The Basingstoke Beekeeper

Autumn 2002

Contents

Apiary Update

by David Purchase

Two things, in particular, have struck me about this season. Firstly, the length of the swarming season. The first authenticated swarm I heard of was late March and the most recent, mid August. Secondly, the fluctuating nectar yields. The season started well with many beekeepers removing supers in May and, exceptionally, late April. Then, cool, wet weather in late May/early June resulted in colonies consuming considerable amounts of stores. Some beekeepers in rural areas had to feed their bees. At that point many beekeepers were prepared to write off the season as being very poor. However, what a transformation during July and early August! In most areas, bees collected copious amounts of nectar which more than compensated for the earlier setback. I understand, too, that the heather is yielding well. The late flow is particularly welcome this year as most beekeepers, from those with just two colonies in the garden to beefarmers with dozens of stocks, have reported an increased demand for honey as a consequence of the ban on the import of Chinese honey.

Apart from the swarming problems described in my last report, the colonies in St. John's Copse have done quite well. As I write (26th August), honey is being extracted. It is too soon to say what the final 'take' will be, but I suspect it will be above average. Colonies have been treated for varroa, some with Apistan and others with Apiguard. Alternating the treatments (described by the scientists as 'integrated pest management', or 'IPM') helps to prolong their efficacy.

The August apiary meeting was well attended. Star of the show was Gordon's magnificent top-bar hive, resembling a coffin! Unfortunately, the bees had not read the books. Despite the fact that Gordon had fitted starter strips to the top bars, the bees had built comb at a diagonal, effectively 'welding' the bars together. It was very difficult to remove them without damaging the comb. It will be a job for the spring when the colony is expanding and better equipped to carry out repairs. The barbecue in the Walled Garden which followed the apiary meeting was well attended and a good time was had by all (as they say). The weather was kind, old acquaintances were renewed and nobody starved! Many thanks to Nigel for organising what will, hopefully, become an annual event.

The four Association colonies, including the cast I described in my last report, are in good shape, thanks largely to good management by Peter and Christine. Valerie, one of our new members, has a very nice colony which started as a nuc made up from an Association colony. She even enjoyed a modest honey crop. There is nothing quite like the thrill of the very first honey from the very first colony!

I am pleased to be able to report that, in my capacity as a Bee Inspector, I have found fewer cases of Foulbrood this year than during any of my previous six seasons. I have carried out a number of field tests throughout my area and have found no evidence of varroa resistance to Apistan and Bayvarol. It will eventually occur, but we can all help to delay that day by using the products in accordance with the manufacturers' instructions. As always in beekeeping, there is no room for complacency.

It has been agreed provisionally that an Introduction to Beekeeping course will be held again this winter. Please don't forget that the social season kicks off on Thursday, 19th September. See the back page for further information. Enclosed with this issue are the 2002 updates for the Hampshire Handbook. You should each have a copy of the Handbook, but if not, please contact me.

On 31st July, a further strand was woven into my tapestry of beekeeping experience. During the late afternoon, I was walking along a local, little used, footpath en route to the post box, day dreaming as you do, when I was conscious of the characteristic hum of honeybees. I instinctively looked for the source. No, I could see no prime forage plant. Instead, I saw bees climbing into the air around me. I looked down and, lo and behold, bees were entering and leaving a fire hydrant cover in the footpath, through holes at either end. I stood and watched, fascinated. Pollen loads were going in. Clearly, a swarm had taken up residence.

After almost forgetting to post my mail, I walked home, planning my strategy and making a mental note of the required equipment. I returned within twenty minutes with a nuc hive, containing empty frames, garden twine, a smoker, a veil and a screwdriver (with which to lever open the metal cover).

I gently lifted the cover at one end, to see a cast on the underside covering a piece of comb about 5 inches deep. I concluded it was a cast because it was too small to have been a prime swarm. I reckoned that it had been there for about 3 days. I applied a little smoke (not really necessary) and gently removed the comb. Although small, the comb was tied into the bottom of an empty frame. The metal cover was removed and the bees shaken into the hive. The cover was replaced and the hive placed over it. I watched for a while as returning foragers found their way, eventually, into the hive. There was sufficient space under the edge of the hive to allow the relatively few bees remaining underground to exit.

I placed a note on the hive roof asking passers by not to touch and stating that the hive would be removed at dusk. I returned at dusk, half expecting the hive to have been vandalised. I need not have worried. The entrance was closed and the hive secured. I took it to my garden. The following day I added a frame of foundation. Two days later I gave them a feed. (I don't believe in feeding stray swarms straight away, but that's another story).

Unfortunately, I am unable to report a happy ending. It became apparent that the cast was queenless. I had looked in vain for the her during the collection process. Still, I had remained optimistic you have to don't you? Either she was lost during collection (unlikely) or she had been lost on her mating flight (more likely). Once I was 100% sure of their queenless state, I united the bees with a prime swarm, also in the garden, which I had collected during the Jubilee Holiday from Pitman Close in Basingstoke (that's another interesting tale).

