# Propolis.



## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Since the glue is selling for $12.00 a pound I have resorted to proplis traps to collect as much as I can. Our Carnoloinas are whizzes at collecting/making it.
The buyers are also taking hive scrapeings, which leads to a question.
How do you seperate it from the wax? How do you clean it from all the other types of debiee that ends up in the bucket when scraping the hives?

 Al


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## Durandal (Aug 19, 2007)

alleyyooper said:


> Since the glue is selling for $12.00 a pound I have resorted to proplis traps to collect as much as I can. Our Carnoloinas are whizzes at collecting/making it.
> The buyers are also taking hive scrapeings, which leads to a question.
> How do you seperate it from the wax? How do you clean it from all the other types of debiee that ends up in the bucket when scraping the hives?
> 
> Al


Can you melt it and filter it like wax or is it too gummy? I imagine if you freeze it, it would not be to difficult to separate some things from it, but not things like wax that might be mixed in.

I have a trap on right now that I plan to take off tomorrow. Its not filled all the way but the colony was making tons of propolis and I wanted to see if I could harvest it. I need to start feeding though so I am either going to take it off completely or place it above the hive top feeder with a large gap between the outer cover and the screen, which seems to cause them to fill it quicker.

Let me know if you find an answer though...freezing it and running it in hot water might work too. I saw a video on that at one point...maybe a French company? It was on Youtube.

I think the best way to go is using the traps rather than scrapings. You may waste more but there is a whole lot less labor involved.


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## KSALguy (Feb 14, 2006)

i am going to ask a dumb question, i have a vuage idea as to what Propolis might be but am not really sure if i am right, what exactly IS propolis?


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

When fresh it is redish brown in color, when warm it sticks to every thing. Found mostly on the frame rest, the end bars cracks between hive bodies and near the upper entrances heavy if you are not running traps.

 Al


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## Bill W. (Aug 2, 2008)

It is primarily sap and wax. The precise composition depends on where you are. Around here, it is mostly conifer sap and wax from buds.


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## KSALguy (Feb 14, 2006)

what is it used for?


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## Bill W. (Aug 2, 2008)

Its purpose is actually a matter of some debate. The bees use it to seal cracks and attach comb. They also line entrance corridors with it. It probably helps to keep pests out of the hive by blocking openings and by trapping them, since it is sticky like sap.

If you wanted to know what people use it for, it is consumed as a supplement and supposedly has some anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties. The research backing these claims is neither broad nor particularly compelling though.


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## MELOC (Sep 26, 2005)

it has been used by primitive cultures in dentistry to fill cavities.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

What is Propolis?

Propolis is the resinous substance collected by bees from the leaf buds and bark of trees, especially poplar and conifer trees. Bees use the propolis along with beeswax to construct their hives.

Propolis has antibiotic activities that help the hive block out viruses, bacteria, and other organisms.

What Is Propolis used for?

Proplis is Anti-bacterial, Anti-microbial making it nature's choice product for first aid. 
Conditions in which propolis may be used are: Acne, AIDS, Allergies, Alopecia, Athlete's Foot, Bed sores, Bronchial Asthma, Bronchitis, Burns, Candica Albicans, Chrone's disease, Colitis, Constipation, Corns, Cough, Dermatitis, Eczema, Enteritis, Enterocolitis, Fever, Flu, Fungal infections, Gastric disorders, Gastroduodenal Ulcer, Hay fever, Hepatitis, Herpes Zoster, Immune deficiency, Infections, Laryngitis, Leg Ulcers, Leprosy, Leukaemia, Lichen Sclerosis, Macular Degeneration, Malaria, Mouth Ulcers, Pain, Pharyngitis, Piles, Psoriasis, Rectocolitis,Rhinitis, Salmonellosis, Scalds, Sinusitis, Skin problems, Sore throats, Stomach Ulcers, Sunburn, Tonsilitis, Tracheitis, Trichomoae Vaginalis, Tuberculosis, Tumours, Vaginitis, Varrucose, Viral infections, and Wounds. The tincture is a strong anti-microbial, antibacterial, and anti-viral agent used topically and in the treatment of wounds, injuries, and infections. Very useful as a first-aid remedy.
No 100% sicenctific proof of any of the above, but there have been limited studies done.

