepers use a fumigator. The notch and all the cracks are treated with smoke. Then they open the side, that is, they remove the debts (“doors” of the hive in the form of a narrow long hole). The fumigator moves the insects to the upper part of the hollow. Only after that you can take honey from the hive. Details on how to collect the product from wild bees are described in the video:
Honeycombs are cut with a wide wooden knife, folded into a batman. You can’t take all the honey from the bees – they feed on it in winter. Some of the combs are also left next to the notch (below) in order to preserve the natural insulation of the nest. It must be collected carefully: the remaining honeycombs cannot be damaged. From one board receive from 1 to 15 kg of a product. The time is chosen warm – August or September.
When honey is taken from the bees in the apiary
Collecting honey is the main purpose of creating apiaries. The constant collection of product from the honeycomb stimulates the bees, makes them collect more nectar. To pump out honey from the hives, the beekeeper needs to make sure that the honey is ripe – it is not necessary to collect unripe honey: it will quickly deteriorate and turn sour.
They begin the process at the end of the season, when the insects finish collecting nectar. After that, they need to rest, seal the remaining frames. You can take honey from bees after 5-7 days.
Honey is pumped from bee hives early in the morning – in the evening the bees gather in the hive, you should not disturb them. In a small apiary, collection can be carried out during the daytime.
Honey is harvested in some regions up to four times per season. It is first harvested from May to August. The time depends on the flowering period of the plants from which the bees receive nectar. For example, buckwheat and linden honey can be harvested from late June to mid-July. Beekeepers are guided by the behavior of insects.
The time of the last collection depends on the condition of the bee families, the climate of the region. It is advisable to complete the collection before the end of August. September is the final month. Further, the insects prepare for wintering, and it is not recommended to disturb them. How to properly take honey from a hive – every beekeeper should know and be able to.
How to take honey from a hive
Extracting honey with a standard manual honey extractor takes a lot of time. A beginner beekeeper from 14 pm to evening will be able to process no more than 50 ordinary frames. And that’s if you don’t stop for a minute.
Preparation starts the day before. The equipment is washed, treated with boiling water and left to dry. Then the mechanism is lubricated with oil, the remnants are removed with a rag. Prepare the tools. Standard set:
- table (where honeycombs are unpacked);
- knife (standard, steam or electric is suitable);
- honey extractor with radial or chordal action;
- truck;
- box for cut parts;
- honey pump;
- pen, blower, brush (to brush off bees);
- containers to collect the finished product.
The room is being prepared: it must be clean and have access to water – for periodic hand washing. The frames are removed after dinner, folded for carrying, covered with a cloth to keep bees out of them. The honey is pumped out immediately – it must not be allowed to cool, otherwise the frames will have to be heated.
Before pumping, cut off the wax caps. Use a fork, a hot knife. The finished frames are placed in the honey extractor. Rotate slowly at first, then gradually increase the speed. After pumping out about half of the useful delicacy, the frames are turned over and again taken to half. Turn over again – and pump out to the end. Each side is processed twice, about 10 minutes.
The resulting product is poured into containers, closed. The vacated frames are left to dry. Start collecting from the next hives.
How to pump honey in multi-hull hives
The selection of honey in double and multi-hull hives is different from the collection in simple hives. In addition to the standard set of tools, you will need a remover with a Hahnemann (separating) type grating. Experienced beekeepers consider such a lattice indispensable. The device protects the uterus, does not allow it to fly out in the absence of a beekeeper.
Removers are installed the night before. It is important that at this point there is no brood in the hive. During the collection of honeycombs, the frames are removed, the worker bees are shaken off (the remaining ones can be collected with a brush with wet bristles).
The removed frame is inspected. If there is brood inside, it should be returned to its place and collected next time: hasty collection can lead to the death of the brood, even if it is sealed. After removing the frames, the hive is closed and the collection begins with the next one.
What are the ways
Collecting honey from honeycombs is a responsible occupation. Until 1865, the collection was carried out by a single method: the honeycombs were placed under a press, the resulting impurities and debris were removed through gauze. Modern beekeepers use honey extractors of various types.
To start collecting, honeycombs should be printed. This is done manually or with special automatic devices. For small farms, forks are suitable (cut off the top, sealing layer) or a roller with needles (pierces the zabrus).
The extraction technique depends on the type of honey extractor. The essence of the mechanism is that under the influence of centrifugal forces, honey leaves the honeycombs, small drops fall on the walls of the device and drain into a special container. Honey extractors work in horizontal and vertical positions. Horizontal models function according to the radial or chordal type.
How they feed honey
Honey is a product that is stored for a very long time. It is not difficult to provide the necessary conditions. Store at home in the refrigerator: the recommended temperature is from 0 ° C to +20 ° C. At higher or, conversely, low temperatures, useful substances begin to decompose.
Cans should not be exposed to direct sunlight. Nearby it is forbidden to put toxic objects. It is important to keep away from children, since exceeding the daily dose of treats causes allergies, diarrhea and other pathologies.
The containers are different. Glass jars, plastic containers, enamelware, woodware, and earthenware – any kind will do, as long as the right environment is created. Storage in honeycombs is considered the most suitable (they also require a separate container).
In terms of shelf life, the product is considered indefinite. GOST defines a period of 2 years – subject to compliance with storage standards. Beekeepers are well aware that this is a suspended sentence. High-quality honey is stored for several years and does not lose its taste, color, and beneficial properties.
Interesting! About ten years ago, a vessel with sealed honey was discovered in the tomb of an Egyptian pharaoh who was buried over two thousand years ago. Archaeologists claim that the delicacy has not lost its taste and color.
Crystallization is a natural process after harvest. It doesn’t affect utility in any way. Such honey is not considered spoiled.
Key features of a good product:
- a ripe delicacy is wound on a spoon, stretches continuously, forms a slide on the surface;
- does not foam (foam means that the product has fermented or is not ripe);
- There are no splits inside.
Conclusion
Collecting honey is a responsible process. Failure to comply with the technique can lead to the death of the hives, the deterioration of the health of the bees and, as a result, a decrease in honey production in the next season. Each beekeeper needs to prepare for the collection in advance: purchase equipment, familiarize yourself with the procedure and rules. Beginners should turn to more experienced colleagues and assemble the product under their strict guidance. The result of effort and time spent will be a high-quality, sweet and healthy product with a long shelf life.