The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1907-01-03
HOW TO EXTRACT HONEY.
Method of Removing the Filled
Combs and Returning Them.

Method of Removing the Filled
Combs and Returning Them.
The invention of the movable
frame hive and the honey extractor
has afforded beekeepers the means OF
taking out of the hives the combs
loaded with honey and returning
them again to the bees when empty,
without damaging them in the least,
and without injuring or killing a
single bee. Extracted honey comes
nearer being a staple article than
does comb honey. I believe if we
beekeeperS would exert ourselves
more in the introduction of ex-
tracted honey the future would ser
the greater portion of our honey sold
in the liquid form. 1t costs so much
less to produce it and to prepare it
for the market; besides, we can pro.
duce so much more colony that we
can afford to sell it for about one.
half of what we get for comb honey.
and yet realize the same profit. MY
honey is all left in the hives until
the latter part of September. BY this
time the bees have thoroughly rip
ened it, and it becomes so rich and
thick that it takes a strong arm to
twist it out Of the combs. When the
combs are taken from the bees they
are Immediately carried to the honey
house, and left there until evening
After the bees have stopped flying fol
the day we drive to the yard and
haul home our honey. 1 always pre-
fer to do the extracting at home,
where we can arrange things to our
convenience.
Before beginning to extract I usu-
ally take the uncapping knife and
hone it on an oil stone until the edges
are keen. This prevents tearing the
combs to a great extent, when shay
ing off the cappings. During the
process of uncapping the knife is oc.
casionally dipped into a pail of hot
water, which greatly facilitates the
work of uncapping. Two frames OF
nearly equal weight are selected each
time so as to balance nicely in the
extractor. When ready to extract
the crank is turned rapidly for q few
minutes and the honey is whipped
out of the combs. 1t is then drawn
off at the honey gate into an agate
vessel, which has a sieve over it to
catch the bits of cappings which fre-
quently drop into the extractor. The
honey is then poured into five gallon
cans for the wholesale trade, and
some in Mason jars and bottles for
the retail trade. Before the extract
ing is begun the combs of honey are
held up to the light and graded. The
white honey is selected and extracted
first, and is kept separately; next the
amber, and last of all the dark
honey. The uncapping can is ar
ranged in two parts, the top section
telescoping into the bottom section.
The top section also has a sieve at
it's bottom which catches the cap
pings as they fall into the can. The
honey then drains from it into the
lower section and nothing is lost or
wasted. The cappings, after drain
ing for a few days, are rendered into
the most beautiful light yellow wax.
The empty combs are set out into the
home apiary and cleaned up by the
bees and stored away until the next
spring, when they are again hauled
/ to the outyards and used there.
Good extracted honey, if brought
to temperature Of not over 160 de-
grees Fahrenheit, then bottled and
sealed while hot, will usually, if kept
in uniformly warm temperature
keep liquid for six months or more.
But there is great difference in
honey. Some will candy much quick
er than others. The ripper and thicker
the honey the longer it will keep
liquid. Cold atmosphere is quite fat
vorable to the graduating of both
comb and extracted honey. Cellars
and cold rooms, especially when sub
ject to freezing, are poor places t.
store honey. In re-liquifying
candied extracted honey the tempera.
ture should not go above 160 de.
gres, otherwise the fine flavor will in
large measure be destroyed. The
proper way to liquify honey is to
place the vessel containing the honey
into another larger receptacle con.
tanning hot water. In Putting ex.
tracted honey upon the retail market
glass package is preferable to ali
others, with a colored label neatl.
printed with the owners name.-F.
G. Herman, Leonia, N. J.
Until some effective means have
been devised to prevent the adultera
ton Of extracted honey by dealers
comb honey will be preferred by tha'
increasingly large class of fussy Gus
toners who insist on receiving what
they order and pay for, and refuse K
be satisfied by the assurance that the
goods delivered contain nothing in.
furious to health. Editor New
York Tribune Farmer.
HYyl- W