On reflection, despite the disappointing outcome, the bees had a better chance in my garden than they would have done in a hole in the ground in a public footpath, albeit a little used route. It would not have been long before panic set in among nearby residents, and the fate of the cast could have been much worse. At least I gave it a sporting chance! Incidentally, the 'hole in the ground' was much larger in volume than any beehive and would have made a wonderful home!

David Purchase.
Secretary and Seasonal Bee Inspector

Niche~Markets for~honey

email@omitted.anti.spam

Can someone define the "niche market" for retail honey? People bandy this term around and I don't know what it means.

Secondly, how much of the 400 milion+ pound U.S. honey market is that niche?

Thanks,

Bill Mares

email@omitted.anti.spam

Bill,

There are all kinds of niches. Gift packaging, varietal honeys, honey types like extracted, comb, creamed, and demonstrations of live bees.

Frankly, I do ALL of them at one given event, and it attracts buyers who pay high prices per pound.

At my 9 day County Fair, I have a 8' x12' screened wire cage housing 4 colonies of bees. Four demonstrations per day where I go in, find the queen, take her out, show her to the crowd, constantly talking about the value of honey bees to the public due to the pollination they provide, and I do all of this dressed only in shoes, shorts, Tee-shirt and no veil. I have not been stung in several years. This is done to convince people that Hollywood has exploited the story of "killer bees".

Next door to the cage is George's Honey House where my family sells all kinds of varietal honeys like eucalyptus, sourwood, buckwheat, tupelo, gallberry, and Maryland honeys: locust, tulip poplar, alfalfa, clover, basswood. we sell all kinds of gift packs, sampler packs, comb honey, creamed honey, honey sticks, recipe books, and jars of different sizes; and my nine day gross sales run $0,000-$5,000. My family keeps all the money for their work, and I get all the Thank You's.

You don't sell honey - you sell yourself and your knowledge of bees. That is what the public is willing to pay for.

George Imirie

email@omitted.anti.spam

Given that the overwhelming bulk of honey sold at retail is extracted, micro-filtered, and heated to within a inch of its life, anything else would be a "niche market".

"Niche" implies "small". I doubt that anyone bothers to count the output of the smaller producers. I know that no one has ever asked us, and we are clearly a "boutique producer" of honey.

Why do we use the term "boutique" around here? For no other reason than to create the perception of a "niche product".

The competition sells a "Wall-Mart" product. A "sweetener" that has about as much in common with real Honey as a Budweiser has in common with a 1992 Philippe Rothschild.

When the competition is a bottom-feeder, the only place to go is up. Way up. Sure we are more expensive, just like a dress from Ungaro (a dress designer in Miami) is more expensive than something found on the rack in the women's department of K-Mart.

But our honey is worth it.

Why?...Because we say so!

That's "niche marketing".

Comb honey is an obvious niche-market product. So is honey that has not been excessively filtered or heated, but only if these points are made clear to the buyer. Varietal honeys are also (however, one finds mass-market honey described as "clover honey" so often as to render the term "clover" meaningless.)

The most common example of a niche-market product is honey that stresses its local origin. How "local" must one be? There is a Confederate cemetery in Lynchburg, VA that has a very large collection of old-fashioned roses and other flowering plants. There are few hives on the grounds. They do a brisk business in their own brand of honey, and use the profits to help maintain the place. "Local" to them means "right here among the gravestones".

But if you want a real education in marketing and product positioning, look no further than olive oil.

Go look at the "wall of olive oil" in a big Italian market. Realize that these are the products of producers no bigger than you, mostly tiny family outfits on the other side of the planet.

Realize also that 99% of the population cannot not tell the difference between one and another in a "taste test". Regardless, these same people demonstrate "brand loyalty" to one or more of these obscure brands.

Then why are there 200 different brands on the shelf? Is the grocer insane? No, he is very, very smart. All of it sells, and the wide variety alone draws customers.

Why do all the bottles and labels look so different? Each company has an ad budget of about $.98, so they put their effort into making a package that is distinct enough to be seen and selected from the visual riot of the 200 brands of olive oil found in a typical Italian market or larger deli.

Be humbled at the beauty of their packaging, their planet-wide distribution network, and the clear implication that these people never give a thought to selling their products at wholesale in bulk to a "packer". They are making a profit shipping cases of glass bottles from Sicily, through customs, through several layers of food brokers, and a retailer.

These are all "niche" products because they all have learned "positioning". Most of them aim for the high end of the market, and make no attempt to compete on price. Does it work? Most decent cooks have multiple bottles of olive oil, all different brands. (I just went and counted - my wife has 18 different brands in the pantry right now, but she may be an extreme case, being of Italian descent, a person who reads cookbooks as if they were mystery novels, and the unquestioned benign dictator of a kitchen that takes up half the ground floor of our house.)

The output of these small producers is tiny. Some brands are only available at certain times of year. This only adds to the aura of exclusivity and perception of desirability. (Betcha some of them do that on purpose!)

What's the real difference between all these olive oils? An "educated" pallet can taste differences, just as one can taste differences with honey, but most of the difference is nothing more than perception. This means paying lots of attention to bottles, labels, and presentation.

