🔵Making UltraBee pollen patties

[@beebob1279]

I've used Ultra Bee for a few years. Why do you add vegetable oil to your mix? I've always just added syrup to the dry until I get the consistency of peanut butter. Then wrap it up for the colonies.

[@kamonreynolds]

What type of syrup are you using?

[@beebob1279]

@@kamonreynolds Pro sweet from MannLake. I mix it until I get the consistency. I make a batch and put a third to half a pound on. I've tried dry sugar and mix it up but it gets brick hard. Maybe you use the oil to keep the patties moist? A friend of mine adds vegetable oil but just did it to keep the patties from drying out. My colonies finish it off so fast that I don't have that problem. Enjoying your videos.

[@kamonreynolds]

Ah. If you use prosweet it is unnecessary. Prosweet causes the patties to be moisture wicking. Hygroscopic. Using the recipe in the video with sugar as the main ingredient causes the patty to dry out. Dry patties are tossed out by the colonies. That is why there is oil in this cheap but effective recipe

[@beebob1279]

@@kamonreynolds Thanks

[@donstanley8514]

I still don’t see the measurements?

[@donovancoughlin]

Your content is AMAZING!!! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU Finally someone who is actually a sucessfull beekeeper producing honey who is sharing real information in my region. There are those interested in producing 2 frame nucs with a handful of bees, never letting the colony get big and thinking they have something to share. Keep up the great work and sharing so we can all be better at what we love.

[@gazinta]

Use saran type wrap to cover the bucket directly on the product so mold spores wont land on it. Squeeze out all the air bubbles while it's still warm. Oooooorrrrr, bag it in zipper bags (again, squeeze out all the air) 90% full before you freeze it.

[@charlieandpattisplace]

I like that simple idea. I use about 40#'s a year. I can make up one batch and freeze the rest in zip lock bags....

[@JohnnyRFarmer]

You're a giant in our eyes!

[@carldaniels4827]

at the right time of the day even a short person cast's a large shadow. thank you for many informative videos.

[@kamonreynolds]

haha good one!

[@wrfarms9741]

We feed the Ultra Bee dry feed directly to our bees using the Mann Lake blue plastic ProFeeders. We place them on top of the blue plastic 55 gallon barrels you can buy at the COOP. This helps to keep the raccoons and opossums out of it. Our bees are currently consuming 90 - 100 lbs. a week this way. We order the Ultra Bee in the 1500 lb. totes and shovel it into food grade white plastic 5 gallon buckets with seal top lids we buy in bulk at Lowes. Works very well and allows us to store the Ultra Bee for long periods of time which also allows us to buy in the 1500 lb. totes when Mann Lake has them on sale. We have tried food patties this time of year and they proved to be SHB magnets. Feeding it direct allows the bees to treat the Ultra Bee like pollen and they make bee bread out of it once they get it back to the hive and in the comb. Smart move doing this at night. Great video!

[@viscache1]

This is the video I’ve been waiting for! If you get food grade 5 gallon buckets to store this mixture you should install vacuum seal valves in the lid. You can use a vacuum pump to suck out all the air and leave a packet of 10 Oxygen eaters taped to the inside lid and it will not mold or ferment. We have a storm cellar that never gets over 44F and we store about 40 gallons per year down there. It keeps for a year….I don’t know if it’s longer because we use the batch up by then. By the way…THANK YOU for the recipes! (And when you forget to shave you look older than 12!)

[@Mackabees]

My bees love it. Can't give them enough. Awesome. I let mine out for a day to form up and then freeze until needed.

[@PaulHigginbothamSr]

Laurel's cam makes kamon look super tall like a basketball player. A looming hulk of a huge tall incredibly tall stretched out amazingly very very TALL. Wonderous, no fear Kamon.

[@btrull6018]

Randy Oliver has a study comparing several pollen subs on his site. I bought Ultra Bee once because of its claim of how well it could be diluted and fed thru feeders ( mason jars ) no such luck, so I just stick with making the patties and freezing them on wax paper

[@kamonreynolds]

I'm not a fan of liquid protein either

[@paulawaldrep3760]

That was great news for my captured bees. I can make some myself! Now I gotta figure out how to get in there and lift the lid. These are not tame but I know from your videos I need to stay on top of things! Thanks again!