Commercial preparations of propolis appear to retain these antibiotic properties, according to test tube studies.1 2 Test tube and animal studies have also shown that propolis exerts some antioxidant,3 liver protecting,4 anti-inflammatory,5 6 7 and anticancer properties.8

Propolis contains protein, amino acids, vitamins, minerals, and flavonoids.9 10 11 For this reason, some people use propolis as a general nutritional supplement, although it would take large amounts of propolis to supply meaningful amounts of these nutrients. Propolis may stimulate the bodyâs immune system, according to preliminary human studies,12 13 and a controlled trial found propolis-containing mouthwash effective in healing surgical wounds in the mouth.14 In test tube studies propolis has shown considerable activity against bacteria and yeast associated with dental cavities, gingivitis, and periodontal disease,15 16 but one human study showed that propolis was no better than a placebo in inhibiting dental plaque formation.17

Propolis extracts may be helpful in protecting against and shortening the duration of the common cold.18 A preliminary human study reported propolis extract (amount not stated) reduced upper respiratory infections in children.19 In one small double-blind study of 50 people with the common cold, the group taking propolis extract (amount not stated) became symptom-free more quickly when compared with the placebo group.20

The antimicrobial properties of propolis may also help protect against parasitic infections in the gastrointestinal tract. One preliminary study of children and adults with giardiasis (a common intestinal parasite infection) showed a 52% success rate of parasite elimination in children and a 60% rate in adults in those given propolis extract (amount not stated).21 However, these results are not as impressive as those achieved with conventional drugs used against giardiasis, so propolis should not be used alone for this condition without first consulting a physician about available medical treatment.

Topical applications of propolis-containing ointments and creams are showing promise in the treatment of certain health conditions. A controlled study found that men and women with recurrent genital herpes simplex virus infections (HSV type 2) who applied an ointment containing propolis to their lesions experienced significantly faster healing compared with either a topical antiviral medication or placebo.22 In a small double-blind study, women with inflammation of the cervix (cervicitis) due to infection experienced significant healing after applying a vaginal dressing containing 5% pr

See why it is selling for $12.00 a pound?

 Al


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## Durandal (Aug 19, 2007)

Well my first try was a little disappointing. Learned a little bit in what I may do next time, but it was a little frustrating. I still have have about 60% of my trap filled and in the freezer and I have about 2 oz of it in a jar. I need a better place to work it... a stainless steel table I thinking. Or maybe water. It does not simply pop off the capture screen and needs to be scraped and then refrozen and then maybe flex popped from the screen.

No economy of scale here at all. So it would be a specialty market sort of thing in terms of how I am doing it now.

I'll post photos of some of it when I get a chance. I'd be curious to see how others do it.

In this video it appears that they are using silicon or some sort of flexible material type mesh mats rather than semi-rigid screens to help pop it a little bit better. They also wash and dry it.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwEAOSA6m_I[/ame]


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## Durandal (Aug 19, 2007)

As promised...

My never ending struggle to harvest propolis.









I have a single hive that seems to produce more propolis than the others. I do not know why. Other than the bees inside it was identical in everyway with three other hives.

That said, I found that if i lifted the entire outer cover up, propolis production increased, in terms of filling in gaps on the collection screen.









Close-Up









Freezing it (using the putty knife in the picture to scrape it since simply flexing the screens will not work...what I need are those fancy French silicone or polyester looking ones that you can roll up...not too sure where you buy those though)









A nice sized chunk of the stuff. 

I place the whole thing in a plastic trash bag, give it a couple flex tweaks to pop off the lose stuff then go to town scraping off while still in the bag. Most of it comes off, but it becomes malleable fairly quickly and I simply refreeze it all again to make it easier to work with. Once frozen again I repeat till all off. I take the screen out and then scoop up the pieces into a jar and place that jar in the freezer.

Any tips or do you think I am doing it right (on such a small scale).

Then I am done.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

I don't think you are freezeing it hard enough. I leave mine in the freezer for a couple of days and 99% of it came right off in the trash bag with a good rap on the floor.
If you think you need the silicone ones then try spraying the trap wiith Pam before placeing them in the hives.
You can always resort to placeing them in a solar melter but I wouldn't give you a nickle for the trtap afterwards.

 Al


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## Durandal (Aug 19, 2007)

I have my second attempt in the freezer now, its been in for a week.

I'll try it tomorrow morning and let you know. You are probably right. The harder it is, the more brittle it gets.


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## MahemMary (Mar 22, 2006)

Did anyone figure out how to clean the propolis?

I have a very little from my hive but it looks like it needs to be cleaned. 

Mine was all on the frames (causing the frames to stick together) so I scraped mine off and am looking for uses for it. Came across this old thread.

Thanks.


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## Durandal (Aug 19, 2007)

In the video I posted they have several steps in the process...

They freeze the screen (in this case super flexible silicone mesh rather than they more rigid frames common in the U.S.) 

They roll them up, flex them beat them and reverse it to get it all out, in a freezer (which seems to make it VERY easy to do).

They sift it, getting out the fines and smaller propolis particles.

They wash it in a barrel separating wax from the propolis. The wax will float and the propolis will sink. They remove the wax and then pour the water through a sieve collecting the propolis bits.

They then dump it onto screens. The screens are made of stainless steel mesh/screen. Leave it a few minutes to drain.

They dry it, placing it in a room (at room temperature) with a dehumidifier for 72 hours.

Seems like a pretty good method to me. One I hope to replicate in coming years.