The "niche" concept is more complex than something like simply promoting "Florida Orange Juice", since a "niche" implies that you are filling a specific need or serving a specific set of customers. "Florida Orange Juice" is not a niche product, since they say nothing about why their juice is different than other orange juice.

Honey with a label printed in Arabic or Farsi is clearly a niche product. One is targeting an ethnic group with the same honey, but merely a different label. If you have "ethnic populations" where you are, try it.

So go look at the mass-market low-end sweeteners, and do something different. You can't be bigger than the mass-market folks, but you can be "smarter". If you can't be smarter, you can at least be "different".

"Different" sells.

Death to the Queenline bottle and the generic label! Overthrow the evil reign of the squeeze bear!

(Quotes from an earlier writer)

The other side of the coin is interesting too. Super Market chains demand the product that would last into the next century on the shelf...

Then why would you want Your honey on that shelf? I certainly would not want our honey on that shelf. It would do nothing but tarnish the image of our honey.

We should know that the demands for honey by the same "Supermarket Chains" have nothing to do with quality of the product but the lovengevity of the product on the shelf.

Then go elsewhere, don't pay the slotting fees, and find smaller retailers that like the idea of carrying a "local" or "gourmet" product.

Can the producers of honey products turn down the best possible exposure to the public. The answer is no.

But is a supermarket the best exposure? I'd say no, since it does nothing but position your product as "more expensive" than both the well-known national brands and the store brand. Your product becomes the "straw man" in a game of "low price".

The only way to win is to not play the game.

Perhaps supermarkets are a good outlet for the low-end, mass-produced, generic honey, since they can hope for no more than "mass appeal". Good. Let them have that market. If you can't beat 'em, seek greener pastures.

While most of us are in the business to work with honeybees the bottlers are in it for survival of there business.

Bottlers? BOTTLERS?!!!???
To misquote the Bogart movie "The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre":

"We don't need no stinking bottlers!"

If you feel that you are too large to do you own bottling, but not large enough to invest in a bottling line of your own, then you need to contract out the bottling, where, for a fee, the bottler handles your honey as YOU see fit, applies your label, and delivers cases of bottles to your warehouse. Yep, you pay him. You take the risks. But you also take the profits.

I dunno how the concept of contract bottling, common in all other businesses, somehow got twisted around into a deal where the bottler buys the beekeeper's crop as raw materials, and sells finished goods. Even if one goes through every step in the bottler's process, one sees nothing overly complicated. You need clean, you need stainless steel, you need some square footage. It is clearly not rocket science.

If you want to invest in some capital equipment, there are many small-scale (and very high-tech) bottling lines available. A team of 2 or 3 local dairy farmers just bought one, and started marketing their own brand of milk. They are selling milk for MUCH higher prices than the grocery stores, and they are selling only through convenience stores and smaller neighborhood stores. They went "retro", right down to the glass bottles and the bottle deposit. They even reconditioned an old 1950s milk truck to do the deliveries. People loved the idea. A mere six months later, they offer cream, half-and-half, butter, and ice cream. All of it is expensive. All of it is good. Better ice cream than Ben and Jerry's? Maybe not, but people sure seen to THINK it is.

So, fire your "packer" and employ a "bottler" who actually bottles, rather than trying to play middleman.

I have yet to see any "section honey" of any worth on the shelves.

Exactly. Mine never sits on a shelf. I start getting phone calls in early June. I tell them to check the local newspaper for my announcement in the classifieds. I print the world's shortest ad - "Comb Honey!" and my phone number. People take this as their cue, and start arriving. The smart ones bring coolers with ice. We load them up straight from the freezer, they pay, and the comb honey is soon gone, except for my private stash. Like we say on the label:

"We eat all we can, and sell the rest".

Those "customers" are now "consumers" or "End Users" they have turned into "Cattle" being lead by their herdsmen...

You clearly have never visited a trendy bakery. Sure, those folks could buy bread at the supermarket, but they pay more than double for good bread. They also make a special trip to get it. (Gee, I wonder who's honey is for sale at the trendy bakeries near you?)

Look at Starbucks! Starbucks appears to be a long-term psychology research program designed to find out just how high a price an otherwise rational person will pay for a simple cup of coffee. But I will say this for all the coffee shops - they consistently have honey to put in the coffee, right next to the cream. I wonder who's honey your local coffee shops use and sell?

Advertising is a rough road for small producers and small retailers...

"We don't need no stinking advertising", either!!

You want to sell LOTS of honey in an afternoon? Sleep late, avoid the farmer's market, and follow the example of the roadside fruit &veggie peddlers, who put up a few signs, and sell out of the back of their trucks. They sell ABOVE retail, and most do not grow what they sell. They simply buy it at the farmer's market!

For best effect, make handpainted signs, and make them look as amateurish as possible. I'd suggest "Hunny - 1/4 Mile Ahead". Dress the part. Faded clothes are good. Extra points for a straw hat. Double bonus points for a 1930s, 40s, or 50s pickup truck that is NOT restored to showroom condition. Leave the wristwatch, Walkman, laptop, and the Palm Pilot at home. Make change with a wad of $ bills pulled from a bib pocket, (of COURSE you will wear bib coveralls, suitably dirty) keeping the larger bills in another pocket, never to be shown

If you have read this far, you have now earned 3 credit hours towards an MBA, and should now go buy a blue pinstripe suit.

jim

Varroa Treatments

An update

In the light of the recent Apistan resistance discovery in Devon and of our influx of new members, I though it time to do an update on Varroa (and elsewhere, on Acarine).

