Transcript Beekeeping 101

Pollen Collection
Speckman Honey Farms
Contact Information:
John Speckman Cell 816-810-5642
Bev Speckman
Cell 816-589-8762
Web Site
www.speckmanhoney.com
What is it?
• Besides collecting nectar from flowers, bees select
only those pollens that contain the greatest amounts
of protein and other nutrients. The bees mix them
with nectar and some of the bees’ own secretions
and store them in their hives. Bees use this pollen as
food.
• The honeybee instinctively collects only the freshest
and most potent pollen from those available.
Facts about Pollen
• Gathered from Trees, plants & flowers.
• Used by bees as a food source, fed to larva during
development.
• Bees carry the pollen back from the flowers using
pollen sacks on the hind legs
Bee Pollen Benefits and
Information
•
Pollen is one of the richest, most complete foods in nature and contains a wide variety of essential vitamins, minerals,
enzymes, protein and amino acids.
•
Pollen is the only food which contains, in perfect balance, all 22 known essential nutritional elements
which humans require to achieve and maintain optimum vitality.
•
It is extraordinarily rich in most of the B vitamins and also contains only a few calories per serving.
•
Bee-gathered pollens are rich in proteins (approximately 40% protein), free amino acids, vitamins, including B-complex, and
folic acid.
•
Bee Pollen also contains Lecithin which helps to remove fat stores from the body and stimulates the metabolism. Lecithin also
helps in the assimilation of nutrients in the digestive process.
•
As an alkaline food, bee pollen benefits and balances the overall PH of your body.
•
One of the most amazing bee pollen facts is that it takes one bee working eight hours a day, one month to gather just one
teaspoon of bee pollen granules.
•
Very few people are allergic to bee pollen. Therefore,it is suggested that people start taking small amounts of bee pollen and
gradually increase the amount until they are taking 2 teaspoofuls daily.
Bee Pollen Nutrition Information
Pollen & Nectar Source Information
Name
Type
Maple
Tree
Willow
Tree
Daffadolis
Plant
Tulip
Plant
Dandelion
Plant
Plum
Tree
Peach
Tree
Strawberry
Plant
Apple
Tree
Black Locust
Tree
White Clover
Plant
Tulip Poplar
Tree
Raspberry
Shrub
Blackberry
Shrub
Yellow Sweet Clover
Plant
White Sweet Clover
Plant
Sumac
Tree
Milkweed
Plant
Basswood
Tree
Goldenrod
Plant
Aster
Plant
Yield
Excellent
Excellent
Fair
Fair
Excellent
Fair
Undependable
Fair
Good
Excellent
Excellent
Excellent
Excellent
Excellent
Excellent
Good
Good
Good
Good
Good
Good
Nectar/Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Pollen
Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Pollen
Pollen
Nectar Only
Nectar& Pollen
Nectar& Pollen
Pollen Trap Design’s
• Bottom Entrance
• Top Entrance
• Front Porch
Bottom Entrance Design
Bottom Side Opening
Top Entrance Design
Front Porch Design
How is pollen collected
• The honeybee fills the pollen baskets, one on each rear
leg with grains of pollen on every trip back and forth from
the hive.
• The bee passes thru a series of screens in the pollen
trap as she enters the hive, resulting in approximately
60% of the pollen granules being brushed into the pollen
drawer for harvest.
Basic Principles of Design
• Pollen traps vary greatly in design and positioning on the
hive. All make use of one basic principle
– A grid to remove the pollen pellets from the bees
– A box or tray to collect pollen pellets.
– Pollen-collecting field bees are forced to enter the hive through
an opening screened with 5-mesh hardware cloth or 3/16-inch
diameter perforated sheet material.
– When passing through this grid, most of the pollen pellets are
dislodged from the hind-legs of the returning bees and fall into a
tray covered by screen (7- or 8- mesh) that allows the pollen
pellets to pass but not the bees.
– The size of the hole in the grid is the crucial factor. The number
of holes in the grid must not restrict normal flight activity at the
entrance.
Top View of Trap
Front View of Trap
Rear view of trap/drawer
When & how to start
• We start placing the traps on strong colonies about
the time dandelions bloom in the spring.
• You must make sure that all boxes fit tight, any slight
hole/crack will allow the bees to use that as their
entrance..
• Bees seem to adapt to the trap in a short time.
• Some traps can be either Open (Pollen Trapping) or
Closed, which allows bees to enter the trap from a
different entrance… The Sundance trap has the
ability to lower the front of trap, which blocks the
bottom board entrance, and creates a new opening
for the bees to use.
• Best practice is to remove pollen from traps daily.
Example of Open or Shut
• Open – allows bees to enter the trap
using the normal entrance of the hive.
• Close – this will close the normal
entrance, and create a new entrance at
the top of the trap.
Sundance Trap OPEN
Sundance Trap CLOSED
Cleaning / drying pollen
• When the pollen has been removed from the tray in
the trap, next step is to remove any debris that has
been found in the pollen
• We place the collected pollen on a cookie sheet and
place outside, any ants, or other bugs will leave in a
very short time. Then the next step of cleaning can
be done.
• We use a cleaner from Kelley Bees, which aids in
removal of this debris.
Pollen Cleaner
Storage
• After the pollen as been cleaned, place in the freezer
to help remove moisture.
• After the pollen has been dried, you can then store
the pollen in a refrigerator.
What to do with the pollen
• Wholesale
Plastic gallon jug holds approx 5# of pollen
Price depends on supply / demand…
Less labor on package
Retail
• Repackage into Retail Containers
12oz bear holds 5 oz of pollen
Pack in plastic bags 4-6 oz per
bag.
Pack in queen line plastic/glass jars..
Questions??????????