DanTheBeeMan.com

It’s the time of the year, where Beekeepers in the Pacific Northwest are getting ready to have their final honey harvest.

Last week, I reserved a 4-frame extractor, uncapping tank, and an electric uncapping knife from the Puget Sound Beekeepers Association (PSBA). I joined PSBA earlier this year, because they are the local Beekeeper’s club, and it seemed like the thing to do. Plus, they have club-owned equipment that members can rent for a nominal fee. Good deal. I think eventually, I will buy my own gear, but for the first year, I figured renting is the way to go.

But that’s still a week away. So today, I conducted my final pre-honey-harvest inspection. I didn’t take any pictures, because I have been feeling a bit under the weather, and just wanted to get through with it.

I was a bit disappointed to find that there wasn’t much more new honey in the honey supers, compared two weeks ago, when I put on the second set of supers on each hive. I had hoped that with all the nice weather, the bees would be able to gather and store some more honey before I get ready to harvest. There was some new comb drawn out, and a little bit of honey stored, but I doubt that there will be much progress by next week. As it stands, I think I should be able to get around 50 to 60 pounds of honey. Which I suppose isn’t bad for the first year.

Both hives seemed healthy and productive. I saw a good brood pattern and lots of fresh eggs in West Hive, so the queen seems to be doing her thing. East hive on the other hand, I am still not so sure. Two weeks ago, I didn’t see any new eggs. This time, I saw some. But not a lot. So I wonder if the Queen is having a problem, or if it is just the time of the year. There were no signs of swarm cells or supersedure cells, and there was plenty of capped brood. So for now, I think I will just continue to monitor for patterns and activity.