Known Treatments:

I think I have grouped all of the following correctly, however it's just possible some of the `medicinals' could be `proprietry non-medicinals'.

Medicinal

1. Apistan (fluvalinate)
2. Apivar (amitraz)
3. Bayvarol (flumethrin)
4. Ipereat (?)
5. Perizin (coumaphos)

`Non-medicinal Curative Substances'

Proprietry

1. Apiguard (Thymol)
2. Api Life Var (essential oils)
3. CheckMite (herbal spray)
4. Pherovar (pheromone)

Non-proprietry

1. Formic acid (60% and 85%)
2. Lactic acid
3. Oxalic acid
4. Thymol
5. Oil of Wintergreen
6. Other essential oils
7. Food Grade Mineral Oil
8. Liquid paraffin
9. Industrial talc
10. Icing Sugar
11. Green almond husks
12. Frow mixture Nitrobenzene, petrol, ligroin and safrol
13. Homeopathic treatments

Manipulations

1. Small cells
2. Drone brood removal
3. Trapped queen
4. Shook swarm
5. Open mesh floors
6. Heat

And Finally...

Integrated Pest Management or IPM

A recent buzz-phrase that really just means treating in the right way for the circumstances.

That means monitoring the buildup of mites and treating only as, when and with what, is most appropriate. For example, use the varroa calculator to judge whether drone comb removal is sufficient, or whether one must resort to the more severe chemicals like Apistan, formic acid and so on. The main advantages are reduced pesticide use and a longer time before mite resistance develops.

On Medicinal Treatments

Apistan and Bayvarol

These two treatmemts are synthetic pyrethroid preparations in a slow-release plastic strip carrier. Although they are different chemicals, they are sufficiently similar that resistance to one also results in resistance to the other. These are the only two medicinal treatments licenced for sale in the UK. Kill rate close to 100%

Note: Other treatments that are licenced within the European Community can be imported for the use solely and exclusively by the importer.

Apivar (amitraz)

Recent reports sugest that resistance to Apistan or Bayvarol also results in resistance to amitraz. Kill rate close to 100%

Ipereat (?)

This is a recent `cocktail' of substances produced by an Italian company. It appears that they will not divulge all the ingredients.

Perizin (coumaphos)

Perizin has been around a while in Europe and has been very successful, however it was introduced into the 'States only three years ago and there are already mites developing resistance. As with amitraz, perhaps the use of Apistan/Bayvarol helps mites develop resistance to couphamos more quickly. Kill rate close to 100%

On `non-medicinal curatives'

Back in 1998, Clare Waring of BBKA wrote to the Veterinary Medicines Directorate asking for an official stance regarding `Non-medicinal Curative Substances'.

Colin Penny of the VMD's reply was understandably cautiously worded, but very helpful in overall content, including the following extracts:

"The Residues Regulations would prohibit the administration of these non-medicinal curative substances only where, if transmitted to honey, they would be likely to be harmful to human health. If the product is not harmful, it can be administered. In respect of most of these non-medicinal substances it will be clear whether or not they present a danger to human health."

"...we are not aware that they have given rise in the past to any human health issues related to the production of honey and there is, therefore, no prima facie reason for us to seek the expert advice I have referred to. We will, however, review the list of substances you have provided and consider whether we should look for residues...

"I have to say that the ingredients of Frow mixture do cause us concern from a number of angles. We shall look for this substance first...

A further caution, though. The letter from the VMD presumes that the use of the substances has been widely practiced. I actually doubt that some have been as widely used as the VMD think, so we may still be waiting for evidence.

Apiguard (Thymol)

Apiguard comprises Thymol in a gel medium and is supplied in a shallow foil tray from which the lid is torn and the tray is put into the hive above the brood box. The gel allows a carefully controlled slow release of the Thymol making it more effective and safer than a simple evaporator. Kill rate 90%+

Api Life Var (essential oils)

Italian made product comprisiong thymol, eucalyptus, camphor and menthol in a vermiculite medium. It comes as a `tablet' to be broken into three or four pieces and distributed on the top bars, where it is left to work for 7 or 8 days. The treatment is repeated for three or four weeks.

CheckMite (herbal)

This is an Indian manufactured herbal aerosol spray intended for use against household dust mites. It is not intended for use on varroa but appears useful. Contains "biodegradeable natural materials".

Pherovar (pheromone)

This synthetic pheromone is impregnated into a `pin', that is pressed into a frame of the brood box. It interferes with the mite's reproductive behaviour. I'm not sure if this is yet released for sale.

Formic acid (60% and 85%)

Formic acid is naturally found in small quantities in hives and honey. It is very effective killer, but is also a nasty chemical for the beekeeper, requiring acid-proof gloves, eye protection and a vapour-proof respirator. It is applied using an evaporator, however most of these are very temperature dependent and are considered probably unreliable in the UK.

