Bee Pollen Traps

Bees do more than produce honey. They also harvest tiny pollen granules from the flowers they pollinate, which beekeepers collect for various purposes. 

Economic benefit stands out as a primary reason – the perceived health benefits drive a good market for bee pollen. However, the importance of pollen extends beyond its market value; it also plays a crucial role in sustaining the bee colony’s health. 

Before beekeepers collect pollen, bees should be sure to have what they need. The good news is that a healthy hive will collect enough pollen, even with a pollen trap on.

Beekeepers often feed the collected pollen grains back to their bees, especially in regions with insufficient natural pollen production. In such circumstances, beekeepers may need to purchase pollen grains to supplement their bees’ food supply and maintain the colony’s health.

Bee pollen has been gaining recognition as a superfood, and many consumers swear by its potential health benefits. This perception of health benefits makes bee pollen a lucrative product for beekeepers to sell and can fetch a premium when marketed well to the right community. 

It’s not just the health-conscious who laud its virtues; even allergy sufferers find that consuming pollen can be more effective for allergy relief than local honey.

Raw, local honey definitely has pollen in it, but you would have to consume a lot of honey to get a reasonable amount of pollen to help with allergies. Eating pollen pellets directly from plants in your area is the best way to combat local grass and tree allergies naturally.

Bee pollen’s versatility also contributes to its popularity. It can be used as a topping for cereals, salads, or yogurt or even blended into smoothies. Beekeepers can tap into these consumption trends, using personalized content and ads to market their collected pollen to potential customers.

While selling pollen can be profitable, beekeepers often need to feed some of the collected pollen back to their bees. This practice is especially important in areas where local plants do not produce enough pollen, thereby necessitating supplementation to maintain colony health. Pollen is a rich source of proteins, vitamins, and minerals, making it an essential part of honey bee nutrition.

Inside the hive, the bees use the pollen as a protein source to feed young honey bee larva. The worker bees will actually consume the pollen and then produce royal jelly or food for their growing brood. They will also store it the cells to create something called bee bread. Bee bread is a mixture of pollen, enzymes from the bees and natural fermentation.

However, feeding purchased pollen back to bees requires careful consideration. Beekeepers must ensure they procure high-quality pollen from reputable sources while taking care not to introduce potentially harmful substances to their colonies. With the right precautions, feeding pollen back to bees can help maintain a healthy and productive hive.

Most often, beekeepers are using a pollen substitute made from soy protein and feeding that to their bees. Natural bee pollen pellets is cost prohibitive for many beekeepers and is not always fed directly back to the honey bees.

Pollen trapping is a fascinating process that requires a delicate balance between collection efficiency and the well-being of the bees. The primary tool used for this purpose is a pollen trap, which works by partially restricting the entrance to the colony. As the bees squeeze through these narrow entrances, some of the pollen from their pollen baskets is dislodged and falls into a collection tray.

Each honey bee that comes back into the hive has to crawl through these small holes that are just big enough to let the bee through but small enough to remove some of the pollen from its back legs. The best pollen traps allow the bees to leave unrestricted and only restrict their movement as they come back in.

A well-designed pollen trap doesn’t capture all the pollen entering the hive. It’s vital to let some pollen through for the bees to feed their larvae and sustain the hive. The balance between collecting pollen and ensuring the bees’ needs are met is a careful one, requiring careful monitoring of the entrance and the inside of the hive to make sure the colony is healthy.

Pollen traps, designed in various styles, cater to different hive configurations and beekeeping practices. Regardless of the design, the primary aim remains the same – to collect pollen efficiently without causing harm to the bees or hindering their normal activities.

But not all pollen traps are made the same, and the pollen collected can vary from one location to another and from one hive to another.

The Sundance pollen traps, which we will talk about later, are great at letting bees out and back in. The bees will exit unrestricted through cones on the trap. 

These cones allow the bees, including drones and queens, to leave the nest easily. Cheaper traps may not have an exit cone, but simply a whole in the side of the trap.

When the bees come back through the Sundance trap or any pollen collection trap, they have to enter through one or a series of small holes. 

These holes can be made of either wire mesh or a plastic grid. Some of these holes are very small and restrict the bee’s movement significantly, and others are right-sized to allow the honey bee to get through but also remove some pollen.

The simpler plastic traps often require the bees to work hard to get in and also out of the hive. So it’s important to monitor the entrance to see how well the bees are working through the trap.

When it comes to pollen traps, beekeepers have a range of options to choose from. From entrance pollen traps and wooden bee hive pollen traps to 10-8 frame entrance pollen traps, there’s a variety to suit every need. Among these, two types stand out for their efficiency and popularity – the Sundance pollen traps and the front porch style pollen traps.

The Sundance pollen traps, made by the Ross Rounds Company, are considered the best on the market. These traps produce exceptionally clean pollen and are available in 8 and 10 frame options, with top and bottom mounted options.

On the other hand, front porch style pollen traps are a more affordable alternative, designed to be positioned at the hive’s entrance and collect pollen as bees enter the hive. Each of these trap types has its advantages and challenges, and beekeepers must choose based on their specific needs and resources.

With all pollen traps, there is a breaking-in period when you first install them. More on that below.

Pollen traps don’t get much better than the Sundance. Known for their high-quality construction and efficient performance, Sundance pollen traps are a favorite among beekeepers. 

These traps are available in 8 and 10 frame options, catering to a variety of hive sizes. Furthermore, beekeepers can choose between top and bottom mounted options, depending on their hive configuration and personal preferences.

Another unique feature of Sundance pollen traps is their ability to yield exceptionally clean pollen. The top entrance Sundance pollen traps, for instance, are known to yield cleaner pollen with less debris. 