[@electricengineer624]

Great pollen sub bro , great job I use pollen , soy flour, ginger, curcum, darcini , sugar .

[@365bowhunter]

Very good

[@BeesBugsJapan]

thanks! i have been applying some of your ideas to my Japanese Honey bees hives

[@kennyslavens3124]

Watch All your videos! 3 rd year bees. Oredered Ultra Bee tonight, will be feeding soon. Really like your videos as we are in Ozark, Mo similar weather and blooms! Thanks for the videos!

[@massachusettsprepper]

It looks like you’re definitely making a lot of pollen substitute. And thanks for the recipe my friend it will come in handy. Thanks for sharing.

[@lennelonge2626]

Your sure up late tonight! Good information as always and sure do appreciate it! Thanks

[@BESHYSBEES]

We used ultra bee last year, it’s bloody expensive for us in Australia 🇦🇺 over $300 for 20kg! However expensive I can testify it’s a quality product and it does work as a substitute when needed but nothing beats what nature provides, we also make a home made sub with soy isolate,dextrose and some other ingredients but we don’t make patties rather we dry feed. Cheers for the vid I might try patties as we come out of winter here, take it easy Kamon

[@Dstick1Spearfishing]

Hey Beshy, what recipe do you use to make your own sub in Aussie?

[@kamonreynolds]

Yeah I use this product due to it's cost effectiveness. Does Australia have it's own brand of subs?

[@BESHYSBEES]

Kamon Reynolds - Tennessee's Bees I’m not sure about subs but there is companies who will blend recipes but have minimum order requirements, I’ll do some investigating later today and get back to you, there is also Chinese companies who will blend recipes but I’ve heard of them using ground up plastics to bulk up products so the cheapest isn’t always the way to go.👍

[@BESHYSBEES]

dstick1 I blend soy isolate, dextrose, wheat flour, irradiated pollen, essential oils, vitamin C powder, powdered sugar(sometimes), whey isolate (sometimes) Your best bet is to research and trial different combinations until you have something they’re going to take, if the mix is dry they will sift through it and stick on what they want, I also found the grind of different ingredients makes it hard to get a good blend with a drill and bucket if I continue to make a sub I’ll make a ball mill to powderise it to a really fine texture Cheers hope this helps

[@showmebees9431]

Great video! I used this recipe last night and it worked just like it did in the video. Mine came out a bit thicker so I must have had more pollen sub than Kamen. You need a really good drill.

[@kamonreynolds]

Hey neighbor. You can make it a bit easier to mix and swap 2lbs of sugar for 2lbs of syrup. Also! Warming the syrup helps with the mixing!

[@showmebees9431]

@@kamonreynolds I'll keep that in mind. It came out perfect though. I made one patty with it this morning to test and the consistency was perfect. Thanks for the recipe! I'll be getting this onto the girls soon. Looks like next Sunday might be the next day above 40 degrees.

[@kamonreynolds]

Try some with parchment and some without and let me know what you see.

[@medienmond]

You are great, man!

[@PhillipHall01]

You are doing a good job with the videos. It seems I always have a question. My question is, what is the best way to store this mixture until ready to convert into the actual patty? I made some just tonight and placed the mixture in a air tight 2 gallon container. How long can I expect this to last before becoming moldy. The reason I ask, this is a sampler for the bees. The next batch I plan on going the 40 pound route as in your other video but in case I don't use it up quickly, I was wondering how long can I expect it to last in sealed buckets? Thanks again for all you do and I wish for you and your family continued success. Phillip Hall

[@ratpackcolorado]

One thing if I put my patty’s in freezer they condense water when I pull um out. They get runny .Hi humidity sucks. Just don’t make so much. Not everyone has 500 hives.

[@ralphgresham6327]

You are only short one one in. YOU still touch the ground.😊

[@FunnyBugBeesandWoodWorks]

Kamon, have you tried the patties by Healthybees LLC.? Purported to be a superior product, and doesnt have problems with hive beetles. Interested in your opinion, if you have tried them.

[@willdavis8714]

So what issues would you have with making the patty mix with just honey and sub? Seems honey would encourage fast consumption.