Lactic acid

Lactic acid is naturally produced in sour milk and is a not uncommon food component (many olives are in a lactic acid/brine mix). The acid at 5-15% is sprayed directly onto the bees every week for a six week period.

Oxalic acid

As with formic acid this is nasty stuff, requiring all the same safety precautions. As with formic acid it can be applied using an evaporator, however it can also be applied by spray or by trickling on an oxalic-laced sugar solution. The Swiss Bee Research Institute advised 35g or oxalic acid dihydrate to 1 lite of 1:1 sugar syrup, with 2.5 to 5ml trickled onto the bees between each pair of frames.

Thymol

Can be applied as Apiguard or using one of a number of evaporators. The reliability and safety (for the bees) of thymol applied through simple evaporators is questionable in the UK climate.

Food Grade Mineral Oil (Liquid paraffin)

Food Grade Mineral Oil (FGMO) has quite a strong following, with many beekeepers claiming significant results. It is believed to work by getting into the spiracles (breathing tubes) of the mites and `drowning' them. As with a number of these techniques, the difficulty is finding an application method that works consistently and reliably. At present, the method uses a combination of cotton cords soaked in an emulsion of oil, honey and beeswax and placed in the hives, together with an initial fine vapour spray with the same emulsion.

Industrial talc and Icing Sugar

These are actually mechanical methods. The mites cling to the bees using sticky pads on their feet. Applying the powders to the adult bees causes the mites to lose their grip when these pads become contaminated, so that the mites tend to fall of. There is also much cleaning and grooming activity from the bees that will also increase the likeleyhood of mites being dislodged. Both have a risk of drying-out larvæ that get contaminated. I believe talc is used as a bulking agent in some foodstuffs and drugs. Industrial talc (talc, technical) is a slightly coarser grain than talc BP and they should not be confused. The treatment should be carried out weekly for six weeks.

Frow mixture

I know little of the use or reliability of these. I do know that there are questions about its use where there is any risk on honey contamination.

Manipulations

Small cells

Plastic foundation consisting of `undersized' cells (4.9mm rather than the 5.2 to 5.3 the bees would normally produce. Attempts to simulate the conditions in an apis cerana colony, where mites generally do not lay in worker cells.

Drone brood removal

Using a brood frame divided into three areas where the bees draw their own drone brood cells (hopefully!) and during the main season, one section is cut out each week. Once the cycle establishes, the section removed is the one with the sealed drone cells. Capitalises on the fact that varroa prefer to lay in drone cells. Works well to keep varroa numbers down, but is not 100%. Good when followed by a late season strong treatment.

Trapped queen

Using a prepared cage of queen excluder material that is clamped around a frame, the queen is trapped on one frame in turn, each week, for three weeks. When that frame is sealed, complete with varroa mites, the comb is removed and destroyed. Very effective indeed, but does set the colony back three weeks as all brood for that time is destroyed.

Shook swarm

Again removes the comb complete with the mites in it. Less effective than trapped queen, but much less labour intensive.

Open mesh floors

Probably just cause the mites to fall right out of the hive when they slip off. Maybe reduces pheromone strength and changes the mite's lifecycle.

Heat

I haven't heard of this one for a while, so I guess it's no longer used. The technique is to heat frames to 45 degrees C for a few minutes, complete with brood and mites. The brood normally survives this abuse, but the mites normally do not.

Gordon

Pollen Traps

Extracts from Bee-L

Lloyd Spear email@omitted.anti.spam

I think I have pretty good information on the design history of today's bottom mount traps that I will share. I will also give you some thoughts on the other traps available.

I believe that the OAC trap is close to the improved design bottom trap made by V. Shaparew during the 1970's. Mr. Shaparew was a nuclear scientist who immigrated to Canada from Russia. Mr. Shaparew was a beekeeper and decided that equipment could be considerably improved by incorporating known principles of physics, most particularly having to do with air flow. He designed or re-designed several items of equipment, two of which continue today. Those are the bottom mount pollen trap and the Conical Bee Escape Board.

Concerning the pollen trap, Mr. Shaparew's improvements were:

• One way drone and bee escapes
• Improved air circulation to reduce the amount of pollen deteriorating or molding in humid conditions
• Relief of congestion in the pollen stripping area
• An easy and effective way of turning the trap "on" and "off", without heavy lifting of the brood nest and supers.
• A system to largely prevent rain water from entering the pollen collection tray.

The OAG trap largely or wholly represents Mr. Shaparew's design. After several years of use, beekeepers made modifications (improvements) to Mr. Shaparew's design, which resulted in the traps first offered by Stauffer's and, with further changes, in today's Sundance(tm) trap. There are many changes from the OAG design, some are minor and others significant. In summary, these are:

• The weak spot of the Shaparew design was the pollen tray, which lacked proper ventilation and was prone to rip when scraped with a hive tool or placed on a jagged rock or branch. The Sundance(tm) trap has a stainless steel screen. In demonstrations, we scrape this, hard, with a hive tool to show that it will not cut or rip.
• Much improved drone and bee escapes. The escapes cannot be damaged by skunks, falling hive covers, etc. or get clogged by dead drones.
• A trap cover that prevents almost all hive debris, including dead varroa, from getting into the pollen drawer.
• Improved design of the stripper area to more evenly spread the stripped pollen across the entire pollen tray, therefore increasing ventilation.

