APIARY.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1190, 21 December 1894, Page 6

APIARY.

PASSING HONEY.

A writer . 'of Horticulture has the fqn<>wing on the subject of pressing honey ■ • Ail ray/honey,. whether, clpver or heather, is pressed. My is to hold the fran)Q of honeythe light/ and the: eye, and any |>ol|ejft. visible is, excised,, a. knife being run round ihe inside of-the frame, severing; the cpmbs from., it J -then., holding, the frame by the ends, a. sudden/ jerk, throws it on a large dish. The, qpmb is next cut inta cylinder of the presser/ andi* when a number of them are prepared,. each piece is lifted with c fork, placed in the cylinder and .rammed.,;. When, full/ the slide is placed beneath the screw. As honey does not flow easily, the screw has to be turned, gently, but When f. the honey is all extracted: the screw is slackened,, the slide moved sideways, and the cake of wax is/pressed out. Meanwhile the honey has escaped into a tin beneath, and when this, is full it is poured, into a sieve, the uppermost of a series of different meshes, then into another tin. From this receptacle the honey i 3 passed through a muslin or net bag, and from thence into a pail .having a sluice or valve, from which it runs into jars. To preserve the flavour of the honey and keep free from dust the jars are immediately covered with parchment. The whole operation may be performed by one person, and in such a manner that not a single drop of honey comes into contact with .the hands or out of place, and the most fastidious persons may rest assured that cleanliness is always maintained. Some people use cheese-cloths in conjunction with the presser, but X have never approved of the plan. The hands of the manipulator have to be repeatedly brought into contact with the honey ; besides, if pollen be not carefully excised, it is mixed and pressed out with the honey. Some persons, however, argue that the method is a good one, and that no further preparation is necessary. An old beekeeper of my acquaintance has used a presser of this sort for fifty years, and says there is no better plan, but for the reasons stated above I have long since abandoned cheesecloths. A near relative of mine has been experimenting with the “ Garstang ” presser made on the above principle, but he is not in favour of it ; it messes the hands too much, .and is no speedier than the Lanarkshire presser. It appears, therefore, that the honey presser, to press at the speed of a ton per day, combined with cleanliness, is still a thing of the future. Beekeepers, studying their own interest, will do well, whatever change of progress is made, to elect that which preserves the purity of the honey. Let all improvements be on strictly tidy and cleanly lines, and they will find it to their advantage, as it has been to me. . ..