Propolis

the last time we went to the hive the bees had gone all out on their propolis or bee glue, everything was stuck together. Propolis is made by bees from mixing tree sap and beeswax, it makes a very sticking glue. The bees use it to fill in small gaps, to provide stability to the hive (and to probably try and keep us beekeepers out!), they can also use it to protect the hive from bacteria and fungus. Also the bees use it to mummify small beetles that may have entered the hive and their carcass is too body to take out the hive- this stops them rotting in the hive.

bee in the centre and one above to the left with tree sap on their legs to make propolis

the bees have used propolis to control the draft from the roof

 Propolis can vary in colour dependent on which trees the resin is collected from. It is usually dark but as you can see in the below pictures we have a lot of orange and red propolis this year. Although its sticky at the moment as the temperatures drop it becomes brittle. The smaller the gap the more likely it is to be pure propolis the bees use rather than a beeswax mixture.

The propolis sealing the edge of the hive and the frames

bright red propolis

Propolis has commercial and medicinal uses and is used in many things such as toothpaste, chewing gum, varnish, waxes, creams and throat lozenges. Humans have used it for thousands of years, the anciet Egyptians and Greeks used it as an antiseptic and the Egyptians used it on their mummification bandages!