Hows the honey this year?

Buzzen · July 28, 2010, 08:52:37 PM

How is everyone doing honeywise this year--- Better than last?... the same? ..worse? We sure had a cold wet spring I was just wondering if that affected your harvest.

AllenF · July 28, 2010, 09:10:19 PM

Better. Bottled 2 - 5 gallons buckets worth last week. (Don't you just love it when you get a call from a lady wanting gallon jars.) Have more supers in the freezer waiting on me.

AllenF · July 28, 2010, 10:11:38 PM

Here is this years honey (left side) compared with last years (right side) in the same bottle. All of this years honey is very light in color.

sarafina · July 28, 2010, 11:39:33 PM

Mine was lighter and had a better flavor than last year.

harvey · July 28, 2010, 11:43:41 PM

Nothing to harvest yet but what I have found in the hives is much lighter and not really to my taste, I am hoping for a bumper crop of goldenrod to get some dark strong honey. Maybe if we get any rain the buckwheat I just planted will help. If it does rain and comes up should be blooming around the first of September. Looks like goldenrod will start in a couple of weeks. Am going to super four more hives ready or not to see if they will at least start drawing out the supers.

AliciaH · July 29, 2010, 11:32:06 AM

The icky spring weather definately hit my hives this year. Because of the rain (and low temps), my girls weren't flying when the some of the fruit trees were blooming, causing them a delay. In addition, the new nucs I ordered were not in the best of health when I received them, so I had to treat for some things later than normal, causing a delay with that group.

I've only had honey sups on for a couple weeks now and since the warm weather hit, they are filling them, but I wonder how much I'll really get? I know that time is short, but am hopeful.

Such is the nature of the millions of variables in beekeeping!

dp · July 29, 2010, 11:51:43 AM

I have two hives, one strong and one weak, but building.

I got about 55# out of the strong hive, and didn't ever add a super to the weak one. It's my first year at this, so I think I got lucky. It is very good honey too!

David Stokely · August 01, 2010, 04:47:20 PM

Definitely better than last year. Last year I got 2 gallons from my 2 hives. Both hives died over the winter. Today I have 6 hives. 4 new from packages this year and 2 swarms I caught within the last month. So far I've taken almost 4 gallons and I've probably another 4 gallons close to being ready to take. I'm feeding the 2 swarms, so I won't get anything from them, but the other 4 hives each have 2 almost full deeps on them and mediums of varying degrees of being finished. I'm hopeful of a good fall flow to round out the year.

Life is sweet when you keep bees!!!!

lol

;) ;) ;) ;) ;)

Dave

slacker361 · August 01, 2010, 05:04:48 PM

nice honey guys

Allen is the jars with the white lids 2 lbs?

gardeningfireman · August 01, 2010, 05:35:39 PM

We had a beautiful spring this year. Between my two second year hives, a late April nuc, and a cutout, I have collected 105.5 pounds of honey this year. I left probably 30 more on the hives that wasn't capped enough at the time. We have a lot of goldenrod, joe-pye, and ironweed around here, so I expect a good fall harvest also! :-D

CountryBee · August 01, 2010, 07:16:17 PM

None yet, they did splits, I did splits. I might get 1 -2 med supers in total this year in NY. :imsorry:

Bee Whisper82 · August 01, 2010, 07:39:52 PM

I have gotten 21 3/4 pints this year. This is my second year, I didn't get any last year so I am very happy so far. I hope to get more by the end of September.

Buzzen · August 01, 2010, 09:39:49 PM

Wow, sounds like some of you are having a good year! Awesome.

AllenF · August 01, 2010, 09:57:07 PM

Quote from: slacker361 on August 01, 2010, 05:04:48 PM
nice honey guys

Allen is the jars with the white lids 2 lbs?

They are pint mason jars. The plastic ones with lids down are 1 lbs, and the small plastic ones are 8 oz.

vermmy35 · August 01, 2010, 10:02:11 PM

I ended up bottling 85 1/2 lbs from my 1st hive. Nothing from my 2 new hive, but I plan on taking some more in September since my hive from last year has 3 supers on it and the two new ones have 2 super on them.

trapperbob · August 01, 2010, 10:26:23 PM

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Were not doing so bad those supers yeilded about 30 gallons and my 5 year old got to help with the smoker he was really happy. As you can see he's a real show off. The yeild was off this year a little but the yellow sweet clover didnt bloom this year here like it did last year but that was expected. They still have that many supers left on they have to finish filling up but they were almost done. Still have another yard to check and they have sweet clover there. Should be nice. :-D