Knowing when to harvest
Honey can be extracted when it has been capped over by the bees on the comb. At this stage, the honey will have been ‘matured’ by the bees, sealed up and is ready to eat. Often, when you want to remove the honey, not all will have been sealed. I always use a rule of thumb here if three quarters of the honey is sealed, I am happy to remove it from the hive. This is an important point. If you extract honey that has not been sealed, the water content will inevitably be too high, and the honey will ferment in storage and explode if sealed in a jar or tank. It will also taste foul if this happens. You must remove honey, therefore, only if the majority of it has been sealed over by the bees.
