# pollen substitute recipes



## ed/La (Feb 26, 2009)

If you have your own recipe please share. Here is mine 3 cups soy flower, 1.5 cups brewers yeast 2 tea spoons sea salt, 6 table spoons dry milk and 1/2 cup sugar. If you can not find brewers yeast order on line or "whole foods" sells it, they call it nutritional yeast. Active yeast is no good. I made my own soy flower with soy beans and magic bullet blender. I did not make patties but a coarse flower Low 60s today so put some on a board and bees are  and working it. Might add a little home made corn flower and or unbleached wheat flower with crushed vitamin c next batch. Only time will tell if it helps.


----------



## ed/La (Feb 26, 2009)

Here is YouTube video from 1/14/17 of bees working some different *pollen substitutes I have been making. https://youtu.be/z7zCms6x3T8*


----------



## Terri (May 10, 2002)

Why the salt? I can see why the rest would be good for them.


----------



## ed/La (Feb 26, 2009)

I am trying recipes somewhat tested by other bee keepers. I think the salt is for trace minerals. Bees will land on a sweaty arm to harvest some salt. I had good luck today replacing soy beans with ground raw mung beans in above recipe. Bees quickly took it all. My bees used all their pollen. They are making some brood and need pollen. I hope this works and they use it to make brood. I will be ready for first splits by early to mid march. Hives still have time to build up for honey flow.


----------



## ed/La (Feb 26, 2009)

I have no scientific way of knowing if this is saving some hives. Everything is best guess. 75 degrees today but we still have some winter left. All hives have a little brood. Open feeding. They will harvest this all day This is what I am using now. By volume not weight. 2 parts ground raw mung beans, 1 part nutritional yeast or brewer yeast {no active yeast} a few spoons white sugar a little sea salt. Several spoons powdered milk or powdered ensure. If you saved any pollen add a little or a lot if you have plenty. I guess measurements by eye. They take what they want and leave the rest. They seem to leave less with mung beans than soy bean or any other bean that I tried. Cooking soy then drying before grinding might improve results. Next batch I will add sunflower kernels because I have them and easy to grow and inexpensive to buy. No good way of knowing if these seeds helps. Perhaps if I know dry wt. of what I give them and dry wt. of what they leave I can learn how to tweak recipe. Perhaps seeing what percent other beeks near by losses compared to my losses. The hardest part of bee keeping is over wintering even in the south.


----------



## ed/La (Feb 26, 2009)

While surfing the net for bee nutrition I stumbled on this Bee Culture Education: Honeybee Nutrition - Randy Oliver - Part 1 https://youtu.be/a7eVgIygjxU 48 minute lecture. Well worth the time


----------



## ed/La (Feb 26, 2009)

Today mother nature provided real pollen I do not know what kind of pollen probably some tree. As soon as bees found it they stopped taking the pollen substitute that they devoured the day before. I might feed a little sugar syrup for now. They have honey. Here is 5 minute video of this as it happens. https://youtu.be/-LUBHtqoNy8


----------



## ed/La (Feb 26, 2009)

I should probably start new topic but will use this one. Cold front made it to deep south. 37 low, 65 high. Windy. The wind seems to be blowing pollen airborne before bees can harvest. I went to weather bug to find out what pollen is available now. https://weather.weatherbug.com/life/pollen/lacombe-la-70445. From their site 
pollen 8.5 

Medium-High
Elm, Bald Cypress and Cedar/Juniper The amount of pollen in the air for Sunday will be increasing over today's levels in the high range. Since the weather has a major influence on pollen dispersal, this increase is due in part to higher temperatures and windy conditions. I should see more pollen coming in when the wind decrees. This could be a handy tool to find what pollen is available now. Type in your zip code.


----------



## Steve in PA (Nov 25, 2011)

I like the pollen link, thanks. 

I'm trying to figure out when I will start adding pollen. Right now I'm guessing at either 1st or 3rd week of March. I want them ready when apples bloom which is usually last week of April for me. I will watch the pollen link and when it starts to rise I'll put the pollen on.


----------



## ed/La (Feb 26, 2009)

When bees are returning see if they have pollen. If pollen is available they will not touch the pollen substitute. So any time you do not see pollen coming in is good to see if they need it. They will take it or not.


----------

