My first hive is going like crazy! I just added my first honey super! If things with this hive continue, I might just get some honey come late July or early August!
It sure sounds as if you will get some honey! Time to start looking around for an extractor (believe me, the crush and strain method is incredibly messy!).
I have a beek relatively close who has agreed to allow me to use his extractor if and when the time comes. He will show me how he does it. Another new experience for me!
For those of us who don't know a thing about beekeeping... can you elaborate on this "crush and strain method"?
Cheryl, First, never do crush and strain in your kitchen. It can lead to a major re-model. One puts honey-containing comb in a container (which is never big enough) and crushes it to release the honey, which immediately gets all over the crusher and anything else within twelve feet. Then, after you are sufficiently coated with honey, you take a strainer (one you never plan to use again) and pour the honey through it into another container. Usually bits of the comb fall into the strainer, splashing any part of you that is not already sweet and sticky. Then the one bee who has taken a ride inside decides to harvest the honey that is stuck to you. The bee is irritable and stings you. The big disadvantage with this method is the mess; the fact that the comb has to be destroyed so you can't use plastic support frames (which are reusable after cleaning); and there is a lot of honey wasted. The clean-up can take days. We have two extractors, just in case . . . .
wow, that sounds about right. The crush n strain method is the one i use though. I don't have enough with the one hive to really justify getting an extractor. I have got it down to an art though. I don't use foundation, but have adapted every second frame to encourage the bees to draw their own. Quarter round screwed under the top of the frame, with the pointy bit facing the bottom of the frame. I melted some wax and painted it onto the point. They did the rest. Now everytime I go to get some honey, I just cut the whole piece out of the frame, and give them back the empty frame to start again with. I only take 3 or 4 frames at a time, and they are intersperced throughout the super, so they never run short of honey. When they have filled them up again, I know it's time to take them again. Fresh honey every time, and next time I'm going to keep the crushed honeycomb for making candles. Can't wait.
