Lesson 35: What's in the Cells?
Honey, nectar, pollen, and the three kinds of capped cells
Lesson 34 taught you to read the brood. The rest of a frame is food, and knowing what's in each cell tells you how much food the colony has, whether a nectar flow is on, and whether honey is ready to harvest. It also helps you tell worker brood from drone brood, an important clue about the queen.
Open cells
Nectar (unripe honey) - Clear or pale, watery liquid that glistens in the cell. - Often only part-filled. If you tilt or give the frame a gentle shake over the hive, nectar may drip or splash out. - Lots of fresh nectar across many frames means a nectar flow is on.
Honey, not yet capped - Thicker liquid, amber to golden, filling the cell. Bees are still drying it (lesson 10).
Pollen (bee bread) - Packed, dry-looking material, often in bright colors (yellow, orange, red, gray, even purple), depending on the flowers. - Cells are packed about three-quarters full; some are topped with honey, making the pollen look wet and shiny. - Usually in a band right next to the brood (lesson 9).
Eggs and larvae - Eggs: tiny, like grains of rice standing in the bottom of the cell. - Larvae: pearly white, glistening, C-shaped grubs (lesson 34).
Capped cells: three kinds
| Capped cell | What it looks like | What's inside |
|---|---|---|
| Capped honey | White to pale, flat or only slightly raised wax, smooth and even. Some stocks leave a darker "wet" look where the honey touches the capping. | Ripe honey (about 18% water; lesson 10) |
| Capped worker brood | Tan to medium brown, slightly domed (convex), a little rough and porous, with no holes. Usually in a solid patch in the middle of the frame. | Worker pupae |
| Capped drone brood | Larger cells with tall, rounded caps that stick out from the comb, like bullets. Often in patches near the edges or bottom of a frame. | Drone pupae |
Why the difference matters:
- Capped honey = ripe honey. When most of a honey frame is capped, it's ready to harvest (lesson 70).
- Brood cappings should be tan-brown, domed and unbroken. Sunken, holed, greasy or darkened brood cappings are a warning sign of disease (lessons 58–60).
- A queen laying mostly drone brood, or drone brood scattered through worker brood, in worker-sized cells, means she's failing or unmated, or workers are laying (lessons 42–44). Drone brood in worker cells stands out because the caps bulge out from the flat comb.
How it looks:
Pollen: packed cells in many colors.
Capped worker brood: tan to brown, slightly domed, solid.
Honey and pollen: pale capped honey above, open honey and pollen cells below.
Reading a frame's food
- Frames of capped honey at the outer edges and top of the hive: good stores.
- Glistening nectar in the brood nest area: incoming food, or the bees back-filling brood cells (normal before winter; lessons 14 and 52).
- Plenty of colorful pollen coming in and stored: the colony can raise brood.
- Little stored food in the active season: consider feeding (lesson 39).
What to remember
- Nectar glistens and can splash out; honey fills the cell and is thicker; pollen is packed and colorful.
- Capped honey: white/pale and flat. Capped worker brood: tan-brown, slightly domed, no holes. Capped drone brood: larger, tall, bullet-shaped caps.
- Sunken or holed brood cappings are a disease warning; drone brood in worker cells means a queen problem.
Quick check
- How can you tell nectar from capped honey?
- What do healthy worker brood cappings look like?
- You see bullet-shaped caps bulging out of worker-sized cells all over the brood area. What might that mean?
Show answers
1. Nectar is unripe and open in the cell, glistening, and may splash out; capped honey is sealed under pale, flat wax. 2. Tan to medium brown, slightly domed, and without holes. 3. Drone brood being laid in worker cells: a failing or unmated queen, or laying workers.
Adapted from: Penn State Extension, A Quick Reference Guide to Honey Bee Parasites, Pests, Predators, and Diseases (2021); NC State Extension, How to Install a Package of Honey Bees (rev. 2024); Purdue Extension, 4-H Beekeeping Division I (4-H-571-W) and Learning About Beekeeping (4-H-1057-W); UF/IFAS Extension, European Honey Bee (IN1005) and Welcome to the Apiary! (4H446); UGA Bee Program, Getting Started: Honey Bee Management; Utah State University Extension, Thriving Hives (2024).
Photos: pollen in comb, Waugsberg, CC BY-SA 3.0 · capped brood, Einebillion, CC BY 4.0 · honeycomb, Joska16, CC BY-SA 4.0 (all via Wikimedia Commons).
Adapted from university Extension sources. Experienced Georgia beekeepers are reviewing these lessons. See something that doesn't match your experience? Tell us.