This can obviously be scaled back for smaller quantities, but I am not too sure its worth it. A pound is a lot of propolis.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

I haven't gotten any answers as how to clean the hive scrapeings. 
since things have slowed down here some I am planing on calling a friend who sells a lot of it every year he gets just from hive scrapeings.

He has a jig set up in the honey house where the honey supers set and are scraped while the frames are in the extractor. The scrapeings fall into that box below and is removed for cleaning when he is finished. I have did that part with him.

The cleaning I just do not know.

As for uses around the house there is a recipe if I remember right in Bee Keeping for dummies to make a tinture.

 Al


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## Durandal (Aug 19, 2007)

What about using heat to liquify and strain?

Other than that I have no idea how you tackle the scrapings.

If you get a chance and ever do it again can you take some photos Alley? I'd be curious to see how he is doing it.


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## the kid (Jul 9, 2006)

Carnoloinas are whizzes at collecting/making it.
so thats why when I open the hive clean all the glue out ,, and open it the next day its all glued up ,,, I get a golf ball size almost in two days ... from three hives..
I like the girls but its no fun opening them up .. if I wait a week things break
like I say the best girls but man do they glue things up . waited aweek to open one up and all most needed a hammer to get the lid off .. 
$12 a pound !!!!!!
now were did I put that trap ...:sing:


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Hey Kid good to hear from you. Kare asked the other day if I had heard from you.
In our case this is a true statement,(Carnoloinas are whizzes at collecting/making it.).

If I don't have a trap on I just leave the proplis as they just fill it back again any way and in the summer it is so sticky to deal with. That is why I wear gloves so I can take them off to drive to the next yard.
Try placeing you top cover on the front edge of the intercover to stop them from glueing it down.

Also don't store the stuff where it gets warm or it will stick to the container and be hard to remove.

 Al


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## the kid (Jul 9, 2006)

My computer got sick .so I was off line .
next year I may bee calling on you ,cause Im going to stop horsing around and get to the sweet stuff .. I was talked in to doing a out yeard next year 
and the kids want more honey ,.
the girls here glue the lid so hard that if I dont clean the glue it takes 
so much pounding to get the thing off , that they get ----y.it has taken me up to ten min to get it off . most of the time less 5 , but will the hive take all
the pounding week after week ? and ibroke a few frames...
next year if I put a trap in it willgive them aplace to put it 
Tell Kare Hi
tom


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Kid I am glad your computer has recovered. Feel free to e mail me or call any time.

Try to put some Pam on the outer cover where the girls are glueing it down. Use a hive tool to pry the intercover off.

Out yards are good but make sure that you pay the rent in honey. Also make it a place where you can only place a hive or two. It takes fuel to visit those yards so being able to work a bigger amount of hives in one location is best.

 Al


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## the kid (Jul 9, 2006)

never thought about pam,, the inner cover I canpop off ,its the outer cover ,, the frames are stuck so hard that you bust the ears after you get the first one its ok but that first one is no fun...they glue the outer and inner together then glue the inner cover to the hive . theuy have one inner cover glued so hard to the cover that I can not get them apart ,but like they say ,,,bees do what they want , not what you want ....
any way bees are the way I relax . after I work the hives I have no tension , and that makes all happy around here ...
seeing as I been off line << was it a good honey year for all ?????
I got a few pails ,,, I should have gotten more but I did tryed somthing and the girls ended up with anextra deepfull ,,,man deeps full of honey are heavy... next year I get it not the girls ...
tom


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Tom, I always leave the frames pushed tight together with some space on the out side edges.
Since I am mostly right handed I start on the left side to remove frames. Pry the first frame againest the hive wall. Pry the second frame againest the first then pry up on one end so you can get ahold of it. Then pry the other end up till you can get ahold of it in the middle and lift it out. 
I then go to the third and forth frame. Once I have three frames out I then go back to # 1 and pull it out.

On colonies where the girls are really good about glueing down the outer cover I installed 1/8 inch spacer blocks at 3 points to a side so it takes them longer to glue the cover down. BUT you must check the colonies about every 2 weeks or they will glue that space up too.

I still miss honey bees only.

 Al


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## the kid (Jul 9, 2006)

two weeks ? There lucky if they get 4 days between peeks .
now a spacer ,, that sounds like a winner 
the push to one side , will have to try 


as long as Im here ...
have you or any one had problems getting the girls to fill the whole frame ??
they have some of the frames all filled and some I cant get the edge filled,or some other part of the foundation they will not do any thing with
as far asI can tell ,,there doesnt seem to bee any wax on that part of the fondation
so some of the wax we got from you ,,will bee used to wax the foundation ...
when I buy more if they have onwaxed cheaper that is what im going to get ... makes me mad cause most have parts with no wax or they dont have any wax at all . 
ok my rant is over ...
tom


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Plastic foundation YUK. nuff said.

: D Al


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