Posts Tagged ‘honey’

« Older Entries

Late Summer Harvest: Overcoming Challenges for a Promising Honey Yield

Tuesday, September 3rd, 2024

It’s time for the late summer harvest, and what a challenging year it has been. Poor weather has led to subpar forage and very low honey stores throughout the season. However, in this last warm stretch of August, things have turned around, and the bees have been busier than ever. As you can see in the photo, the hives are getting smaller now. This happens as we remove the honey-filled boxes, known as supers or shallows. During the peak months of June and July, the hives expand to accommodate up to 150,000 bees. Since that many bees can’t fit into just the brood box—the box at the bottom where the queen lays her eggs and the nurse bees care for the larvae—we add extra space. Now, it’s time to remove those heavy honey-laden boxes and take them to the honey room to begin the long, sticky, and messy process of extracting honey. With any luck, this year’s harvest will exceed our expectations, and we may even have some summer honey for 2024.

Post to Twitter

Tags: , ,
Posted in All, bees | Comments Off on Late Summer Harvest: Overcoming Challenges for a Promising Honey Yield

Meltonby Honey As Seen On Fish on Friday (FoF)

Monday, September 2nd, 2024

So you probably already know, I have a following for early Marillion (81-91), and after Fish split, I’ve followed Fish Solo career, and the latest and last albums arrived last week.

So last week on Friday 30th August 2024, Meltonby Honey appeared on the show!

The video is the right way wound now, and for those wondering “He Knows You Know” is a Marillion song, one of my favorites, and it still remains a mystery how Dr Emlyin Roberts knew!

Post to Twitter

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in All, bees, gigs, mp3, music, vinyl | Comments Off on Meltonby Honey As Seen On Fish on Friday (FoF)

Honey jar labelling Sunday!

Monday, August 19th, 2024

So what did you do with your Sunday! I started to label this years (2024) Summer Honey.

The majority of this year’s summer honey which was extracted weeks ago was delivered to pre-paid Wedding Orders as Honey favours.

 

The next batch which was extracted was not ripe – the water content tested at above 20% – which according to the Honey Legislation Act 2015 is technically not honey so it cannot be sold , and there is a risk it can ferment in the jars – so it was all fed back to the bees for them to deal with it correctly and this will be removed and extracted at the end of August!

This is just one of many issues we’ve had this year, see my monthly notes!

January/February 2024 – Feeding fondant – winter far too warm bees too active and ate through their winter stores too quick.

March 2024 – All hives and nucleus colonies went through the winter well – still feeding fondant

April 2024 – Bees expanding very quickly forage available – good hawthorn, blossom on fruit trees although this year no canola in the area! had to start Demeree and putting honey boxes into hives as the bees were expanding very quickly!

May 2024 – Disaster weather turns cold – large colonies need feeding eating 2.5kg a fondant a week! Many reports across the UK of starvation, queens stop laying, failing , colonies that showed signs of swarming have stopped!Majority of reared queens have failed!

June/July 2024 – Weather continued to be poor and a wash out! A few late swarms around

August 2024 – Weather getting warmer – a few honey flows – there could be some summer honey! Extracted honey not ripe! Fed back to bees!

September 2024 – Remove all surplus honey, and feeding and treating for winter, and bringing hives home for winter.

 

Post to Twitter

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in All, bees | Comments Off on Honey jar labelling Sunday!

Andy’s Honey Stall

Monday, June 22nd, 2015

Last Saturday, I did my first honey stall, at a Local Produce Market at the local village hall, to support the local community. Lets just say it was a great success, and I will be ordering my new honey extractor in due course, with the proceeds! I also sold eggs, and plants from the Allotments.

Honey Stall at Yapham Village Hall

Honey Stall at Yapham Village Hall

Honey Stall at Yapham Village Hall

Honey Stall at Yapham Village Hall

Post to Twitter

Tags: , ,
Posted in All, bees | Comments Off on Andy’s Honey Stall

Andy’s Spring 2015 Honey Harvest

Monday, June 8th, 2015

Despite the slow start to spring, and the cold high winds we have experienced this spring, and lack of bees flying, I was surprised by the number of honey boxes or ‘honey supers’, I collected at the weekend for extraction. I’ve still go to go back to remove 4 honey supers, that the bees are not wanting to give up easily!!!

here’s a 1 minute video, of the extracted filtered honey, flowing into rectangular honey buckets to settle, before processing (creaming!) or jarring. None of the pollen is removed from my honey, only the wax bits, and bee parts. The water content of the honey in the comb and extracted was 16.5%, tested with my calibrated refractometer.

Selling Honey in the UK, is subject to the The Honey (England) Regulations 2003, an easier version is here  The British Beekeepers Association Selling Honey Complying with the Law. Yes there is a Honey Law, and monitored by the Honey Police!

and it states “The water content of the honey must be not more than 20%.The higher the water content the more likely the honey is to ferment.”

So that’s what work goes into a jar of local honey from a British Beekeeper, spare a thought for that  the next time, you pick-up a jar of “honey-syrup” from a supermarket! If you have never tasted honey from a local British Beekeeper, I’m afraid you have never tasted real honey.

The analogy I like to use is the difference, between a 21 years old single Scottish malt whiskey and a blended whiskey! The malt whiskey is the local honey, and the blended whiskey is the honey syrup from the supermarket, in this comparison.

So support British Beekeepers, and purchase a jar from your local Beek today!

