feeding this time around?

General Discussion of Diary Posts and Questions on Beekeeping Matters
Post Reply
User avatar
Dieter
Forum Regular
Posts: 16
Joined: March 18th, 2014, 10:50 pm

feeding this time around?

Unread post by Dieter »

I have some hives with the feeder pails still on. Some are quite heavy. Do I leave them on or do I remove them and winterize i.e. insulate the hive?
In more general terms, when does it make sense to feed the bees and when is it a waste of effort? Would bees take syrup during warm days?

Also, I had an increasing weak hive which I made every effort throughout the fall to carry them through, feeding syrup and patties as much as they would take. The bees nibbled on the patties but hardly accepted the syrup for the most part. Now the hive is dead, why??? There is one and a half hand full of dead bees. Why did they not grasp the syrup and pattie lifeline?
Only the bees know and hopefully Allen.

Thanks,
Dieter
User avatar
cam bishop
Forum Regular
Posts: 321
Joined: November 7th, 2010, 5:37 am
Location: Spencer, MA
Contact:

Re: feeding this time around?

Unread post by cam bishop »

Don't know where you're located but it's too late to be feeding bees unless you are in a pretty warm area. Bees will take syrup on warm days but it builds moisture in the hive and that can be deadly. If you need to continue feeding because they are light I recommend a sugar block, fondant or [my least favorite] sugar poured on a newspaper sheet on the top bars.

First question on the dead hive is "What was the mite count?" In my experience that will generally tell you why the hive died. It also might have gone queenless, particularly if they weren't eating the patty. Did you check for eggs/brood?
Cam Bishop
circle7honey.com
Millbury, MA
42°11'07.58"N 71°46'19.79"W
Allen Dick
Site Admin
Posts: 1824
Joined: February 25th, 2003, 10:09 pm
Location: Swalwell, Alberta
Contact:

Re: feeding this time around?

Unread post by Allen Dick »

Also, I had an increasing weak hive which I made every effort throughout the fall to carry them through, feeding syrup and patties as much as they would take. The bees nibbled on the patties but hardly accepted the syrup for the most part. Now the hive is dead, why??? There is one and a half hand full of dead bees. Why did they not grasp the syrup and pattie lifeline?
Hard to say. there could be many reasons and I would not worry about it. Sometimes there is no lesson to be learned.

If losses are much above expectations, then an autopsy and further investigation is warranted, but normal losses should only be checked for obvious enduring issues like AFB and the boxes put away. Some sterilize and go to great lengths, but I never worry about such things. Strong colonies of good bees, well cared for, can handle the deadout combs and shouldn't be bothered much unless they are challenged by dirty deadout comb too early in spring before they reach full strength.

Bees, like all organisms are variable. In any group of similar colonies, a percentage are exceptionally good and a percentage are exceptionally bad.

It is the good ones that make the honey and require the least bother. Poor hives and deadouts can be a distraction from managing the good colonies and are a waste of resources.

Stockmen and animal breeders seldom keep runts around. They get rid of them fast. Most successful beekeepers would have shaken out the weak hive in fall, put away the equipment, and forgotten about it by now.

Experienced beekeepers always have more colonies than they really want and think nothing of eliminating the weak ones after giving them an opportunity to prove themselves.

It is always a good idea to combine or otherwise eliminate the worst 10% of colonies after the honey season.
Allen Dick, RR#1 Swalwell, Alberta, Canada T0M 1Y0
51° 33'39.64"N 113°18'52.45"W
http://www.honeybeeworld.com/Allen%27s%20Beehives.kmz
Forum owner/janitor
---
Customise your experience at Honeybeeworld Forum at your User control Panel
Change the appearance and layout with your Board Preferences
Please upload your own avatar picture at Edit Avatar. It's easy!
Return to main diary page
Post Reply