How do you feed pollen patties to honey bees?
To feed Global Patties pollen patties, first locate the center of the cluster (this is where brood are being raised). Gently smoke the bees down and place one patty on the top bars right in the center of the cluster. On large colonies, use two or three patties, covering the whole brood area.
Be sure that the side with the perforated paper is down so that the bees have access to the patty though the holes underneath. Strong colonies will chew up the paper quickly. For weak colonies, removing the bottom paper may be advisable. Return in a week and replace any patties that have been consumed. Move any patties that we not consumed into the center.
Should I feed in the fall?
It is highly encouraged to feed Pollen Patties in the fall. Fall feeding promotes healthy winter bees and over-all colony strength.
Do you make custom pollen patties?
Yes, however, your order must be a minimum of 600 pounds. Please call or email Global Patties with any inquiries as to custom orders or recipes.
When should I feed?
Pollen patties should be fed in the spring before natural pollen is available. Feeding should start no earlier than one month before the first reliable spring pollen flow is expected. For example, in Alberta, feeding would start in the middle to end of March.
In the spring, honey and pollen are converted for brood and young bees to replace the old, overwintered adults which are quickly nearing the end of their lives. This brood is the future of the colony and the surviving adult bees invest everything they have into the brood, including using protein from their own bodies. If these new young bees receive adequate nourishment, they will be healthy and well-nourished and the colony will build up fully and quickly. Each developing bee needs a constant protein supply for almost six weeks in order to develop properly. The developing larvae receive protein in their jelly feed for six days. Then 12 days later when they emerge as adults they must eat protein during the next 18 days to complete growth into strong adult bees and to feed more larvae.
If protein is lacking at any point during those six weeks, some brood will either fail to develop or become weaker, stunted adults. If they suffer from mite predation, the outlook is even worse. In a protein starved colony, there are eggs and some small larvae, but that brood is torn out again and again because it's underfed, leaving only small amounts of patchy sealed brood. When protein is provided we soon see a good brood pattern.
Feeding protein patties to a colony and then stopping before natural pollen is available in the field every day means taking big chancs with the future of the colony. It can weaken your bees by making them build up new brood that now cannot be fed.
The best use of patties is to put on more patties than the bees will need and make sure the bees never come close to running out until the flowers are blooming and the weather is settled and you see an arc of fresh pollen around each patch of brood.
How should pollen patties be stored?
Patties should be stored in a cool, dry place. For best results, they should be used soon after, however, they do have a shelf-life of around 6 months, at which time the protein levels will start to drop.
You can also freeze pollen patties, but should still be used within the 6 month time period. Please keep in mind that the pollen patties will be more difficult to work with when thawed.
Has any scientific research been conducted on the benefits of feeding Global Patties?
Global Patties pollen patties are currently being tested and we will provide the link to those results when they are available.
What is the Nutritional Analysis of Global Patties pollen patties?
4% pollen patties
15% pollen patties
What ingredients are in Global Patties pollen patties?
Global Patties pollen patties contain five simple ingredients; soya flour, brewers yeast, sugar, water and pollen. However, we can also produce pollen patties that do not contain pollen if requested.
All of our pollen is irradiated at Lotron Industries.
How do I order Global Patties pollen patties?
It's simple! Just fill out an order form for your country and Global Patties will get back to you within one to two business days with a quote for the patties and shipping costs.
