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 (c) Permission is granted to freely copy this document in any form, or to print for any use. (w)Opinions are not necessarily facts. Use at own risk. --- ~ QMPro 1.53 ~ The fittest will survive yet the unfit may live.