CANDIED HONEY. 



saw it (seven years after), it was going back 

 to the liquid condition. Some cans were al- 

 most entirely liquid, and others had streaks 

 of candied honey reaching out like the 

 branches of an evergreen-tree all through the 

 package. These same jars are being watch- 

 ed with the expectation that the honey will 

 ultimately turn back to the liquid state. But 

 there is no probability that it will taste the 

 same as before it candied. Indeed, there is 

 every evidence to show that so far it has un- 

 gone a slight chemical change. Whether 

 that change is due to the continued effect of 

 light upon the granules is not known. 



THE SCIENCE OF GRANULATION. 



While we do not know very much as yet 

 about the theory of honey-candying, yet we 

 do know that, while the nectar of flowers 

 may be, chemically, cane sugar, yet after it 

 has been stored in the hive by the bees, and 

 partially digested or worked over as ex- 

 plained under Honey elsewhere, it is known 

 to science as invert sugar. Ordinary honey 

 is a combination of dextrose, levulose, 

 and water, in approximately equal propor- 

 tions. "Honey candies upon standing," 

 says Dr. Headden. of the Colorado Experi- 

 ment Station at Fort Collins, "because of 

 the ability of its dextrose to assume a crys- 

 talline form much more readily than the 

 levulose." At the Colorado State bee-keep- 

 ers" convention, he showed samples of 

 free dextrose and levulose. The former 

 looked like, very nice light-colored brown 

 sugar ; the latter appeared like a cheap 

 grade of dark-colored molasses. The doctor 

 went on to explain that, if candied honey 

 were subjected to a sufficient pressure, the 

 greater portion of the levulose could be 

 obtained, leaving the solid mass largely 

 dextrose. The levulose of honey candies 

 slightly, but is very different in appearance 

 from its dextrose constituent. 



HOW TO GET CANDIED HONEY OUT OF 



BROOD-COMBS AND YET SAVE BOTH 



THE COMB AND THE HONEY. 



Where honey candies at all in brood- 

 combs, it will usually be only partially. After 

 uncapping, M. M. Baldridge,of St. Charles, 

 111., reconmiends placing all such combs in 

 the extractor, and throwing out any portion 

 of the lumey remaining liquid. He next 

 lays the combs in the bottom of a clean 

 wash-boiler, and, from an elevated dipper 

 pours water slowly into the cells. He then 

 turns the comb over and treats the other 

 side the same way. As fast as the combs 

 are splashed witli w^ater he ])laces them 



78 CANDIED HONEY. 



in a hive or super. After they have all 

 been doused he takes them out and sets 

 them over strong colonies. He says the bees, 

 by aid of the water liquefy the whole mass, 

 clean the combs, and save both the combs 

 and honey. 



Candied comb honey in sections can 

 scarcely be treated in this way, as it 

 would be impracticable to uncap the cells. 

 These should be treated in a capping-melter, 

 as directed a couple of pages back. 



HOW TO MARKET CANDIED HONEY. 



Some years ago attempts were made to 

 put up candied honey in small packages for 

 retail purposes; but it was not until the 

 year 1901 that any real progress was 

 made. At that time R. C. Aikin, of Love- 

 land, Colo., began to put up his honey in 

 cheap lard-pails. He allowed it to candy, 

 and then sold it direct to consumers. The 

 packages being cheap he could afford to put 



AIKIN'S PAPER-BAG PACKAGE DISSECTED 

 FOR THE TABLE. 



the honey on the market at a price that 

 would compete with ordinary sugar. A lit- 

 tle later on he conceived the idea of using 

 stout paraffine-paper bags instead of pails, 

 and has made a complete success of it. 



Alfalfa honey in Colorado is well known 

 to granulate very rapidly. As soon as the 

 graining begins to show he draws the honey 

 off into the bags, and allows them to 

 stand in a cool place, when it soon candies. 

 Illustrations on the previous page show 

 the style of the bag after it has been tilled 

 and the top edges folded down. The honey 

 readily candies into solid bricks, and will 

 stand all kinds of rough treatment. The 



