Do You Really Hate Propolis? There are fine horse-chestnut trees just above two of my hives, and at this time of year, I try to balance my irritation at the sticky scales which fall and gum up my shoes, with the benefits which I know the bees derive from the propolis they collect from the buds.

Ed.Note: The following article is an amalgam of two articles by Mary – one written in 2015 for An Beachaire (The Irish Beekeeper) and the second in 2017, again for An Beachaire. While Australian flora do not, by and large, produce a lot of propolis, the articles provide some excellent insights into why bees collect and use it. 

Horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) is one of their most favoure