Feeding Bees
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Bill
Apr 29, 2015, 11:16:42 PM4/29/15
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My bees have access to lots of blooming dandelions now. Do I need to feed them any longer?
jeanne hansen
Apr 30, 2015, 8:31:22 AM4/30/15
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Bill,
If they were packages, you still need to feed them until the beginning of June. When you see the black locust trees beginning to bloom, you can stop. Dandelions are nice, but once they end we have a two-week dearth before the black locust, when your packages still need syrup so they can continue drawing comb.
From: Bill <bpu...@gmail.com>
To: mad...@googlegroups.com
Sent: Wednesday, April 29, 2015 10:16 PM
Subject: [madbees] Feeding Bees
My bees have access to lots of blooming dandelions now. Do I need to feed them any longer?
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H. Adam Steinberg
Apr 30, 2015, 9:36:43 AM4/30/15
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Plan on feeding them 25-30lbs of sugar if they are in a new box with no drawn out comb.
On Apr 29, 2015, at 10:16 PM, Bill <bpu...@gmail.com> wrote:
My bees have access to lots of blooming dandelions now. Do I need to feed them any longer?
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Marcus Hagen
Apr 30, 2015, 12:49:33 PM4/30/15
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Just keep feeding until they stop taking it, honestly mine have really not taken much syrup at all, out of 40 some hives I am just getting through a 50lb bag of sugar. Which is way low compared to last year when I was feeding.
Joseph Bessetti
Apr 30, 2015, 2:11:27 PM4/30/15
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For all of you that feed heavily now, I have to ask how you plan to keep that syrup from ending up in your honey crop.
However, I already know the answer. You can't prevent the bees from moving syrup that is in brood chambers up into your supers when you put them on.
For some, this might be a reason to be more selective about feeding practices.
Joe
However, I already know the answer. You can't prevent the bees from moving syrup that is in brood chambers up into your supers when you put them on.
For some, this might be a reason to be more selective about feeding practices.
Joe
> Date: Thu, 30 Apr 2015 09:49:33 -0700
> From: marcm...@gmail.com
> To: mad...@googlegroups.com
> Subject: [madbees] Feeding Bees
> From: marcm...@gmail.com
> To: mad...@googlegroups.com
> Subject: [madbees] Feeding Bees
>
> Just keep feeding until they stop taking it, honestly mine have really not taken much syrup at all, out of 40 some hives I am just getting through a 50lb bag of sugar. Which is way low compared to last year when I was feeding.
>
Paul Zelenski
Apr 30, 2015, 2:29:58 PM4/30/15
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I do not believe the bees move honey as much as some people think. I think everyone who is feeding is also feeding packages, which will not be producing honey for months. Personally I add red food coloring to my feed. That way I can tell if the bees ever move it into the honey supers. I don't feed established hives in the spring, but have never seen any red syrup end up in my supers.
jeanne hansen
Apr 30, 2015, 3:36:31 PM4/30/15
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I'm not feeding "heavily" but my hives have only brood combs. I don't put on honey supers until I see black locust in bloom, and by then, the bees will have eaten up the sugar nectar (I trust.) Inspecting my hives as I do every week, I also feel, with Paul, that the bees utilize the honey that is in their way, rather than move it.
From: Paul Zelenski <paulze...@gmail.com>
To: "mad...@googlegroups.com" <mad...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Thursday, April 30, 2015 1:29 PM
Subject: Re: [madbees] Feeding Bees
Joseph Bessetti
Apr 30, 2015, 4:10:59 PM4/30/15
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It is largely a situational matter. If the brood nest is choked with syrup and you add a super it's more likely to end up in the super because the bees want more space to raise brood.
The "need" to feed is largely situational too, along with being a matter of personal preference. Personally, the only reason I ever see a "need" to feed is to prevent starvation. I really like the fact that the bees are good at collecting their own food, and I like to encourage them to do so.
A number of people have asked if they "should" be feeding, but not all have indicated if they are dealing with a package on foundation, a package on drawn comb, or an established hive. I'm glad to hear you say that you don't feed established hives in the spring--I think that's useful for new beekeepers to hear. If the boxes are all full of drawn comb and the bees have access to honey or nectar they really don't need to be fed. Some think it stimulates brood rearing; I think they are plenty stimulated enough to rear brood by instinct, the season, and the pollen coming in.
