as to the question: I don’t know what to use as a pollen replacement. I’ll have to look into it. At a local health food store they told me they had a beekeeper asking about buying pollen to feed his bees… I think they sell it for around 100$ a kilo- so that doesn’t seem viable.
100KGs from a single hive is pretty awesome- I have way less than that from 13 
I think the most I have got so far is around 70 from a single hive- in a good year
Glad health food pollen are so expensive. I doubt they are irradiated for human consumption. A sure way to introduce some extra AFB spores into you hives. DON’T EVEN CONSIDER IT!
What do you think about Peter’s suggestion to feed them unbleached wheat flour?
You can buy pollen supplements, but I saw in one ingredients list they use Chinese pollen. Put me right off. Also soy flour, which is used in feed, is no good according to latest research.
I hope next year your luck will turn around and your bees will make lots of honey. At least you know what to do with it.
Hi Jack, I’m cycling out a pollen filled frame tomorrow. I thought of you as I included it with the 12.5 boxes I’ll be extracting tomorrow. It has a little bit of honey at the top, the rest is pollen out of a resource hive that normally would be ready for a honey super, however I weakened it out to boost a couple of other hives.
I got the term “resource hive” after watching some of @VinoFarm’s videos. Until a new owner shows up, it’s a resource hive.
I don’t know about using flour- I watched that same video on YouTube from the US of that guy feeding his bees flour- they did certainly seem to be loving it. Maybe I willl try and see if my bees take an interest in it.
@JeffH the last few years I have usually had a spare Nuc or two from swarms I captured to use as ‘resource hives’- mostly for brood for requeening. This year I caught a lot less swarms- and had to use them all to repopulate the colonies I lost. Currently I don’t have a single hive that is good to be a donor. It’s very handy having spare hives that’s for sure.
On a good note- I visited the hives hosted by the guy who demanded honey- and this time he was much more understanding and seemed to accept my explanation that it’s been a terrible year… I think I will be able to convince hm to wait until next spring at least for some honey.
Hi Jack, I have one resource hive in a bloke’s plastic hive, someone dropped it off for him before Christmas. He phoned us to tell us to let him know when it’s ready. I did that a few days later, still before Christmas. He told me he was too busy to pick it up, that he’ll pick it up mid Jan. Then it would be late Jan. Then he phoned to offer to pay for the colony, but he wasn’t ready to pick it up yet. I declined his offer to pay. I told him to let us know when he’s ready to pick it up. It’s got a beautiful queen. I haven’t really seen her, she’s just a fantastic laying machine. It’s been a REAL good source of brood frames.
When & if he does pick it up, it’ll still have 4 good frames of brood & bees with a young mated queen. I feel reluctant to let him have that queen.
I saw some blossom on top of a small Marri this morning.
It was pretty pathetic blossom and looked spent already.
One tree in a thousand better than none I suppose.
Remember the fellow on the forum asking about a website for selling honey for you? Can’t find the topic right now, but @Rodderick might remember or have the links handy which he posted before.
Do it yourself pollen feed is low fat high protein. I use peas or lentils ground into flour. Some bean flour are OK. Powder milk… Nutritional yeast some wheat flour… Sugar. and if I have any I add whey protein. Mix well. The bees consume it quickly if pollen is not available. If there is enough pollen coming in they will not touch it. I buy ingredients at whole foods market in United States. Their bulk dispensers show the protein and fat content making it easier to choose than internet search. Experiment recipes in small batches until you find what works.
Ah Yes, Honeybees and Honey… its a little like buying a dairy cow because you like cows but not milk… 
There are a few ways to get the honey off your hands and I use everyone one of them. That honey site I was hoping would take off and for selling your excess produce, “didn’t take off” and is now shutdown, but there are some others.
The Honey Map - I do get a few sales through this but its not worth holding out for.
Ripe Near Me - excess produce to sell or share from your backyard
Spare Harvest - another excess produce site
Sell your honey in bulk to a Health Food store
Sell your honey in bulk to another beekeeper who has the means or connections to other markets
Sell your honey to a local brewer, it makes for a great wheat/honey beer, and an even better mead
Hope that helps.
Thanks @Rodderick. Will try those suggestions.
My work schedule doesn’t leave me stacks of time, but will make a big effort before my beelab collapses 
You are right, I want the bees, not soooo much honey.
I started selling my nucs already, with a very heavy heart. Only to people where I know they take good care of them.
Its funny as some places to keep hives will spare you the hundreds of kilos of honey that we end up with. Just not the east coast of Australia, some hives I am getting over a hundred kilos every year and if I didn’t have an outlet to sell it, I would probably give up and sell the hive.