[@kamonreynolds]

You can use honey and the bees will love it. I would not use someone else's honey as certain diseases and viruses can be transmitted in that way. They would be safe in our digestive systems but could have something harmful for the bees.

[@Pvnk_Eternal]

I was expecting more "look at those arms!" comments 😂

[@angiekyle2942]

Mine never really set up. Could I use solid veritable oil (crisco) so it will set up when it cools off? I've added more pollen.

[@oneshoo]

Wake up Shorty! You have work to do!! 👍

[@leesommer5871]

Oh, that was funny.

[@PaulSmith-tf9bn]

Will give it a try, so don't make me delete you. 😁

[@rogert4586]

Just wondering if you can use Kyro surp in this mix?

[@garymast8845]

If using honey , do you use same amount as water? And do you still need to use veg.oil?

[@jeffcotton526]

Do you ever use Ultra Bee as dry feed? I have seen it used that way at the Barnyard Bees channel and the bees go nuts over that dry substitute when there's a dearth of pollen.

[@BESHYSBEES]

We open dry feed with it, they love it however in a trial against home made soy isolate sub there was no real difference in preference

[@kamonreynolds]

It won't work thru summer here. We have a trickle of pollen coming in and even if it is not enough to provide what young colonies need they will not open feed the dry if a grain of pollen comes in.

[@BESHYSBEES]

Kamon Reynolds - Tennessee's Bees I have pollen coming in and they still go at the sub as well, I find they work the sub better if something else is still flowering I guess it’s very variable and different results happen regularly, it’s still good to see how everyone else is doing and always good to keep learned

[@jrmars5434]

I live in upper East Tennessee and have tried to open pollen feed with dry Ultra Bee in the late fall, winter and very early spring and the bees just ignore it. Seems as though we never have a complete dearth on pollen in our area.

[@natserog]

what about just 32lbs of honey and 15lbs of UltraBee? is that a good substitute for sugar and oil??

[@kamonreynolds]

yup

[@jpthedelawarebeeman7887]

Hi Kamon, I'd like to make the smaller batch and freeze it if possible I got the ingredients list from the video you made back in March 2019 . I'm a noobie and won't go through it all this year. They are eating what I bought at the moment. I give them little slivers of it so I don't attract hive beetles to it. How long can this last in the freezer?

[@jpthedelawarebeeman6239]

I made the smaller batch of pollen patty. how long does it take to set up? I put it in the refrigerator...

[@kamonreynolds]

I let it sit in the bucket for the evening typically. However as long as it is thick enough it won't squeeze out of the patty it should be fine. If a little thin just add more sub.

[@jpthedelawarebeeman6239]

Hi Kamon, that's what I ended up doing I added more UltraBee. I ended up with almost 5lbs of pollen patties :)

[@rummysworld7531]

I have only been feeding my bees sugar water, should I be feeding a pollen substitute also?

[@Digger927]

Depends on where you are and what's in bloom. If the bees are bringing in pollen on their own fairly well then no. If you put a little pollen out and they attack it like Ethiopians on a pile of rice then yes you should (or can) be feeding it.

[@kamonreynolds]

It depends we are going to try and address that in the following video or so

[@rummysworld7531]

@@kamonreynolds thanks I havent seen much pollen gathering and my nuc isn't growing as fast as I would have thought. Going to open it on Sunday and check progress. About a quart of sugar water a week at this point.

[@russellkoopman3004]

@@rummysworld7531 - My little nuc - about 3 frames of brood will down a quart in 4 hours. I use a 2/1 syurp. Maybe your bee hive is very small - or??

[@cluelessbeekeeping1322]

In less than 1 day (around here), if you look underneath a wet pollen patty, you'll find lots of small hive beetle larvae happily eating away at the pollen patty. Those little buggers are horrible around here. I no longer use it beecause of the small hive beetles. I will give them dry UltraBee, though.

[@labella9291]

That would be a great way to collect the larva and kill them before they mature though. It's like when I was breeding betta fish. I had water buckets to attract mosquitoes. Collected the larva by the hundreds daily.. The mosquito population crashed.

[@donbearden1953]

Kamon, it looks good enough to eat. You are always walking tall with the Tide so you don’t have to make remarks about your height! RTR!

