mouldy pollen

[MerryBee]

What is the best thing to do with brood frames stored over the winter containing mouldy pollen. Will the bees clean them up if I reuse them as they are? Or would it be better to melt them down and put in fresh foundation?

 

[madasafish]

Bees will clean them up.

 

[bontbee]

Depends if it's rock solid under the mould or not. If it is solid you can scrape the comb back/cut it out and the bees will rebuild tidily, (though you'll see some is drone here - but not a problem in a brood now being used as a super!).

 

[bontbee]

What is the best thing to do with brood frames stored over the winter containing mouldy pollen?

The best thing for over wintered comb is to let pollen mites get at the pollen. I try to keep a comb or two with pollen in in the shed, to keep the pollen mites fed. They turn even rock hard pollen into dust. Lovely little beasties. I don't know where they come from/how they get into the stored comb, but they seem to find it under their own steam and it is worth "cultivating" them.

 

[Erichalfbee]

The best thing for over wintered comb is to let pollen mites get at the pollen. I try to keep a comb or two with pollen in in the shed, to keep the pollen mites fed. They turn even rock hard pollen into dust. Lovely little beasties. I don't know where they come from/how they get into the stored comb, but they seem to find it under their own steam and it is worth "cultivating" them.

A sharp tap on the top bar and all the dust falls out

 

[MerryBee]

Thanks for all your comments. Interesting about the pollen mites. I had put all frames in the freezer for 24 hours or so, to kill off any wax moth larvae before storage. That obviously did for the pollen mites as well. I need a different strategy next year.

I often see tiny almost colourless things running about on the varroa boards. Are they pollen mites ?

 

[thenovice]

The best thing for over wintered comb is to let pollen mites get at the pollen. I try to keep a comb or two with pollen in in the shed, to keep the pollen mites fed. They turn even rock hard pollen into dust. Lovely little beasties. I don't know where they come from/how they get into the stored comb, but they seem to find it under their own steam and it is worth "cultivating" them.

that is one mystery cleared up to me! had this powdery residue all over my stored boxes coming out of the pollen cells. thought is was waxmoth but could not find any other evidence of them...