ROYAL JELLY

Royal Jelly is the secretion from the hypopharyngeal glands in young housebees, and it is creamy in colour.

It is fed in varying quantities to young bee larvae but it should be noted that a developing larvae chosen to become a Queen bee will be fed much greater quantities of Royal Jelly than the rest of the brood.

The adult Queen bee lives solely on a diet of Royal Jelly as it is very high in protein.

This diet enables the development of the Queen bee's ovaries in preparation for the role of egg-laying and she will become the mother of a colony of bees numbering 60,000 or more in summer. The Queen bee will lay approximately 2,000 eggs a day at the peak of her season.

Many people believe that Royal Jelly has a beneficial effect on their health. Royal Jelly is now marketed on a commerical basis but it is very expensive because only small fresh quantities are available.