Harvesting the Honey

[Daz66]

Ok so I am a newbie and this is my first year keeping bees, so far everything has gone ok, no charged queen cells found and only a few play cups found throughout the season so now worries about swarming!

I have three supers on and will probably get a nice harvest, however we now seem to be rushing the last part of the learning process, the group ( I won't mention the name ) want all of the supers off on the same day at the apiary which leaves me in something of a predicament as I will be away on holiday when this happens and my supers will have to be stored for 2 weeks before I can extract the honey.

My question is this, is there a last day - end of term - approach to harvesting or could my supers be left until I return thus allowing me to clear and remove them only a few days before extraction?

I know that the group want to do Varroa control the week I would like to take the supers off, could this affect my harvest if my bees are left as the only ones in the apiary not treated?

Just asking

 

[colinc]

If they are your bees and you need to learn the process I would hold off til you are available. If they are not prepared to help at that point find someone else within your association or contacts who will.
Lots of treatments are precluded with supers in place but some are ok with supers on so you have options there too.


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[Erichalfbee]

I agree
Leave them on and ask for help when you return. It's only a matter of two weeks after all. Also depending on bee numbers it might be better to not take all supers off at once.

 

[enrico]

It is good practice to do varroa control on all hives in one apiary at the same time. This helps prevent transference, i think as you are one of a group I can see where they are all coming from. If you don't want to rock the boat then I would take your honey off before the others. You can extract honey in one evening. Then they are clear to do what they want with varroa control. However you will have to give them permission to do it on your hive at the same time! Otherwise, tell them to leave your stuff alone and you will sort it out when you get back.
E

 

[Teemore]

It is good practice to do varroa control on all hives in one apiary at the same time. This helps prevent transference, i think as you are one of a group I can see where they are all coming from. If you don't want to rock the boat then I would take your honey off before the others. You can extract honey in one evening. Then they are clear to do what they want with varroa control. However you will have to give them permission to do it on your hive at the same time! Otherwise, tell them to leave your stuff alone and you will sort it out when you get back.
E

Might be a good idea to check the conditions under which your bees are in this apiary site. The "rules" may well refer to coordinated removal of supers/harvest and varroa treatment.

Unless your honey is unripe or is from the brassica family, sitting for a couple of weeks is not likely to hurt it before extraction.

 

[Daz66]

Thank you all for your replies, I assumed that the Varroa control would take place at the same time both for ease of doing and transference.

Had I known the dates I may have been able to arrange my holiday differently but i suppose it is what it is and my bee buddies can remove my supers and store them until my return - we are extracting 3 hives together so that will be a fun weekend!

It all seems a bit rushed as we were still checking for queen cells and being mindful of swarm control two weeks ago and know we are thinking about harvesting!

Now we are looking at putting the bees to bed for the winter whilst the weather is still warm - so much to get used too and learn!!!

Thanks again.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Thank you all for your replies, I assumed that the Varroa control would take place at the same time both for ease of doing and transference.

Had I known the dates I may have been able to arrange my holiday differently but i suppose it is what it is and my bee buddies can remove my supers and store them until my return - we are extracting 3 hives together so that will be a fun weekend!

It all seems a bit rushed as we were still checking for queen cells and being mindful of swarm control two weeks ago and know we are thinking about harvesting!

Now we are looking at putting the bees to bed for the winter whilst the weather is still warm - so much to get used too and learn!!!

Thanks again.

You have identified a problem shared by a number of association apiaries. Mine have a thymol based varroa treatment lesson at the beginning of August and it's expected of the beginners they will treat all their hives under supervision.
I treat my hives at home when the honey stores permit not when the calendar says. I'm usually two or three weeks later but still in time for treatment and winter feeding.

 

[drex]

Not quite so simple. Honey will extract better while it is warm. I take my supers off and extract within a few hours. Also some will be capped and hence keeping it will not be a problem. Some will be uncapped, but may still have a low enough water content to be ready to extract. However if the water content is too high that honey/ nectar will ferment over the two weeks it is stored, which if mixed will spoil any honey that is ok.
It is a good idea, as mentioned, to treat all hives , in the same apiary, against varroa at the
same time. If using a thymol based treatment, it can only be put on after the honey harvest. The treatment period is 4-6 weeks. I would think that as long as your treatment overlaps with the others, cross infection should not be a great problem.

 

[Erichalfbee]

It is good practice to do varroa control on all hives in one apiary at the same time. This helps prevent transference,
E

Would you imagine that two hives treated two weeks after the others would pose much of a threat to the others? I presume any treatment would take some weeks. Thymol taking four? Oxalic maybe three? What's the difference starting treatment on his hives half way through. Beats me

 

[linoleum bonypart]

Seems to be an urgency to get supers off this year.... im hoping for an august heatwave lol

 

[wendyt]

I agree, last year we had ( here in Swansea) 4 lovely weeks in September. My bees were on the H.B. and I didnt take my supers off till the 2nd week of Sepetmber, along with some other local beekeepers. We then treated the bees and put them to bed for the winter..

 

[Teemore]

Theres a couple of points I'll make following some of the responses.

Yes, it is often easiest to extract honey as soon as you take off the supers but it is rare that you can do this if you have any number of colonies. Ideally you would do this but unless your bees have stored an excess of dandelion or brassica based honey, it will still extract quite nicely after sitting for several weeks. It doesnt always work out though....

Effectively, the OP is working and learning practical skills with a group of other beekeepers and for that reason it is best to coordinate treatments and extraction. Varroa treatments are much more effective if they are coordinated across a region within a defined timeframe. A week or two variation on timing may not make a lot of difference to the efficacy of the treatment but it goes back to the point that the OP is in a shared apiary and is working as part of a group at present. It is easiest to treat all the stocks in the one apiary at the same time and with the same regime. Standardisation of processes (and equipment) makes beekeeping a lot easier for individuals and for groups.