Bee Forage

& Products

Forage

Nectar

Pollen

Water

Resin/sap

Products

Honey

Wax

Propolis

Royal Jelly

Bee venom

Wealden Dome

40 miles

Leatherhead Worthing

Cretaceous sediments

Petersfield BKA catchment ,

covering the Western end of

the Weald where the N & S

Downs meet, has all the

Wealden sediments

within reach of bees.

The variety of soils and

topography results in great

variety of natural &

introduced forage

– perfect for healthy bees

Erosion has created alkali

chalk Downs, steep sandstone

scarps, clay & sand valleys

and acid sandy heaths.

The variety of soils and

topography results in great

variety of natural forage

– perfect for healthy bees

Human activity augments this

natural forage, extending

forage availability

Weald Clay lowland – low-lying, moist.

Pasture, Agriculture, hedges, woods,.

Lower Greensand – Hythe

Wooded sandstone hills & scarps.

Iron rich neutral-acid soil. Coppiced.

Hazel & chestnut. bluebell & bramble.

Willow, amelanchier, holly, rowan,

Whitebeam, beech, oak. Exotics.

Lower Greensand – Folkstone

Low floodplain & sandy heath.

Wet & dry woodland, heath, pasture,

agriculture, horticulture, hedges,

Gault – heavy clay - Pasture & hedge

Chalk & sand outwashes – very fertile

Upper Greensand – Calcareous.

Wooded scarps. Ash, hazel, lime,

oak, dogwood, sycamore, wild garlic.

Chalk – North Downs, Fertile flint/

clay cover - agricultural; hedges

South Downs, high - pasture & natural

Southern slopes – agricultural. Man.

Nectar

• bees ‘high-energy’ fuel

• Two types

• Floral

• Non floral

• Nectar picture

Non-Floral Nectar

• Extra-floral nectaries –

early excess sap

or

plant protection?

Non-Floral Nectar

• Honeydew –

early summer,

High aphid

populations

Nectar Composition

• 70 - 80% water

• 20 - 30% sucrose, fructose, glucose

• Traces of

vitamins, minerals & proteins,

aromatics & pigments,

natural yeasts & bacteria

June gap

summer flowers

Many garden shrubs and plants

flower early and late, extending

the natural flowering season

Pollen

• Flowers produce pollen to reproduce

• Bees collect pollen to feed their young and

themselves

Bees ‘strength’ food

Pollen

• Fed to larvae for growth and development

• Eaten by young bees up to 10 days old to

finish glandular development

• Eaten by overwintering bees to build up fat

reserves

Water

• Used

to regulate hive temperature & humidity

in Preparation of brood food

to Dilute/dissolve honey stores for use

water

• Important to provide Sources

• Use supply closest to hive

• Important to know where these are –

neighbours pond/pool

Resin

• Sticky exudations of some trees and buds

• Collected and transported in the corbicula

• Removed by house bees

• Mixed with wax and enzymes to form

Propolis

Propolis

• Valuable to the bees:

as an antiseptic surface sealant on

hive parts

brood cells

large intruders

in construction

to strengthen comb

to fill gaps

Used Fresh, never stored

Bee Products

• Royal Jelly

• Wax

•

• Venom ‘middle aged’ bee

• Honey

• Pollen foraging bee products

• Propolis

‘New-bee’ products

‘New bee’ products

Two of the most important products of the hive

produced at the beginning of a worker bee’s life

• Royal jelly from 8 days

•

• Wax from 14 days

Royal Jelly

• Protein rich high-energy super food high in amino

acids essential for bee development

• Produced from pollen

by young bees

• Fed to all larvae to 4 days

and Queens exclusively

Wax

The honeybee’s ‘bricks and mortar’

Wax

Costly for bees to produce

• 750g wax required to make comb to hold 15kg

honey – a full National super

• 5kg honey required to make 750g wax

• 20kg nectar required to make 750g wax

Venom

• Produced by workers

• Venom glands ripened by 20 days

• USED for :

• Colony & individual Defence