Bee pollen: origin, collection and role in the hive
Bees collect pollen during their daily foraging flights. They mix it with saliva and nectar, pack it into small coloured pellets and carry it back to the hive on their hind legs. Those yellow, orange or reddish pellets sometimes visible on returning bees are pollen — one of the fundamental materials for colony life.
What pollen is
Pollen is produced by flowering plants as part of the reproductive process. Individual grains are microscopic, but bees manage to collect it in significant quantities: in a single flight, a forager can visit hundreds of flowers and return to the hive with fully loaded corbiculae.
Collection takes place mainly during the central hours of the day, when flowers are open and pollen is abundant. Bees mix it with a little saliva or nectar — this compacts it and makes transport easier — and attach it to the corbiculae, specialised structures on their hind legs.
The role of pollen in the hive
Pollen is the colony's main protein source. It is used to prepare what is known as bee bread, obtained by lactic fermentation of pollen inside the cells. Bee bread is the essential food for larvae and young bees during the first days of their lives.
Without a sufficient supply of pollen the colony cannot grow: the brood does not develop properly and the population declines. This is why, in a favourable season, a colony can accumulate up to 20–40 kg of pollen as a reserve.
How beekeepers harvest it
Beekeepers can collect a small portion of pollen by installing a pollen trap at the hive entrance. When forager bees return, some of the pollen they carry on their legs falls into collection trays beneath the grid.
The collected pollen is then dried at low temperatures to reduce moisture content and preserve its characteristics. Drying conditions and storage significantly affect the quality of the final product.
Composition and variability
Pollen composition varies considerably depending on the plant species visited by the bees. The colour itself — which can be yellow, orange, red, purple or near-white — depends on the source plant. Acacia pollen will have very different characteristics from sunflower or chestnut pollen.
In general terms, pollen contains proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, vitamins, minerals and phenolic compounds in variable proportions. Laboratory analysis is required to determine the exact composition of a specific product.
Storage
Fresh pollen is highly perishable. Once properly dried, it can be stored in a cool, dry place away from light. Freezing allows longer storage. Heat and moisture accelerate deterioration.
When added to food, it is preferable not to expose it to very high temperatures, which can alter heat-sensitive components.
Pollen is one of the many elements that make the hive a biologically complex system. Every visit to the hives tells something different about the season, the flowers in bloom and the state of the colony. Discover what the Florabella bees are collecting →
Sources
Denisow B., Denisow-Pietrzyk M., Biological and therapeutic properties of bee pollen: a review, Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, 2016. DOI: 10.1002/jsfa.7729 · Kocot J. et al., Antioxidant Potential of Propolis, Bee Pollen, and Royal Jelly, Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, 2018. DOI: 10.1155/2018/2437273
