Hello all,
I have a question on propolis.  I have an outyard located about 40 miles
north of the general area I keep my other yards.  It is on a farm in an area
that is the beginning of a mountainous region.  It is colder there then it
is here in the valley area.  I guess there are some trees that grow there
that are not around here, like white birch, but the area is relatively the
same.  For the past two seasons the colonies there have collected a type of
propolis unsimilar to anything I have ever seen.  This is the third season
for the bees at that location.  The first year I didn't notice it.  They
collect a lot of it and it appears to "run" like melted wax down the comb
during warm weather.  When I first saw it I thought someone had dumped
something down the hole in the inner cover. It literally dripped down across
capped comb. When the substance is cooler it is hard and brittle almost like
dried varnish.  It does not smell funny or different and it even tastes like
propolis although I have never seen propolis run.  In warm weather it is
usually like taffy.  The colonies are somewhat shaded however we did have a
very hot summer but this area would have been cooler than other locations.
The bees are healthy and produced as much honey as my other colonies.  I
just don't know what it is.  I scraped and discarded most of it but I would
really like to know from what plant they are collecting.  The farm grows
some vegetables and pumpkins, corn and hay.  No one has complained that the
bees are in any buildings so I doubt that they got into something they
shouldn't have.  Maybe this is normal and I just don't see it in my other
locations.
Thoughts?

Ron Bogansky
Kutztown, (eastern) PA, USA