I know of three other bottom mount traps offered commercially. As a pollen collector, it is clear to me that these are not made by a beekeeper who collects pollen! Each has major deficiencies involving:

• Ventilation to prevent pollen deterioration and molding
• Congestion in the stripper screens that significantly reduce foraging
• Drone escapes
• Trap durability/life
• Hive debris falling into the collected pollen

A pollen trap is a tool, and one that every beekeeper should have. Like any good tool, the Sundance(tm) is designed to do the job with high efficiency (while protecting the integrity and health of the hive), and will last a lifetime. Like other tools, similar (but not at all equal) models can be purchased for considerably less, and each is almost certainly worth the money paid, and no more. If measured in years or in pounds of pollen collected, we believe the Sundance(tm) trap is considerably less expensive than those with an initial cost that is 50% lower.

The trap sold by Stauffer is excellent. However, as mentioned by others, the wait time is very long. The proprietor is Mennonite, and of a conservative sect. They use horse and buggy, no electricity and no gas or diesel powered farm or wood working equipment. He has a very large, young, family supported solely by the sweat of his brow and perhaps fewer material possessions than any member of this list.

However, I think you will find his prices have substantially increased and may not be significantly lower than those for Sundance(tm). I hope so, as it has been clear to me for some time that he was selling them at less than his cost...assuming that a reasonable value was assigned to his time.

Several list members have asked for plans, and none have been forthcoming. Perhaps none will be. I have received numerous inquiries concerning whether the Sundance(tm) design can be duplicated for private use, and willingly agree. I suggest that persons so inclined purchase one Sundance(tm) trap, and disassemble it to copy. Although we use glue as well as nails and staples to assemble, the trap will come apart relatively easily if one is careful.

Once disassembled, one will discover that the trap has 3 major sub-assemblies, and a total of almost 40 separate parts. To insure accuracy and consistency of manufacture and gain speed, we use over 12 different assembly jigs. We do not have any plans or drawings, as the design has evolved over time. We rely on individual knowledge, and our jigs, to produce a consistent product.

With regard to the price of a Sundance(tm) trap...Those of you who decide to make one trap will find that it takes well over 40 hours. If you then decide to make another five traps, and cut all the parts at once, and make up sub-assemblies and jigs, you may get the time down to 40-60 hours for those five traps. Further manufacture will advance the learning curve, and further reduce the time per trap. However, be prepared to be shocked at the material cost, which will not materially decrease as you make more traps at one time.

Depending on wood and wire supplies, we cut enough material to make 50-200 traps at one time. We assemble 100 traps at a time, for the simple reason that we do not have storage room for more. That means putting together 300 sub-assemblies and then making those and other parts into the 100 traps. If we made 10 or even 25 traps at a time, at our present price, we would lose money on every one. So, if we are going to keep the price of a trap within reason we have to make and assemble a lot at a time. In order to do that, we have to sell a lot. In order to sell a lot, we have to sell through dealers, who have the catalogs and staff necessary to sell retail.

Surprise, in order to sell through dealers they have to make some money! They have to advertise (which we do also), pay for phones and electricity, catalogs, clerks and warehouse people, cartons, etc. All this adds up, and results in today's prices.

I don't mind telling you that in 2000 we just broke even on Sundance(tm) traps. I hope we will do better in 2001. But we also put several hundred wonderful tools in the hands of beekeepers. These will last a lifetime, and that makes me feel good.

Finally, just a few words on the front-mount traps offered by a few dealers. BEE CAREFUL. You will principally get just what you pay for. At a recent meeting of the Ohio state organization, one beekeeper told me he purchased 25 such traps, and then spent over 100 hours on carpentry to get the traps in decent shape. While every beekeeper should collect some pollen, they are in a Catch-22 when it comes to buying their first trap. They may be tempted to pay less than top price "because I really don't need to collect that much pollen", but don't have enough experience to know what features to look for and what flaws to avoid. Many end up first buying an inexpensive trap, being disillusioned, and then buying a proper trap. In the end they spend more than 150% of what they should have!

I hope I have been helpful.

Lloyd
Lloyd Spear Owner, Ross Rounds, Inc.

Peter Borst email@omitted.anti.spam

Greetings

My copy of the ABC XYZ of Beekeeping, published in 1978, has complete plans for the OAC pollen trap. Their original version is very simple and inexpensive to make. Most of the modifications that have been added over the years are unnecessary or ill advised. Drone escapes are essential, screen on the bottom tray is not.

I had over 300 of these installed in the 1980s when I sold bee pollen for human consumption. My wife and I produced about 4000 lbs per year. Trapping pollen is labor intensive but if you have a market for it, you can make more money than just about any other form of beekeeping. I will gladly answer specific questions about trapping, storing and selling pollen.

I no longer own any bees and sell no products, being solely involved with bee research at the University.