I started my packages on drawn comb and gave each a frame or two of honey and pollen. I haven't fed them at all as I didn't really see a point in it. All of the capped honey has been moved out of the initial frames they started in and into cells around the edge of the brood nest. They've also brought in pollen this week and packed it mostly into cells in a ring around the patches of brood. Brood in the center, a ring of pollen around the brood, and honey/nectar around the edges of the frame. It's quite fascinating to see how the bees naturally organize their resources and to watch how this changes as a new hive grows. You miss seeing some of this when you're feeding them heavily because they're sticking the syrup wherever they can find room. You also risk triggering them to swarm early when they're filling the brood nest with syrup.
I'm not trying to vilify feeding. There's just a lot more to the equation than "should I be feeding or not". I think it's important for people to understand why they should feed or why they don't need to feed, and that feeding can cause unintended consequences too. The "why" part of the feeding picture doesn't always come through clearly.
Joe
From: paulze...@gmail.com
The "need" to feed is largely situational too, along with being a matter of personal preference. Personally, the only reason I ever see a "need" to feed is to prevent starvation. I really like the fact that the bees are good at collecting their own food, and I like to encourage them to do so.
A number of people have asked if they "should" be feeding, but not all have indicated if they are dealing with a package on foundation, a package on drawn comb, or an established hive. I'm glad to hear you say that you don't feed established hives in the spring--I think that's useful for new beekeepers to hear. If the boxes are all full of drawn comb and the bees have access to honey or nectar they really don't need to be fed. Some think it stimulates brood rearing; I think they are plenty stimulated enough to rear brood by instinct, the season, and the pollen coming in.
I started my packages on drawn comb and gave each a frame or two of honey and pollen. I haven't fed them at all as I didn't really see a point in it. All of the capped honey has been moved out of the initial frames they started in and into cells around the edge of the brood nest. They've also brought in pollen this week and packed it mostly into cells in a ring around the patches of brood. Brood in the center, a ring of pollen around the brood, and honey/nectar around the edges of the frame. It's quite fascinating to see how the bees naturally organize their resources and to watch how this changes as a new hive grows. You miss seeing some of this when you're feeding them heavily because they're sticking the syrup wherever they can find room. You also risk triggering them to swarm early when they're filling the brood nest with syrup.
I'm not trying to vilify feeding. There's just a lot more to the equation than "should I be feeding or not". I think it's important for people to understand why they should feed or why they don't need to feed, and that feeding can cause unintended consequences too. The "why" part of the feeding picture doesn't always come through clearly.
Joe
From: paulze...@gmail.com
Subject: Re: [madbees] Feeding Bees
Date: Thu, 30 Apr 2015 11:29:53 -0700
To: mad...@googlegroups.com
To: mad...@googlegroups.com
jeanne hansen
Apr 30, 2015, 4:26:27 PM4/30/15
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Joe, you are so right. Thanks for the lucid explanation!
From: Joseph Bessetti <jbes...@hotmail.com>
To: "mad...@googlegroups.com" <mad...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Thursday, April 30, 2015 3:10 PM
Subject: RE: [madbees] Feeding Bees
Paul Zelenski
Apr 30, 2015, 5:33:26 PM4/30/15
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Good points all around, Joe. People should especially be asking "why" and thinking about the reasons for doing things. When answering questions on email, we always are making assumptions based on limited info and doing our best. This time of year most people are installing packages. Imo packages on foundation NEED to be fed. Packages on comb probably should be fed. If they were given frames of honey, it might not be necessary. It does help a hive to grow faster to have resources readily available. You are spot on, though, that they will fill the empty comb with syrup if it's warm enough and they have the workforce. Definitely something to keep an eye on.
Feeding can stimulate brood production. It simulates a flow, which stimulates brood. But, there are also unintended consequences to an artificial flow. I agree that the bees will be stimulated by natural sources to raise brood when the time is right. You can, however, get unnaturally strong hives by feeding early. Some beeks have a use for that.
I do question how much the bees move honey, though. You say that your bees moved they honey to the outside. My experience (with colored) syrup is that they don't move honey, but rather use the honey and put the new nectar in the new location. This might not always be the case, but it has been most common for me.
Marcus Hagen
Apr 30, 2015, 6:30:32 PM4/30/15
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I agree with I you Joe if they are filling the brood best with syrup then its tome to stop feeding or else start making splits. I am also kind of skeptical about them moving syrup through the hive I also dye my syrup and have never found green dye in any supers. I also assumed that most people had packages on foundation but you are right there are consequences for heavily feeding.
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