Of all the food we eat, there is nothing quite so genuine, as close to nature , or as wildly delicious, as honey in the comb.
To pass around a piece of honeycomb, and watch a wide-eyed, wondering child taste the sweetest most delectable food known to man, is a joy beyond description.
There are many ways and methods of producing comb honey, and all beekeepers have their own favourites. An interesting fact about comb honey, is that the bees are never happy with the process, and usually have to be tricked into doing it.
Comb honey can be made in 2 designs. Ross Rounds are circular combs in a plastic holder. These come in a special plastic super in a circular design, and the bees will not work in them unless they are forced into it by cutting down on their available storage space.
The other method, and my preference, is 'cut comb,' or wax foundation in a deep frame that can be cut to size.
I use a regular full super frame (5 5/8" by 16 3/4") with a single wire across the center to hold the sheet of wax foundation firmly in the frame. Each frame thus prepared, will yield a possible 8 pieces of comb. The ideal time to place these frames in the hive (in this area) is the first week of July.
By early July, many colonies will have at least one super with 5 or 6 frames of honey. When I find one of these, I pull the 2 side frames out, and move 2 full center frames to the edges, and replace these full frames with two 'cut comb' frames, leaving a full frame of honey between the two empty 'cut comb' frames. The bees like to fill the center of the super first, and as there are already full frames surrounding the 'cut comb' frames in the center, the bees will go ahead, draw out the comb foundation and cap it quickly.
Its important to watch these comb frames carefully, and take them off as soon as they are capped, because thousands of tiny feet walking over them day and night, will soon darken the bright new wax cappings.
As soon as the full comb frames are taken from the bees, we place them in a freezer over night, to kill any wax-moth eggs that could be waiting to hatch. The comb is then cut to size, and placed in clear plastic containers for sale
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