6 'honey-supers' on my bee barrow!

6 'honey-supers' on my bee barrow!

Andy's Hives

Andy's Hives

Andy's Hives

Andy's Hives

Post to Twitter

Tags: , ,
Posted in All, bees | Comments Off on Andy’s Spring 2015 Honey Harvest

World Exclusive Meltonby Honey Sold Here!

Sunday, May 24th, 2015

Now that I have my new Catering Certificate, see this blog post, I’m scaling up the Honey Selling activities…first I purchased a ‘A Pavement board”, to replace my smaller Local Honey sign, and Lindsey kindly did the artwork. The artwork is Copyright (c) Andysworld! (well Lindseyworld!) 2015. So be warned anyone that downloads it, and uses it!

Meltonby Honey Sold Here

Meltonby Honey Sold Here

Meltonby Honey Sold Here

Meltonby Honey Sold Here

Meltonby Honey Sold Here

Meltonby Honey Sold Here

Meltonby Honey Sold Here

Meltonby Honey Sold Here

Online Ordering coming soon….to a website near you!

Post to Twitter

Tags: , , ,
Posted in All, bees, Cooking | Comments Off on World Exclusive Meltonby Honey Sold Here!

Last of this seasons honey jarrred! This is creamed or set honey!

Sunday, October 26th, 2014

I’ve been away from the bees, they’ve now all  been fed, and now wrapped up for the winter. We will see what happens this winter. A few chores left to do, before the frosts, mouse guards to go on hives, external insulation on some of the hives, and finally this year treatment, nearer Christmas Day, a trickle of oxalic acid, to knock down the remainder of varroa mites.

The final honey from this Spring harvest has now been creamed and jarred, to create a creamed or soft set honey.

New jars and corkscrew bit for creaming honey

New jars and corkscrew bit for creaming honey

Jarring the Honey

Jarring the Honey

Jarring the honey, each jar is at least 340 grams

Jarring the honey, each jar is at least 340 grams

final jars waiting to set (yes, that's a hive outside the window!)

final jars waiting to set (yes, that's a hive outside the window!)

All complete and jarred!

All complete and jarred!

So, if you are in the “honey club”, there could be a jar, in the mail to you shortly!

Post to Twitter

Tags: , , ,
Posted in All, bees | Comments Off on Last of this seasons honey jarrred! This is creamed or set honey!

Andysworld! Secret Apiary

Sunday, August 31st, 2014

hey, another Bee related post, board with Bees yet! A very busy weekend, with the bees….and I’m very tired!

"wild" comb made from pure beeswax

"wild" comb made from pure beeswax

A week has past since, I’ve moved all the hives to their new secret apiary location, from my two apiaries, they have been now united down from ten to six colonies (hives). All the honey has now been removed and extracted, and the wet supers have been give back to the bees, to help them top their winter stores. (the super/shallow is the smaller box on the bottom of the brood box on top!).

Andysworld! Secret Apiary

Andysworld! Secret Apiary

The third hive from the right, was a small cast swarm from the University of Hull, which I transferred from a nucleus (6 frame box) to a national hive yesterday (11 frames), and I’ve started to feed for winter.

Today, I treated with MAQS, to minimize the Varroa destructor mite, and ensure the colony is at it’s strongest going into the winter, as part of my integrated pest management (IPM). The Varroa destructor mite, arrived in the UK in 1992, so since then we’ve had to treat against Varroa destructor mite.

So, I’ve got a week off, before I go back to the bees, and start feeding, so time to clean up, inventory the equipment, and start putting back in the “bee shed”.

(although need to check on small colony this week, to check they are taking feed down!)

if you look carefully, you may notice, honey leaking all over the floor, so I had to stop filming….to mop up!

Post to Twitter

Tags: , ,
Posted in bees | Comments Off on Andysworld! Secret Apiary

Last of the Honey Supers for extraction

Monday, August 25th, 2014

These are the last of the honey supers (shallows or honey boxes), for me to extract that have come off the hives at the allotment. I’ve removed the last two supers, and I have one finally to remove from a hive.

Here are some pictures of capped honey comb, full of honey, before de-capping and extracting.

Each frame holds approx 2kg of honey. Approx 3-5 jars per frame.

honey-super1

Super of capped honey 10 frames on castellations per super

honey-super2

2 full supers ready to un-cap and extract

honey-super3

frame of capped honey, ready for de-capping and extraction, the two dark uncapped cells contain pollen!

honey-super4

close-up of super and capped honey frame

Post to Twitter

Tags: , , ,
Posted in All, bees | Comments Off on Last of the Honey Supers for extraction

Let the Honey Flow … “GOLD!”

Monday, August 18th, 2014

A busy time of year extracting the honey from the hives, which makes all the effort worth it! But now the hard work comes, starting to prepare the colonies for the winter ahead!

here is a little video, which is best called a “montage”….

I also had a little stealth mission to Leyburn to pick up a honey warming cabinet….

The Black Swan Hotel in Leyburn

The Black Swan Hotel in Leyburn

this honey warming box, is to allow me, to gently warm oil seed rape granulated honey, from the spring, and seed with additional runny honey, so I can cream it, creating a soft set honey.

Honey Warming Cabinet

Honey Warming Cabinet

Post to Twitter

Tags: ,
Posted in All, bees | Comments Off on Let the Honey Flow … “GOLD!”

« Older Entries