Interesting concluding article in the May ABJ by Randy Oliver on his latest pollen substitute findings.
In summary they all work but nothing works as well as pure pollen. He was quite disappointed as he had hypothesised that the lack of Zinc and 24-methylenecholestrol (don't ask I've no idea what it is
) might be the missing ingredients to make pollen substitute as good as real pollen, they weren't. Adding these to pollen substitutes made no difference to the results.
He did these experiments in an area of the Sierra foothills that has a pollen dearth throughout summer/autumn and winter, so the pollen/pollen substitutes where their major protein source during that period of August through to end of Jan.
What was interesting is how effective even the substitutes without additives were vs feeding control colonies on sugar syrup and no pollen substitute.....so despite what many say they do enable bees to thrive when no or little natural pollen is about.
Sure hate to be a beekeeper in them foothills
In summary they all work but nothing works as well as pure pollen. He was quite disappointed as he had hypothesised that the lack of Zinc and 24-methylenecholestrol (don't ask I've no idea what it is
) might be the missing ingredients to make pollen substitute as good as real pollen, they weren't. Adding these to pollen substitutes made no difference to the results.He did these experiments in an area of the Sierra foothills that has a pollen dearth throughout summer/autumn and winter, so the pollen/pollen substitutes where their major protein source during that period of August through to end of Jan.
What was interesting is how effective even the substitutes without additives were vs feeding control colonies on sugar syrup and no pollen substitute.....so despite what many say they do enable bees to thrive when no or little natural pollen is about.
Sure hate to be a beekeeper in them foothills