[@Dstick1Spearfishing]

Don are you a fan of Jennifer Fallon? Is this where all theses Tide references are coming from?

[@donbearden1953]

@dstick1, Kamon and I are Alabama football fans and that’s where the Tide remarks comes from since Alabama is the Roll Tide. It has nothing to do with Jennifer Fallon.

[@jamescobb2249]

Do you have any in site for getting rid of wax moths in the comb and then in the apiary? South Tennessee bee keeper.

[@aaronbuxton7256]

How fast do they go through a patty.

[@kamonreynolds]

a good double deep will eat a lb in 5 days easy

[@BlazingBees]

The title should be making pollen sub patties I'm working on testing homemade pollen sub recipes against ultra bee so far ultra bee is preferred but I'm getting closer to the same number of bees going to the homemade #3 mix I'm going to add lemongrass to it to see if I can match or exceed the ultra bee numbers I was hoping you had a new recipe to test also

[@3Beehivesto300]

Blazing Bees ultra bee has lemon grass oil in it

[@coxhoneybeefarm1127]

How long will this last in a airtight container?

[@kamonreynolds]

8 months a year something like that. Longer in the freezer

[@Dstick1Spearfishing]

Nice Video Kamon, Why don't you make your own Pollen sub? Is it a time thing?

[@kamonreynolds]

Yes. And I don't think it would be as good without doing a vast amount of research. Also in bulk it comes down to 44 cents a pound of patty so..... I am pretty darn good with that.

[@mandog2142]

Short?? I thought you were just standing off the porch! ;>))

[@denisdjemal4126]

Hi Kamon I apologize if you have already answered this question but what kind of vegetable oil you use for this recipe

[@kamonreynolds]

Corn, soybean, sunflower and canola/rapeseed oil will all work

[@denisdjemal4126]

@@kamonreynolds Thanks for information :)

[@ekueetech]

Where is the link

[@ishaksoukkou4195]

What is yellow flour

[@hughyhughes8058]

First comment!

[@marvelous1492]

Where is the link for the smaller batches?

[@kamonreynolds]

Just got up and put the link in the description!

[@ratpackcolorado]

What does oil and sub do . Why put it in.why is ultra better than other.

[@privatebubba8876]

It has the highest percentage of crude protein than other subs out there. The nurse bees will eat pollen patties and the foragers will store dry pollen just like natural pollen.

[@ratpackcolorado]

@@privatebubba8876 i under stand pollen paties. just not the oil and how it helps. or why ultra is better. thanks crude proteen. but i thought it was better cuz bees eat it more. thanks.

[@privatebubba8876]

@@ratpackcolorado It helps to keep it from drying out.

[@privatebubba8876]

@@ratpackcolorado Check out scientificbeekeeping.com/ under nutrition and there is comparison of different pollen subs.

[@ratpackcolorado]

That’s it. Keep it moist. So if u put too much it’s runny. Would it be better to use a solid oil. Might get away with less.and as temp goes up patty is softer. I wonder if any excess oil might do something. Like when they put mineral oil on the bees .they seem like they are grungy.you can pick them out on a feeder. Just does not seem healthy.

[@farmer998]

get on with it Little man big ah " ambition" ! me too

[@labella9291]

It's too early in the morning for me. 8.5 lbs of water is a gallon Kamon. Really? REALLY? You couldn't have just said a gallon???

[@Digger927]

lol

[@FloryJohann]

It makes it easier to stay with weight if you are talking about weight. So it is better to leave volume out of it.......at least I think so.

[@beebob1279]

Everything is by weight. One should never mix weight and volume. Keep it all the same.

[@russellkoopman3004]

What about the oil? 3 cups? Is that 8 oz per cup then 1.5 lbs. Sure wish I'd have grown up with the metric system - less conversion. Oh well. Love Kamon's videos.

[@toddknecht2106]

Water weighs 8.34 lbs per gallon, if you used 1 gallon your mixture would bee thick😊

[@ishaksoukkou4195]

Yellow dust is soy

[@kamonreynolds]

This is actually soy free

[@smportis]

Dude, you are 10 feet tall and bulletproof. And Alabama still sucks. War eagle.

[@kamonreynolds]

Thanks! Can't wait for college football and the Iron bowl