Harvesting Honey For The First Time

 

That’s awesome—harvesting honey for the first time is a super rewarding experience! Here's a quick guide to help make it smooth and safe:

Before You Start:

1.    Gear Up: Wear protective clothing—veil, gloves, and suit. Bees can get defensive during harvesting.

2.    Choose the Right Time: Mid to late summer is ideal. Make sure at least 80% of the honeycomb cells are capped (sealed with wax).

3.    Gather Tools:

o    Smoker

o    Bee brush or escape board

o    Hive tool

o    Uncapping knife or fork

o    Honey extractor

o    Buckets and strainer or cheesecloth

o    Jars or containers

Harvesting Steps:

1.    Calm the Bees: Use your smoker at the hive entrance and top to gently calm the bees.

2.    Remove Honey Supers: Take off the honey-filled frames from the top supers (avoid the brood frames).

3.    Brush Off Bees: Use a bee brush or shake gently to remove bees from each frame.

4.    Uncap the Honeycomb: Use an uncapping knife to slice off the wax caps from both sides of the frame.

5.    Extract the Honey: Place the frames into a honey extractor (centrifuge) and spin to extract the honey.

6.    Strain the Honey: Pour the honey through a strainer or cheesecloth to remove wax bits and bee parts.

7.    Let It Settle: Let the honey sit for a day or two to let air bubbles rise.

8.    Jar It Up: Pour into sterilized jars, label, and store in a cool, dry place.

Tips:

·  Always leave enough honey for your bees to survive the winter.

·  Clean everything thoroughly after to avoid attracting ants or other critters.

·  Taste test—nothing like your first batch!