Pollen in the supers

[BeeJuice]

I've got a problem with a couple of my hives - they are doing well and there's plenty of honey in the supers but for some reason they have also added pollen in there. The honey is in a nice arc over the top of the super and the pollen is in the middle lower part.

Is there any way to encourage the bees to move the pollen? If not, what will happen to it when I cone to extract?

Thanks

 

[Poly Hive]

Perfectly normal and is there for insulation so you might want to consider adding some insulation inside your roof, or a piece to sit on the crown board. Pollen is of course normal in honey.

PH

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

perfectly normal - it's what bees do, I always get it in the super next to the brood when they really get going and there's not much room in the brood box for an excessive amount of pollen. This year in particular there seems to be a heck of a lot more going in with one super almost full of it. Just ectract - the pollen will stay in the comb.

I have top insulation on all the hives BTW

 

[BeeJuice]

I hadn't thought about top insulation in the summer.

I have ekes which I use for the job - I just cut out a piece of builders insulating foam to fit and sit it on top. I'll put these back next time.

As always, thanks for the advice.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I have deep roofs on all my hives - none of these silly vents in there, each roof has a slab of 50mm celotex permanently fixed inside.

 

[alldigging]

I've got a problem with a couple of my hives - they are doing well and there's plenty of honey in the supers but for some reason they have also added pollen in there. The honey is in a nice arc over the top of the super and the pollen is in the middle lower part.

Is there any way to encourage the bees to move the pollen? If not, what will happen to it when I cone to extract?

Thanks

Have they got enough room in the brood box for pollen?

 

[BeeJuice]

Have they got enough room in the brood box for pollen?

They have some honey and pollen in the brood box. Where I have a double brood box they are not using it for rearing brood but storing honey (broodless BB under the box with brood)

Seems like I'm not doing it right or they have their own plans

 

[TryingToLetThemBee]

They have some honey and pollen in the brood box. Where I have a double brood box they are not using it for rearing brood but storing honey (broodless BB under the box with brood)

Seems like I'm not doing it right or they have their own plans

No it seems to be a general phenomenon this year. I work mine out in the general direction of nucs that I plan to overwinter.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I would agree
I am taking out 14x12 frames of pollen and giving the bees drawn empty frames in return, the strongest colony has had two frames of foundation in the middle of the brood (separately) and that was drawn and largely laid up in a couple of days.

 

[Obee1]

I have a couple of super frames almost completely full of pollen this year. Previously not seen much pollen up there atall.

 

[For want of a better word]

I have put a brood box above a qe on a couple of my colonies that like to do this ( Italian NZ stock) drawn out comb with pollen and stores is gold dust for making up nucs!

Yeghes da

 

[masterBK]

If you use drone foundation in your supers the bees don't put pollen in the cells. However if the queen ever gets up into the supers ......!!

 

[Erichalfbee]

That's interesting. I never knew that. So I presume they would put it in the brood box and swarm

 

[BeeJuice]

Interesting that bees seems to be doing the same thing even though they have no physical connection.

There's an excellent book called Supernature by Lyall Watson that discusses this phenomena.