Honey harvest

This is my top bar hive (long hive) activity, first inspection of the year.

Both hives are already full of honey, except one last empty bar. I took some full combs out to give them space. Most are Ivy honey, crystalised, from last autumn, the rest runny honey from this Spring.

Cut a few nice blocks of honey comb to enjoy as such.

The rest is warmed at 40 degrees in oven, using basic kitchen equipments, knife, sieve, spatula, to obtain a few jars of honey.

 

The squashed wax combs are washed in mildly warm water, to get some of the remaining honey out. Then put in a muslin bag in warm water (60-70˚C) until wax melt and float to the top, bee residue remains in the bag. The liquid is sweet with pollen and propolis in it, full of nutrients.

Both batch of honey liquid are combiined, added wine yeast and will make my first mead.  

 

Wax collected for future use in the hive, nothing from the hve is wasted.