honey harvest ...

[MASTERS]

Holy Toledo that is beautiful...

Thank you sir!

[Gunswayne]

Awesome Masters! I'm in my second year and nowhere on your level yet but working on it.
I pulled 72 pounds of honey off of my bees 3 weeks ago to give them more space. I had to head out of town for work so it was a priority as they have been building comb and capping out medium supers in roughly 2 weeks the past 6 weeks. I'll start pulling boxes that are ready as soon as I get home this weekend and moving hives to my dads for the cotton flow.

[MASTERS]

Awesome Masters! I'm in my second year and nowhere on your level yet but working on it.
I pulled 72 pounds of honey off of my bees 3 weeks ago to give them more space. I had to head out of town for work so it was a priority as they have been building comb and capping out medium supers in roughly 2 weeks the past 6 weeks. I'll start pulling boxes that are ready as soon as I get home this weekend and moving hives to my dads for the cotton flow.

heck yea! Ive been looking to be more specific and target certain crops locally as well. Ive picked up a couple of watermelon fields for next year and cant wait to get bees in them. I could handle a couple more but am having to knock on doors to get access to them......

[Robert]

I used to raise Watermelons. I had a bee keeper that would bring out hives every spring. He always picked them up just the melons started to get ripe. He said the worst honey he ever had came from a Watermelon field that had been picked over and the melons started to sour and go bad. He said the honey tasted like sour watermelon.

[MASTERS]

I used to raise Watermelons. I had a bee keeper that would bring out hives every spring. He always picked them up just the melons started to get ripe. He said the worst honey he ever had came from a Watermelon field that had been picked over and the melons started to sour and go bad. He said the honey tasted like sour watermelon.

The only thing the bees forage off of is the nectar produced by the blooms. Once the blooms fall off the chance for them to forage on any watermelon is looong gone. If you shredded the remainder of the melons that were culled and left to rot, I could see bees trying to forage off of them if there was no water source nearby. Even then only for a day or two till the sun curled the rhines up. Maybe I’m wrong but if the melons I’ve had my bees in, has produced honey as clear as water with a watermelon finish to it. Maybe I’m wrong, and if anyone else cares to weigh in I’m all ears.

[lovemylegacy]

The only thing the bees forage off of is the nectar produced by the blooms. Once the blooms fall off the chance for them to forage on any watermelon is looong gone. If you shredded the remainder of the melons that were culled and left to rot, I could see bees trying to forage off of them if there was no water source nearby. Even then only for a day or two till the sun curled the rhines up. Maybe I’m wrong but if the melons I’ve had my bees in, has produced honey as clear as water with a watermelon finish to it. Maybe I’m wrong, and if anyone else cares to weigh in I’m all ears.

At times I have seen bees feed on some carrion and yes they will feed on soured or fresh fruit anything with a sugar content.

[MASTERS]

At times I have seen bees feed on some carrion and yes they will feed on soured or fresh fruit anything with a sugar content.

I agree with that, but once it starts to ferment and sour they often leave it alone.

[Robert]

If you have spent any time in Watermelon field there are always melons that are getting culled they will have rotten ends, bad belly’s or goose necks. The deer bust them open. Coons get in them and the crows pick at them. Just about any melon good or bad will have bees on it once it gets a hole in it. I have seen it many times. All I know is what the guy with the bees said. He had a couple of hundred hives and sold lots of local honey for years. But he was no internet expert. He was just an old man with some bees.

[lovemylegacy]

I agree with that, but once it starts to ferment and sour they often leave it alone.

Better watch out for your Dr Pepper too, they will drink it for you.

Man that frame looks like cake!

[MASTERS]

If you have spent any time in Watermelon field there are always melons that are getting culled they will have rotten ends, bad belly’s or goose necks. The deer bust them open. Coons get in them and the crows pick at them. Just about any melon good or bad will have bees on it once it gets a hole in it. I have seen it many times. All I know is what the guy with the bees said. He had a couple of hundred hives and sold lots of local honey for years. But he was no internet expert. He was just an old man with some bees.

I can only speak from my experience having been around watermelon and cantaloupe fields for a couple of decades around falls and limestone county. Never had any sour honey come from any of it having bees in them the past, but like I mentioned above I can only speak from my experience....maybe you had a terribly wet year and most of the crop had belly rot and the bees foraged on enough of them volume wise to cause that. I don’t know for as I wasn’t there and can only speculate on his occurrence mentioned, but what I do know is normal cull rot hasn’t made anything I’ve harvested honey wise be sour in the past. I’m all ears though, love hearing the old timers happenings & reasonings.