SUBSTITUTES FOR POLLEN. 



It is a well known fact among bee-keepers that bees can be 

 stimulated to early brood rearing in spring by putting out some 

 kind of finely ground meal or flour, wiiich they take as a substitute 

 for pollen. Writers vary in their opinions as to what is the best, 

 but it is commonly recommended to use rye, oats, or pea meal. 

 Common wheat flour, wheat middlings, corn meal, barley meal, and 

 malt all have their advocates. It was thought best to put out at 

 one time a good number of these substitutes for the purpose of 

 determining which would be given the preference by the bees. To 

 do this a number of boards were laid flat upon the ground in the 

 vicinity of the apiary, a small pile of each kind of meal put upon 

 them and notes taken upon the results. 



It was found that any of the substances used would be taken 

 freely when used alone. Also that the preference did not always 

 go to the same feed. 



Results with the first series of tests were published in the 

 Seventh Annual Report of this Station. As that report did not 

 reach a large number of general readers, and as subsequent tests 

 lead to some change in the order of preference, I have thought it 

 best to report upon the work again here. The order of preference 

 as nearly as could be judged ran as follows : Ground whole kernels 

 of oats, corn, and wheat, fine wheat bran,* cleaner dust,t cotton- 

 seed meal, wheat bran, pea meal, wheat flour, rye flour, bean m:eal, 

 barley meal. The three last named they would hardly touch as 

 long as others were accessible. 



As pollen furnishes the bees with nitrogenous food, it seems 

 probable that those substitutes for pollen that have most nitrogen, 

 or rather, that furnish the chemical compounds most nearly in the 

 proportions that they are found in pollen, would be best suited to 

 take the place of pollen in the dietary of the bee. 



In order to determine whether or not the chemical composition 

 of the food-stuffs best liked by the bees were more like the composi- 

 tion of pollen than the others, I had a quantity of corn pollen col- 



* Bran ground over so as to be fine. 



t Waste duat and pbaff as taken frotn cleaners at flauring mill. 



