WATER CONTENT OF MIXED HONEY BEES-COLLECTED POLLEN

The knowledge of the water content of pollen is important to determine the amount of protein content, lipids, sugars, minerals and other components in the dry matter. The water content of mixed honey bee-collected pollen was determined by a method of drying. A table of the water content in the mixed pollen from different harvesting periods was made. The percentage of water content in the mixed bee-collected pollen samples ranged between 12.3% and 26.6% and the average was 18.8%. Pollen from different harvesting periods has different water content. There are also differences among the same months during three years. The average value of water content for each year is also different. According to the results, can’t be said during which season (spring, summer, autumn) the pollen has higher or lower water content. Ecological factors, especially rainfalls, can also affect water content.