Feeding..Is it any Wonder.

Have been out today to a local event and there was a a Beekeepers Association stand there selling honey.
On their wall board with all the pics of bees and hives etc etc. the first thing I read is..

"Bees must be fed in the spring to enable them to build up in readiness for the April OSR and again in the autumn so they have 40lb of stores for their winter food.. This is done by feeding them a heavy sugar syrup mixture."

Not "may need feeding" but "Must be fed"

Is it therefore any wonder why most new beeks stuff syrup all over the place when they get their bees.

Dishmop said:

Have been out today to a local event and there was a a Beekeepers Association stand there selling honey.
On their wall board with all the pics of bees and hives etc etc. the first thing I read is..

"Bees must be fed in the spring to enable them to build up in readiness for the April OSR and again in the autumn so they have 40lb of stores for their winter food.. This is done by feeding them a heavy sugar syrup mixture."

Not "may need feeding" but "Must be fed"

Is it therefore any wonder why most new beeks stuff syrup all over the place when they get their bees.

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Any new beekeeper googling will find an orthodoxy on all manner of subjects
from matchsticks to springfeeding.

The "other" forum has this in its library
"Only when the nectar flow starts should feeding be stopped when it is obvious on inspection that the stores are being replenished adequately. "

The National Bee unit is more balanced http://www.nationalbeeunit.com/downloadNews.cfm?id=121

Overfeeding isn't restricted to bees if the number of obese children, adults, cats and dogs about is anything to go by. Unfortunately overfeeding those we love and care for seems to be just part of human nature .

It might sound attractive to Joe Blogs to get a hive so he can feed bees, something similar to those who feed birds, so somewhat clever marketing but useless as far as beekeeping is concerned

I smiled at the thread. Only one step away from shallows being called supers when they are really brood boxes. Or something like that. Lazyness on the part of some and ignorance by the rest, as I cannot think of any other descriptor unless it may be the few that set out to deceive new beeks.

Dishmop said:

On their wall board with all the pics of bees and hives etc etc. the first thing I read is..

"Bees must be fed in the spring to enable them to build up in readiness for the April OSR and again in the autumn so they have 40lb of stores for their winter food.. This is done by feeding them a heavy sugar syrup mixture."

Not "may need feeding" but "Must be fed"

Is it therefore any wonder why most new beeks stuff syrup all over the place when they get their bees.

Click to expand...

Is it any wonder that some honey tastes remarkably like sugar syrup!

I run my beekeeping as a low cost hobby.
Feeding costs money so I only do it when essential.

Why are people talking about feeding. The last two seasons have been great and no feeding should have been required. Unless they have been mismanaged or the keeper has taken all their honey and not left enough for over winter! My config db which leaves a full bb full of stores which is more than sufficient. Bees will be more healthy eating the food they have collected and not the food we provide!! Feed only in emergency situations or local weather/regional forage conditions!

Moto of the story let the bees tell you !!!

Why are people talking about feeding.

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We werent.
We were talking about being told that bees must be fed.

klisic said:

Why are people talking about feeding. The last two seasons have been great and no feeding should have been required. Unless they have been mismanaged or the keeper has taken all their honey and not left enough for over winter! My config db which leaves a full bb full of stores which is more than sufficient. Bees will be more healthy eating the food they have collected and not the food we provide!! Feed only in emergency situations or local weather/regional forage conditions!

Moto of the story let the bees tell you !!!

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Well ... that's partly true ... BUT ... what if you had a small colony from a late swarm that had built up in numbers but hadn't managed to completely stock the hive for the winter ... it happens .. so what do you do .. leave them going into winter without sufficient food to see them through ?

That's not mismanagement .... it's circumstances ... whilst I would agree that bees are (IMO) better overwintered on honey of their making you cannot admonish any beekeeper who chooses to feed their bees, for whatever reason, as the alternative could result in their starvation.

If they need fed, feed them. Keep it simple.

For my colony that (probably) needs it, feeding is an unavoidable way of getting thymol into their digestions. At least, if there is a better alternative please let me know. I assume Apiguard helps a bit but not a lot.

Mine are probably OK....they feel heavy enough but I can see uncapped cells at the tops of the frames so I am taking the opportunity to stuff a couple of litres of thymol into their stores.
What's left at the end of this week will come off.

I think the problem is that when you first start you're not sure how much adequate stores is and you tend to play it safe. Some learn to read their bees through observation and experience and begin to know what adequate stores are; the problem is some just do what they have done since they were beginner.

Fatbee said:

I think the problem is that when you first start you're not sure how much adequate stores is and you tend to play it safe. Some learn to read their bees through observation and experience and begin to know what adequate stores are; the problem is some just do what they have done since they were beginner.

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Think in terms of how do they survive when they swarm?

Fatbee said:

I think the problem is that when you first start you're not sure how much adequate stores is and you tend to play it safe. Some learn to read their bees through observation and experience and begin to know what adequate stores are; the problem is some just do what they have done since they were beginner.

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Yes .... It's very hard as there is no hard and fast rules sbout how much a colony needs to overwinter ... So many variables. The only thing I would add is that the importance of hefting or weighing cannot be stressed too much. It's not all about how much stores there is in the hive before winter starts its the rate at which they consume it and what remains for them in the period before they really can see real forage in spring ... Fondant is your best friend if you think they are getting low at the end of winter ... Straight on top of the frames in a plastic bag with some slits cut across it on the side facing down tuwards the bees.

Dishmop said:

Think in terms of how do they survive when they swarm?

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A large percentage don't survive.

So exactly what is the problem with too much feed? It ensures they won't starve over winter, they'll consume it anyway, you'll save on fondant costs, and they'll have space enough in early spring.

Too much feed too early and not enough room for the queen to lay winter bees.
Too many stores over winter then again no room for Spring expansion and consequent early swarming.
This year I had to remove store frames to add drawn brood frames early in the season......and that's with minimal feeding the autumn before.
Something to keep an eye on for early next year.

pargyle said:

the importance of hefting or weighing cannot be stressed too much. It's not all about how much stores there is in the hive before winter starts its the rate at which they consume it

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You get a long mild winter and a clold wet spring (remember only a couple of years ago) when the bees are active and flying every day but with hardly anything out there to forage and they will soon hoover up what they have stashed away - I remember an emergency late winter bulk order to Bako on behalf of the association.