Peter Borst
Ithaca NY USA

OAC Pollen Trap

There are photos at: www.fao.org/docrep/w0076e/w0076e10.htm (near the bottom of the page).

and plans here... http://www.xs4all.nl/~jtemp/ChiliPolVal.html or http://www.xs4all.nl/~jtemp/Chili8.html

Musashi email@omitted.anti.spam

I believe that OAC means "Ontario Agricultural College" where the design for this particular pollen trap was developed. I did a search today on the Web and discovered some plans for the OAC Pollen Trap at the following address: http://www.ag.uiuc.edu/~vista/html_pubs/BEEKEEP/CHAPT2/2-20.gif

There is also text in Chapter 2 which explain the construction and operation. This information is helpful, as are the plans in Jan Tempelman's web site which he referred to yesterday. Andy Nachbaur's web site has an "online publication" called "Golden Harvest" that explains all about how pollen traps can be constructed and used, but has no plans per se. After having made my own pollen trap based on my readings and on plans I found in one of Eva Crane's books (the big one, I forget the title), and used it for a year (and it worked O.K.), I ordered a trap from Stauffer's Beehives and Pollen Traps that was recommended to me as the best pollen trap available on the market. Having received that trap and examined it closely, I concur that it is probably the best designed pollen trap I have ever seen and I look forward to using it this coming season.

Layne Westover
College Station, Texas, U.S.A.

Keastman email@omitted.anti.spam

The address in 1995 was:
Stauffer's Beehives
Superior Pollen Traps
RD 1 Box 489
Port Trevorton, PA 17864

I have one of the Stouffer's traps and it works well. It is very similar to the "Sundance" pollen trap by Ross Rounds. They both perform very much the same. I have one of each and have had good success with both of them.

Ken Eastman

Lloyd Spear email@omitted.anti.spam

Honeybees more or less collect pollen "as they need it". This is different from nectar collection, where they store enormous quantities for future use. In his great book, The Wisdom of the Hive, Tom Seeley documents that when bees have stored a certain quantity (at the moment, I can't recall what that quantity is) of pollen they "turn off" pollen collection (regardless of availability) and change to nectar collection. Tom documents how this has been measured and duplicated by scientists. They store about a 2-week supply before they "turn off", or decrease levels to what is necessary to replace daily use. (ok, ok, they sometimes plug out with pollen, and that is explainable, but lets not quibble.)

How the bees measure the supply of pollen in a hive is fascinating, but I won't get into it right now.

Given that bees will not store a six-month supply of pollen, as they will nectar, all beekeepers should collect some pollen because:

• At times of the year, pollen dearth's can occur. These will result in cessation or substantial reduction of brood rearing, and may come when beekeepers are trying to expand the brood nest. Feeding pollen patties is a quick easy way to maintain brood rearing.
• All beekeepers should have at least one nuc on standby in case something unexpected happens to their hives. I have seen it recommended that beekeepers maintain a minimum of one standby nuc, or one per five hives, whichever is more. Many beekeepers fail when establishing nucs, and I believe one of the primary reasons is that they fail to feed the nuc enough pollen. (While all the books say to give nucs at least 2 frames with honey and pollen (or one with honey and one with pollen), when I have inspected hobbyist nucs I almost always find that not enough pollen has been supplied. Pollen cakes are the answer and should almost always be fed to nucs until they start to draw and fill foundation.
• Most of us do not have to feed honey/syrup to get bees through the winter, as we can leave them with enough stores. However, many hives do not carry enough pollen through the winter, and a pollen feeding in very early spring works wonders! In fact, Tom Seeley feels that incoming pollen is what triggers brood expansion in the spring, and several scientists have documented the enormous beneficial effect of feeding spring pollen, as a matter of course.

After some 35 years I continue to learn beekeeping, and one of the most striking of my recent lessons has been how many commercial beekeepers regularly feed pollen or pollen+pollen supplements. (Allen Dick has some great observations on this at his web site.) Many or most commercial beekeepers would not think of getting through a spring without feeding pollen cakes, yet the practice has not been widely suggested to hobbyists and sideliners. (To be fair, Nick Calderone did recently in a Bee Culture article.)

I now always feed nucs pollen, and I produce over 100 a year. Last year I also fed to some 40 colonies that I wanted to produce comb honey on, after taking splits, and was very pleased with the results. They produced so much brood that taking substantial splits did not seem to slow them down for early comb honey.

So, IMHO all beekeepers should collect pollen for feeding. Then there is the subject of eating and selling pollen. Not selling pollen is leaving money in the streets...but I am tired of typing and that will be for later.

Lloyd

Barry Birkey email@omitted.anti.spam

Hi Llyod, thanks for the informative post. I still have some questions to ask.

If I understand you correctly and take my own experience into consideration, pollen collection and storage in the hive is probably closely related to ones seasonal climate and environment? My observation from my own hives has never shown that the bees are not capable of gathering and storing pollen in enough quantities for their year round use. Last week it warmed up to 40F and I decided to look into a couple of my hives. In both hives, I found at least 4-5 frames that had copious amounts of stored pollen and I could also hold sealed honey frames up to the light and see cells that had pollen stored under the honey.

