MillerThousand AnswersBeekeepingQuestions.pdf - BioBees

THOUSAND ANSWERS 127captured the reward. The same offer has also been made by theNational Beekeepers' Association.Honey, Ripe.—Q. When honey is sealed and capped over bythe bees, is it ripe and ready to take off, if not, how is one toknow?A. As a rule, when honey is sealed it is ripe, and it isn't ripe^until it is sealed. That's the rule, and if you follow it in takingofl honey all the mistakes you make will never send you to thepenitentiary. As with most rules, there are exceptions. The beesmay seal up honey before it is ripe, and they may leave it unsealedafter it is ripe. You can tell by seeing whether the honeyis thick or thin. If 'it's thick, call it ripe. But the exceptions areso few that in actual practice I never paid any attention to them,merely counting all honey ready to take off if sealed.Honey, Soil Affecting Yield.—Q. Why is it that some plantsproduce honey in some places and don't in others? Cotton, forinstance, yields heavily in both north and south Georgia, but doesnot yield honey, or the bees do not get it, just a little north ofthe center of the state, among the red hills.A. I don't know; only I know it is so. The soil or the elevationmay have something to do with it.Honey, Sour.—Q. (a) Will honey extracted from comb freshlybuilt and not capped over sour if placed in a can? If so, howwould you prevent this?(b) Will comb and extracted honey put in regular honeybuckets sour if kept any length of time?A. (a) Maybe, and maybe not. Sometimes honey is sealedbefore it is ripened, but generally not. The remedy is to waituntil the honey is sealed before extracting. Even if it neversoured, it will be money in your pocket in the long run if younever put anything on the market but the very best ripenedarticle.(b) Either kind may be kept for years without souring if wellripened by the bees and then kept in a dry place where it will notattract moisture. Keep it in a place where salt will keep dry. Ifsalt gets moist in a certain place so will honey, unless it be extractedhoney tightlysealed.Q. What makes honey sour in the hive when the flow is atits best and no honeydew? This season I ran my bees for combhoney; in some of the hives honey soured before it was capped.A. I don't know. I know it sometimes occurs, and I supposeit is something in the character of the honey itself.