Ripe and Unripe Honey. 



Ripe and Unripe Honey. 



The Canadian Ministry of Agriculture undertook experiments 

 in 1 90 1 to ascertain what differences might exist between honey 

 taken from uncapped and capped comb. Honey from the 

 former is known to bee-keepers as immature or unripe, and is 

 generally held to have poor keeping qualities. Endeavour was 

 also made to ascertain the effect upon extracted honey of keeping 

 it in a closed vessel (a glass-stoppered bottle), and open to the 

 air (a vessel covered with cheese-cloth). The honey was 

 extracted from the uncapped and partially capped comb on 

 July 1st (1901), and from the fully capped comb on August 6th; 

 the analyses being made on October 1st. 



It was found that the honey from the the fully capped comb 

 contained 4-5 per cent, less water than that from the partially 

 or entirely uncapped comb. The difference in moisture content 

 between the honeys kept in glass-stoppered bottles and in bottles 

 covered with cheese-cloth was so small that no conclusions could 

 be drawn as to the relative merits of these two methods of keeping 

 honey. The honey from uncapped and partially capped comb 

 was found to have decidedly poor keeping qualities compared 

 with the other, several of the jars of unripe honey being 

 fermented in October. 



Similar trials were again conducted in 1902. 



It was found that the considerable difference observed in the 

 previous year between the water content of ripe and unripe 

 honey was no longer apparent, although the latter contained a 

 somewhat higher percentage. Evidently the character of the 

 season has an influence in this matter, and it is quite possible 

 that in some seasons the honey may be of practically equal 

 quality. In the case of honey from the fully capped comb, it 

 would appear that it absorbed moisture from the air to a slight 

 extent when covered with cheese-cloth, and experiments are to 

 be carried out to obtain further light upon this as well as other 

 points. 



