COMB HONEY—HONEY FLOW AND HARVEST.—Chapter XIV. 
beside the shaken colony. Enough bees should be left on the combs to 
care for the brood; usually two combs are not shaken at all, but placed 
in the other hive with all the adhering bees. This makes an artificial swarm, 
and the parent colony is handled exactly as in natural swarming as de- 
scribed on pages 63, 64, and illustrated on pages 87 and 88. 
Taking Off the Honey. 
In comb-honey production the beekeeper should not wait until the end 
‘of the honey flow before removing the completed sections, for, if the sec- 
tions are left on very long after being completed, the surface of the cap- 
pings becomes soiled by reason of the bees passing over it so much. Al- 
though this does not affect the quality of the honey, it injures its appear- 
ance and so lessens its market value. In extracted-honey production, this 
condition makes no difference, since the cappings are removed and only 
the liquid honey sold. When a super is ready to be taken off, it should be 
placed above the other supers with a bee-escape board just under it. If an 
escape-board is put on when the bees are flying freely, they will probably 
leave the super in a few hours—at least by the next day. Usually it is not 
best to wait until every section is finished before taking off supers of comb 
honey. If a few are not yet finished, the super should be taken off and 
the unfinished sections sorted out, these being assembled in another super 
to be put back on the hive to be finished. 
Where to Store Comb Honey. 
Comb honey should be stored in a dry place; for, if water condenses 
on the comb and dilutes the honey, it is certain to sour. When extracted 
honey granulates no great harm is done, since it can easily be liquefied 
and is then practically as good as ever; but when comb honey granulates, 
it must be sold at a low price, and, therefore, it is important that comb 
honey be kept at an even temperature since sudden changes cause granu- 
lation. A warm dry room of even temperature between 70 and 90 degrees 
Fahrenheit is the best place for keeping comb honey. 
Preparing for Market. 
The exposed parts of the sections will have bits of wax and propolis 
adhering. These should be carefully scraped off with a sharp knife, taking 
extreme care that the comb be not accidentally gouged with the knife. 
Those sections that are entirely sealed, nice and white and perfect in 
their appearance, should be sorted out and placed with the best grade. The 
unfinished sections may be-used at home or disposed of at a lower price 
to near neighbors. If there are some sections with very little honev, and 
the beekeeper knows there is no foul brood among the bees of the neigh- 
borhood, he may stack them in supers a few rods from the apiary, leaving 
at the top and bottom of the pile a small entrance only large enough for 
one or two bees to pass at a time. In a short time the bees will rob out 
this honey, and the dry combs may then be stored to use as baits the next 
season. 
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