JM>From: Jim Moore <[log in to unmask]>
  >Date:         Thu, 5 Jun 1997 16:46:39 EDT
  >Subject:      excessive frames of pollen?
 
JM>        I have a hive that seems to have alot of pollen frames.
JM>        Is it ever the case that a hive can be pollen bound?
 
Hi Jim,
 
Every area is a little different, here we seldom have too much pollen
for long. Some hives are said to collect more pollen then others, but as
a rule the accumulation of excess pollen donates a slowing down of brood
rearing, or poor quality pollen. Brood rearing could be slowing down as
the queen is failing to lay high enough numbers of eggs each day to
consume all the pollen the bees can collect, or for a dozen other
reasons. Poor pollen is common, and for most beekeeping situations any
single source pollen is bad news.
 
JM>        How many frames of pollen is reasonable for 2 deep brood hive?
 
Very complicated question for the fact is bees can do very well with
little or no stored pollen as long as they have enough pollen coming in
to rear adequate brood. In collecting pollen most all can be taken off
the bees legs and they will still do very well with what may be in their
honey bucket or on their body hairs.
 
Bees tend to deposit the pollen close to the entrance and and the
cluster in the frames adjacent to the brood. Some beekeepers place
shallow supers under the brood chamber, (closer to entrance), and
reverse this super in the spring or at other times to get their bees
going when pollen is dear. I have never been in a situation of too much
pollen for long so I would not do anything about this problem other
then moving the pollen combs around to encourage more brood rearing now.
 
Bees can consume a tremendous amount of pollen each season, early work
declared the amounts to be equal to what they consume in honey. So
if it takes 100 lbs of honey to keep a hive going for a season it
would take 100 lbs of pollen. Since then I am sure better figures per
bee have been worked out but I don't have them in my old mush bucket to
pass on to you.
 
JM>        Does it ever make sense to remove frames of pollen and replace with
  >foundation to increase the egg laying space?
 
It makes more sense to give hives frames of pollen to increase brood
rearing, but for sure if you have have too much now you may want to try
that "if you also have a honey flow" so the foundation will be drawn out
fast.
 
JM>        If so, can these be stored (frozen I would assumes to avoid wax
  >moths) and reused later when making splints or nucs or for winter stores?
 
For sure freezing pollen is a good way to preserve it for later use, but
I would check with the wife as freezer space is not always available.<G>
 
JM>        If the frames are discarded does it just go in the solar wax melter
 
The more pollen in a comb in a solar melter the less wax you will get
from that comb as the pollen will trap it.
 
                        ttul, the OLd Drone
 
 
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