Forgot to Empty Pollen Trap

[The15thMember]

Most of my family has been sick over the weekend, including myself, and lost in the shuffle was the fact that I have a pollen trap on one of my hives, which went unemptied for four days.  As a result there was a ton of pollen in the drawer, some of it still nice, but some of it moldy and caked on the bottom of the tray.  There was one hive beetle and a few waxworms hiding in the corner of the drawer.  I froze the loose pollen I could dump out, mostly just to kill the pests, and then scrubbed out the drawer of the really gross stuff.  My question is, is there anything I can do to salvage that pollen that isn't moldy?  The good stuff and the bad stuff are obviously all mixed together.  It's probably a lost cause, but I just thought I'd ask before I throw it all out.  The amount of waste just makes me want to cry. 

[Ben Framed]

Member, I hope you all feel better soon! There may be a way to separate the good pollen from the bad but I rather doubt it. However I could be incorrect. If there is a way to separate the molded pollen from the mixed in good pollen I would like to know the answer also. We have some pretty knowledgeable beekeepers here who just might have the answer!

Phillip

[Michael Bush]

Save the good pollen to feed back to the bees in a failed fall flow.  I wouldn't eat it...

[The15thMember]

Member, I hope you all feel better soon! There may be a way to separate the good pollen from the bad but I rather doubt it. However I could be incorrect. If there is a way to separate the molded pollen from the mixed in good pollen I would like to know the answer also. We have some pretty knowledgeable beekeepers here who just might have the answer!

Phillip

Thanks Phillip.   

Save the good pollen to feed back to the bees in a failed fall flow.  I wouldn't eat it...

But how do I separate out the good pollen, other than like with a tweezers?  Will the bees sort through it if I open feed it? 

[Ben Framed]

The15thMember;  How are you and your family?   Better I hope...

Phillip

[Michael Bush]

Yes the bees will sort through it.  But you may be able to separate it some depending on how it has happened.  My experience is usually there is a layer of mold that you can probably separate off.

[The15thMember]

The15thMember;  How are you and your family?   Better I hope...

Phillip

We're on the mend, but still not 100%. 

Yes the bees will sort through it.  But you may be able to separate it some depending on how it has happened.  My experience is usually there is a layer of mold that you can probably separate off.

Ok, great!  Then it's not a total loss after all!  There was a layer of really moldy stuff in the bottom of the tray, which I rinsed out.  The stuff I have left just has some grains that are a little bit moldy.

I've never fed pollen before, as I've never needed to.  Will they take it as is?  Can I just put it in a shallow dish on the top bars with a shim, and they'll sort through it?  Or is open feeding better?  Will they store pollen like this, or will they just use it as they need it?  Will it draw hive beetles? 

[Michael Bush]

I feed it in an open otherwise empty hive.  My technique is as follows:

Put down a solid bottom board on a stand.  Put a screened bottom board on top of the solid bottom (so it won't mold and get full of small hive beetle larvae)  Put some window screen on top of the screened bottom (so the pollen won't fall through).  Put an empty box on that.  Put a cover on top of all of that.  My cover's have an entrance.  You might want to put some shims under your cover to make an entrance, or under the inner cover (if you use one) to make an entrance.  The bees fly in, roll around in the pollen and comb it off their hair just like they do at the flowers...

[The15thMember]

I feed it in an open otherwise empty hive.  My technique is as follows:

Put down a solid bottom board on a stand.  Put a screened bottom board on top of the solid bottom (so it won't mold and get full of small hive beetle larvae)  Put some window screen on top of the screened bottom (so the pollen won't fall through).  Put an empty box on that.  Put a cover on top of all of that.  My cover's have an entrance.  You might want to put some shims under your cover to make an entrance, or under the inner cover (if you use one) to make an entrance.  The bees fly in, roll around in the pollen and comb it off their hair just like they do at the flowers...

Thanks.  I don't have any solid bottom boards, but I imagine I could just do this setup without one.  So do you have the bottom boards open, or do you only have the top entrance? 

[Michael Bush]

You could just use any old flat board, but a lot of the pollen dust will fall through and you need to catch it and you need the bees to be able to get to it.

I have only the top entrance because that is how my bottom boards and covers are set up.  But you can have just a bottom entrance as long as you keep the pollen back so it doesn't block the entrance.

[The15thMember]

You could just use any old flat board, but a lot of the pollen dust will fall through and you need to catch it and you need the bees to be able to get to it.

I have only the top entrance because that is how my bottom boards and covers are set up.  But you can have just a bottom entrance as long as you keep the pollen back so it doesn't block the entrance.

Thanks, Michael.  I'll see what I can rig.