350lbs

[JimmyO]

We got 350 lbs of honey Saturday. This is more than we got all last year. does anyone else harvest honey after spring? This seems like a really good year for bees and honey.
Jim

[Richard Stewart]

I have harvested about 250 pounds (maybe a bit more) of what I call Black Locust Honey. I place the super on, with drawn comb, fully developed colonies, with queen excluder, the day I see the first blooms begin to emerge.

I pull them one week after blooms begin to with and drop.

I have harvested another 250 pounds of what some might call "Spring" honey. I just call it Wildflower, since there is a lot of dandelion, clover, first alf-alfa, and birds-foot in there. Its starting to look amber but still a light honey with a light flavor.

I am estimating that with these crazy humid weather and the long bloom this season (still no dearth around here) that I will harvest another 500 to 600 pounds from my main pull.

I am hoping to get between 900 to 1300# this year.
_________________
Richard Stewart
Carriage House Farm

An Ohio Century Farm Est 1855

North Bend, OH

[JimmyO]

Richard,
Will you have a clover crop?
Jim

[Richard Stewart]

I've been getting a clover crop non-stop. These waves of hot humid air, rain, and short dry spells is simply producing mass amounts of clover. My wildflower honey is really light right now.

Now, my alf-alfa seems poor at best. I have 8 colonies in the field, we just mowed I only have two of them with decent amounts in supers.

Clover though...man.

My prediction in this crappy economy is that folks like Kevin who have several hives in the suburbs will see more flow as folks cut non-essentials (like yard treatments) and clover growth increases. Less grub killer int he lawns and the like.

I am getting lots of clover growth where ever the was grass seeded and pasture. My neighbor has hilltops cover it in second cutting crimson clover and acres of white.

I am hoping to get time on friday to rotate supers in and out. I got a chance to pound 11 together quickly while the in-laws were in town.
_________________
Richard Stewart
Carriage House Farm

An Ohio Century Farm Est 1855

North Bend, OH

[JimmyO]

Maybe this year will be different for us. Each year we see them working the dutch white like crazy but we don't see an increase in honey until the goldenrod bloom.
We harvest after the locust bloom then there's nothing in the supers until goldenrod bloom.
Jim

[Flowergirl]

Yeah, so much for that! Maybe NEXT year?

Richard, how did your 2009 crop turn out? Did you reach what you'd hoped for?

[Richard Stewart]

We fell a bit short. We still got a lot of honey but the fall run was junk. Too much rain at the peak of our golden rod. I had 6 hives that I was going to pull honey off but decided not to.

I did get a nice thistle run and was harvesting a nice dark amber honey at the beginning of September.

Then it ended.

We never had much of a dearth this year and the spring was nice. I was hoping to go 10 for 10.

I just did my tally last night to firm up my numbers.

In the end we managed to get about an average of 60 pounds off 30 colonies.

Just a little over 1800 pounds all told.
_________________
Richard Stewart
Carriage House Farm

An Ohio Century Farm Est 1855

North Bend, OH