Pollen patty without brewers yeast

[Cindi]

Here is the method for making pollen patties if you have enough extra pollen to make it without brewers yeast.

Mix 7 parts of 100% irradated pollen and 3 parts of dry sugar, add water to make the patties. It is better than any thing else. You can also use brewer yeast and some pollen to make patties.    Great day.  Cindi

[JordanM]

What consistancy do you stop adding water at. Like a dough.

[Cindi]

Jordan, yep, I like it to be firm enough that it doesn't fall apart when placed on the top of the frames, you have to use your discretion here, you'll have to just experiment.  Beautiful and most wonderful day, Cindi

[JordanM]

Do you place it directly on the frames or on wax paper on the frames.

[mark]

excuse me but for what?   a healthy colony with enough brood space collects sufficient pollen to take themselves through winter and into spring until they can collect fresh pollen to feed themselves.  they surely don't need you to feed them this time of year. y'all work too hard at doing what you don't need to.

[Dick Allen]

double post, sorry folks :(

[Dick Allen]

Mark, you've apparently not read another recent thread from Jordan on feeding pollen to the bees. Jordan is interested in possibly having to feed next spring and is planning on collecting pollen for that purpose. I'll agree with your statement that it most likely won't be required even at the end of next winter, but you never know..... besides, there's no harm in knowing how to mix up pollen supplements/substitutes, is there?

Jordan, here's a site that has some interesting reading on mixing pollen substitutes/supplements. At the bottom of the site are some more links. One is from Canadian beekeeper Allen Dick (not to be confused with Alaskan beekeeper Dick Allen). ;)

http://www.honeyrunapiaries.com/16.231.0.0.1.0.phtml

Most people place it directly on the top of the frames with a piece of wax paper on top of the patty.

[JordanM]

Thanks that is what i was wondering. I have all my questions answered now.

[Cindi]

I agree 100% that a colony SHOULD have gathered enough pollen to last through a winter and through to into the spring.  But sometimes that is not possible.  It is all weather dependent.  We had a summer last year where all beekeepers, for example, were reporting more than 50% less honey gathered than other years.  It was a bad year for the bees here, no ifs, ands, or buts.  The summer was cool, there was also many times when the bees could not get out to forage.  If the colonies did not gather enough pollen/nectar, there were problems.

It also depends on the spring time too.  We have had a terrible spring where the bees have not been able to get out to gather that pollen that they might not have stored.  Recently, and I mean very recently, the bees have been able to get out to gather pollen, and yes, they have been doing that like mad hatters.

In our climate even the commercial beekeepers feed pollen patties beginning in February.  This ensures that there is enough pollen in the colony for that brood rearing.  Without pollen the bees cannot produce royal jelly in their hypopharyngeal glands, they cannot feed their young.  That means no brood rearing, period.

If the bees do not need the pollen patty supplement, they won't use it.  But I will tell you that all my bees have consumed their pollen patties like there was no tomorrow.  It is not being removed from the hive either, it is being consumed.

So, the bottomline here is:  sometimes there is just not enough pollen stored, sometimes there is.  Our climate is not as cold as many experience, but it is not warm enough either that the bees can get out to get pollen sometimes.  When they are not in their winter cluster, and they are raising brood, if they can't get out to get pollen, they must have it, whether it be stored pollen or that pollen substitute.  That is how it works in our climate, we can't change Mother Nature.  Have a great day, enjoy our lives we live.  Cindi