This attention to cleanliness and efficiency makes Sundance pollen traps a worthy investment for any beekeeper serious about pollen collection. These traps are not cheap, but they will last a long time and can quickly pay for themselves with the sale of the pollen.

Sundance bottom mount pollen traps are positioned underneath the boxes but above the bottom board. They are the most common style of trap because most beekeepers use a bottom entrance. The removable tray for the pollen can either be removed from the back or from the side. The side-mounted tray is typically for beekeepers keeping bees on pallets.

The bottom-mounted trap is known to collect a little more debris because debris from the hive can fall down into the trap. But there is a board that keeps most of that from getting into the tray, so the debris is minimal.

The main advantage of the bottom-mounted trap is it can be turned on and off easily. You do have to lift the hive to install it initially, but it can be left on the hive permanently and turned on and off as needed.

Top-mounted pollen traps are installed above the brood chambers of the hive, providing a cleaner method for pollen collection. These traps are designed to collect pollen as bees enter the upper part of the hive resulting in cleaner pollen with fewer pieces of bees or wax in the trap. The downside is that the bees have to be adjusted to use a top entrance, which will take an extra step if using a bottom entrance.

When using the top entrance trap, it cannot be turned on and off. It has to be removed completely to stop collecting pollen. But a new top entrance has to be put in place as the bees are used to a top entrance from the pollen trap.

When we first started using a pollen trap, we started with the entrance trap or front porch trap. These ones are placed over the normal entrance of the hive. They can work well but have a small capacity for storing the collected pollen. They are a great intro into collecting bee pollen and can work quite well.

Despite their effectiveness in pollen collection, front porch-style traps present their own set of challenges. For one, they can be prone to molding and overfilling if not emptied frequently. Additionally, they require vigilant maintenance to ensure their effectiveness and longevity. Because they are simpler, it may take some extra effort to make sure they seal well, and the bees don’t find a separate, less restrictive way into the hive.

These traps can be a little tricky because they will often warp and are more susceptible to mold than the Sundance traps. The doors on these traps can be difficult to open and close at times. We have been using these before and found that the door is actually closed when we thought it was open.

A good pollen trap is only the first step in pollen collection. Once the pollen is collected, it needs to be processed before it can be used or sold. This multi-step process includes:

1. Harvesting the pollen from the traps
   
   
2. Cleaning the pollen to remove any impurities
   
   
3. Freezing the pollen to preserve its freshness
   
   
4. Packaging the pollen for sale or storage
   
   

Each of these steps is crucial in ensuring the quality and freshness of the collected pollen. Proper harvesting prevents molding, thorough cleaning removes debris, adequate freezing preserves the pollen’s nutritional value, and appropriate packaging ensures the pollen stays fresh until it reaches the consumer.

The first step in processing bee pollen is to collect bee pollen from the pollen trap. This should be done frequently, preferably daily or every other day, to prevent the stored pollen from molding. Frequent harvesting maintains pollen freshness and prevents its buildup in the trap, which could attract pests or cause overfilling.

When the traps start to get full, you begin wasting the efforts of the bees, and the pellets start to pack into the collection drawer. When they get packed in there, they start to mold. Plant pollen has a fair amount of moisture in it.

Cleaning

Once the pollen is harvested, it must be cleaned to remove debris. This can include beetles, bees, wings, or other waste materials that may have ended up in the pollen trap. Cleaning the pollen in bulk can be done by removing visible debris, spreading the pollen on a screen or flat tray, and then visually picking out the debris. Tweezers are very helpful with this.

A more commercial way of cleaning pollen is to do it with a fan and through agitation. There are many machines for doing this, and the technique is the same as that used for cleaning and harvesting seeds.

Freezing

After the pollen is cleaned, it needs to be preserved to maintain its quality until it is used or sold. Freezing is the preferred method for preserving bee pollen as it helps maintain its nutritional value and freshness for an extended period.

The optimum temperature for freezing bee pollen is in the freezer. Bee pollen can be stored in the freezer for an indefinite period, making it a practical and efficient way of preserving the quality of the harvested pollen. By freezing the pollen directly from the trap, beekeepers can preserve its quality until it is ready to be used or sold.

Packaging and storage mark the final step in bee pollen processing. Proper packaging is crucial to maintain the freshness of the pollen and prevent moisture and air from affecting its quality. Clear glass containers are recommended for packaging bee pollen as they facilitate visibility and help maintain freshness.

For long-term storage, the pollen should be transferred from the original packaging to an airtight glass jar. Refrigeration or freezing can extend the shelf life of bee pollen, with refrigeration extending it up to one year and freezing prolonging it for 1 to 2 years. With the right packaging and storage methods, beekeepers can ensure their harvested pollen retains its freshness and quality until it’s ready to be used or sold.

While bee pollen collection can be a rewarding endeavor, it is not without its challenges. Beekeepers need to be cautious when collecting pollen, taking into consideration factors such as:

• Colony selection
  
  
• Collection limitations
  
  
• Trap maintenance
  
  
• The risk of small hive beetles infesting pollen traps.
  
  

Let’s explore each of these aspects in detail. Understanding these cautions and following best practices can help beekeepers optimize their pollen collection process while ensuring the wellbeing of their bees. After all, the ultimate goal is to harvest high-quality pollen without compromising the health of the bee colony.

Small hive beetles, a common pest in beehives, can also plague pollen traps used by honey bees. Beetles can lay eggs in the collected pollen, leading to an infestation if not addressed promptly. To prevent such infestations, pollen traps should be emptied often, especially in warm weather when beetles are most active.

Preventing beetle infestations is not just about maintaining the quality of the collected pollen; it’s also about protecting the health of the bee colony. Beetles and their larvae can cause significant damage to a colony if left unchecked.