Abstract:

Propolis samples were obtained by 4 harvesting methods, nylon net, plastic mat, covering fabric and scraping
from frame gaps. Ethanol extractable content, total content of 8 flavanoids and total flavanoid content of four propolis
samples were analyzed. The results showed that 3 quality indexes varied significantly among samples obtained by
different harvesting methods. The quality of propolis obtained by nylon net was significantly superior to that of those
from the three other methods. The quality of propolis obtained from plastic mat and frame gaps was not significantly
different, but significantly better than that obtained with covering fabric. The quality of propolis obtained by covering
fabric was the worst. These results suggest that proplis quality could be improved through narrowing the mesh of
propolis harvesting implement.

Key words: propolis, harvesting methods, ethanol extractable content, total flavanoids, high performance liquid chromatograph (HPLC)