Randy wrote:
>>>
>old comb has a higher propolis content.
>
Could you please cite evidence for the above claim?  I see bees putting a
small amount of propolis around the rim of a cell, but haven't yet seen
hard evidence that they put it further down in the cells.  Has anyone seen
such evidence or analyses?  <<<<

Very fair question. I have no hard evidence to support it.  It seems to be
another one of those items of beekeeping lore that are repeated and
considered axiomatic, but probably should not be.  I have found various on
line discussions about propolis in old comb, but none are very conclusive.
The Hive and the Honey Bee does not seem to have the required info, either
under 'propolis' or 'comb'  - although there is a note of bees preferring
to cluster on old comb, which I think is what started this discussion.

David Burns has an article on propolis that at the end, tries to answer the
question of whether bees use propolis to polish brood cells.  He polled a
number of  well-known authorities and none had a definitive answer.
http://basicbeekeeping.blogspot.com/2011/12/lesson-113-sticky-subject-of-propolis.html


Other burr comb on the bottom and tops of brood area frames is often very
dark as well. That could be wax that has been moved from old brood comb.
Flipping the question around, if the dark colour of old brood combs is not
due to propolis, then what is it caused by?

Rob H in central NB

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