Dennis and Bonnie Potter are the owners of Potterosa Honey and we have been talking all season about me going out to visit the bees. Just so everyone knows up front the idea of getting that close to bees was not something I was really looking forward to, but curiosity won this internal battle! This weekend was extraction weekend at Potterosa Honey and I was lucky enough to be part of all of it! I say extraction weekend because this was a two day farm visit for me so I could see the whole process!
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| That's me ready to start extracting! |
Yes, I said lucky...what a difference a visit with the bees makes!
DAY 1: Friday afternoon I met Dennis at one of his many hives to extract honey. He had an extra suit for me and so I got to suit up (it is warm in those suits but if the choice is bee stings or a little sweat I am going with sweat every time). You can see two hives in the picture and then there was another starter hive called a NUC just out of the picture. The taller hive is where we extracted honey.
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| The bees need a little smoke to stay calm. |
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Those bees are gently brushed
off the frame! |
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| My first frame of honey. It is full! |
We got all suited up and Dennis got a little fire going in his bee smoker box and then added some green grasses to get a cool smoke. Put a little smoke near their entrance and over the bees that are on top of the box when you remove the lid and they completely ignore you. Why...well the bees use pheromones to signal danger which causes them to attack because they are protective of their hive. The smoke masks those pheromones so there is no signal of danger and we are safe while extracting the honey. Once you take the top off the hive it is time to get to work, but I learned around bees you move at a leisurely pace because then you don't startle them or disrupt their work because they are always working. Each frame is pulled out and examined. If the honey is capped by the bees like in the pictures it is ready to be extracted. The bees cap the honey when it has just a little over 18% water in it. This honey will last forever if you let the bees do their work and patiently wait for them to cap it. We extracted 10 frames from this hive and replace them with new frames so the bees can keep doing what they do! It is amazing to watch them work and I am so thankful I didn't chicken out of this farm visit!
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| Watching the experts! |
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| This is the tool for uncapping. |
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| Uncapping the honey! |
DAY 2: I got to visit the home of Dennis and Bonnie Potter for day two of honey extraction! It was a beautiful day on Saturday to be in a screened in porch extracting honey. Extraction day is an event around the Potter home. Clayton Lee, a fellow Beekeeper brought his 16 frames for extraction, too! We dive right in and I say "we" because they let me be a part of the whole process. First you have to uncap the honey. You take the tool pictured and just gentle remove the caps....after a little practice like 10 frames or so I had a pretty good rhythm! After uncapping the frames you put them four at a time into the extractor and spin by hand until all the honey is flung out of the frames. The honey then flows down through the first strainer. The honey is then sent through two more strainers before ending in a bucket. The honey will stay in the bucket for a couple days until all the bubbles have come to the top and then it is bottled and ready for sale!
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It is like being a kid again getting to
spin the honey out of the frames! |
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| Grandpa's little helpers! |
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| The "honey fairy" working her magic! |
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| Liquid gold....gorgeous honey! |
As we were getting started Dennis and Bonnie's family arrived and it became a family event! Their son and daughter with their spouses and the grandkids joined in all the fun. It was so special to see the grandkids watch in awe of the whole process and get right in there to help. I was a little in awe of the experience myself. The kids and spouses didn't hesitate to take turns either. Extracting honey is a very fun process and man the results on fresh muffins is delicious! We had to bottle a jar immediately for everyone to enjoy on Bonnie's fresh muffins and biscuits! YUM!
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| In control of the honey flow! |
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| 1st jar...it was so good! |
I feel like I got a crash course in bees, beekeeping and extracting
honey in two days! Dennis said that it is contagious and I know what he meant now. I have been pondering bees on our land since I left their house on Saturday.
Thank you to Dennis, Bonnie, and the entire family for sharing your very fun day with me. Thank you to Clayton Lee for letting me have a go at uncapping your honey!
Potterosa Honey will be back at the market on Tuesday with the freshest honey you can get....well unless you go help on extraction day!
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