This allows the bees to start raising brood in February, months before any pollen will be available for collection. Once early spring hits, the pollen starts flowing into the hive again and tapers off once the honey flow starts. Again in fall the pollen picks up and plenty is stored away for winter. I have never been able to go through one of my hives and not see pollen stored in cells.

I know Allen has shared a lot on this list about his practice of feeding pollen or pollen substitutes but I interpreted that to mean his particular area does not support an abundance of pollen at times when the bees need it so supplemental feeding is done at certain times. I assume Allen will shed more light on this. Is it true that even commercial beekeepers from locations where pollen is available most of the year still practice pollen feeding?

I think we both agree on the vital importance pollen plays in the health of the colony. My concern still is whether or not it is routinely a good practice to collect pollen from hives. Another concern with trapping is, if we keep taking pollen from the bees as they are bringing it in, could this not have a negative affect on the honey crop? If the bees are trying to bring in pollen for their use in brood rearing and it keeps getting taken away, won't they spend more of their time searching for pollen when they could be collecting nectar? It seems like it can become a fairly elaborate management style to take over controlling the pollen supply to the bees. Just some more of my wild thoughts.

For another POV, I found the followning in the Volume 2, Number 8, August, 1984 edition of the Apis Newsletter by M.T. Sanford.

Pollen Trapping

Some promoters have suggested pollen trapping to be beneficial to a bee colony. This is debatable at best. Dr. Dietz, at the University of Georgia in his studies of honey bee-marsh interactions, believes that constant trapping of pollen decreases population potential by as much as one-third in some colonies. Steve Taber, retired from the Tucson Bee Laboratory, in "Pollen and Pollen Trapping," American Bee Journal, Vol. 124 (7), July 1984, pp. 512-513, says:

"If you put on pollen traps, you should expect certain hive problems that you don't have without them. Don't hurt your bees. Don't force the bees into a pollen deficient diet...My suggestion is that after trapping pollen for two weeks, you should remove the traps for a week." Finally, there is the question of the efficiency of trapping pollen from bees. This varies considerably. A study by Canadians A. Tellier and U. Soehngen, reported in the Cook-Dupage Beekeepers' Association Newsletter, Vol. 39 (5), June 1984, evaluates several traps. According to the authors:

"The Efficiency of pollen traps varies from approximately 10 Efficiency is influenced by the uniformity of the openings in the trap, differences in body sizes of the foragers (which may be considerable both between and within colonies), and by the sizes of the pollen loads. In addition, the number of openings in a trap influences the degree of crowding within the trap, and consequently, it efficiency in collecting pollen. It is apparent, therefore, that each colony-trap combination is unieque and that an accurate determination of the efficiency of trap design, derived from observations made on one colony-trap combination is impossible." Their preliminary results (research is continuing) suggest the bottom mounted Barrhead Pollen Trap (manufactured in Canada) to be superior in most trials, providing the greatest quantity of clean pollen. The OAC (Ontario Agricultural College) trap was rated poorest in pollen cleanliness. The front mounted USDA Pollen Trap was second best in terms of pollen production. In general, cleanliness of resulting pollen is not as good in bottom mounted traps, which tend to collect all hive debris, but this is offset by other advantages such as rear drawer removal, protection of collected pollen from the weather and provision for escape of drones and queens.

Lloyd Spear email@omitted.anti.spam

I will address just two of Barry's questions and hope others will address the remainder.

1. According to Seeley, the trigger for substantial brood rearing comes from incoming, not stored, pollen. One commercial producer I know feeds pollen to his bees beginning in November to get them ready for the almond pollination, in late January. While they may have enough stores to support "substantial" brood rearing, they will not use them until pollen is being collected. The speculation is that bees will not begin "substantial" brood rearing based solely on stored pollen because they know that could be quickly exhausted and then the entire hive might die!

2. Again, according to Seeley, it does not appear (he admits that more work needs to be done) that continued pollen collection detracts from nectar collection. He suspects that may be because idle workers are utilized when pollen needs are critical. (He documents that at any one time approximately 20% of the workers in a hive are "idle"; that is, not nurses, undertakers, collectors, guards, etc.) While I know of several collectors of substantial amounts of pollen who leave their traps on all summer and claim no reduction in nectar collections, I do not follow that practice. I only collect for 3 weeks in the spring, and again for 3 weeks in the fall. In this location that provides me with about 25 pounds of pollen a trap, and that is plenty.

Recipe

Honey Scones

8oz Self raising flour
1/2 level teaspoon of baking powder
Good shake of salt
2oz Butter
1 egg
A scant 1/4 pint of milk
2 tablespoons honey
Grated orange rind
Milk for glazing
A little more butter for brushing
A little ground cinnamon.

Beat together the egg, milk honey and orange rind.

Sift together the flour, salt and baking powder.

Rub in the butter.

Mix to a soft dough with the beaten egg, milk, honey and orange rind.

Turn on to a lightly floured board and knead quickly.

Roll to a thickness of 1/2 to 3/4 inch and cut out rounds with cutters.

Place onto a hot baking tray and brush with milk.

Bake at 450 degrees to 475 degrees, gas mark 7 to 8 for 15 minutes.

Brush with butter while still hot and sprinkle with cinnamon.