Any ideas-? Stores light....

[beeno]

chewed up wax at the entrance usually indicates a furry friend sneaking in. Worth a quick check.

Hi Chris B,
They cannot get into that one!

 

[oliver90owner]

You do realise you've totally made me think yet again on my emergency feeding

More to this lark than meets the eye. I rarely need to feed before late February when a relatively small amount (before 1:1 can be utilised) needs to go on. One advantage of the 14 x 12.

So, size of brood box, type and other points need to be taken into account. I fed on the top bars once and then modified my strategy, to more suit my beekeeping methods, after that.

Much better, of course, to get the feeding done before tucking them up ready for them to slumber away the colder months completely undisturbed; particularly important for the inexperienced. Those inexperienced will have less excuse next year, but I suspect the same discussions will arise...

 

[Chris B]

RAB, I've had numerous "have you got any spare fondant" conversations recently. Bees have been well fed with syrup but have burned too much of it up through flying or brood rearing. I'm inclined to believe people haven't done much wrong but the hives are still not heavy enough. Just a slightly unusual year, highlighting the need to adapt accordingly.

 

[beeno]

judging by the amount of pollen going in

I don't use that a a sign of more than it is warm enough to forage, and pollen is available, at this time of the year.

Hi RAB,
Particularly two hives are actually collecting more pollen than at the height of summer and they are Italians! There has been other warm days here with pollen availability on par, but not so much collected which suggests to me that it is cyclical i.e. new brood cycle.

 

[BeeJayBee]

That very much depends on a load of circumstances, we are feeding bees syrup TODAY. One truck out with a tank to give 94 hives a bit more before winter.

However these are poly hives with poly feeders, and we KNOW it works

Do you leave the poly feeders on all year round, complete with syrup through the colder months?

Although I've put fondant directly onto the top of frames without any problems, I've heard it said locally that there's a risk of it dripping between the frames and encasing bees.

The bakers fondant we use comes in a thick blue polythene wrapper, we cut fondant and polythene at the same time because it's less messy, then rearrange the polythene so there's an access gap. They don't destroy this blue stuff, but they will waste time shredding clingfilm and taking it from the hive.

 

[oliver90owner]

collecting more pollen than at the height of summer

ROFL. Which day was that? Sorry but I must have missed it this year!

Italians is a better sign (or is that a symptom?).

 

[Into the lions den]

You do realise you've totally made me think yet again on my emergency feeding .

You mention HD poly bags - you mean the ones couriers use? I brought some of the Fondabee 2.5kg premade stuff im assuming from what you've said im better putting 5kg on around xmas time after doing oxalic acid treatment. (Although I had ~8 langstroth frames of food on both hives they didn't weigh loads but enough to get to xmas id say as same hives as you).

HD Poly bags are the cheap thing whitish rustly ones. Costs about 7 quid for 1000 from the local stationery wholesaler. The ones we bought were described as 'vest carriers'. Get big ones, way bigger than you think you need. Tesco carrier bags or similar are just as good if not better.

 

[Into the lions den]

Do you leave the poly feeders on all year round, complete with syrup through the colder months?

Although I've put fondant directly onto the top of frames without any problems, I've heard it said locally that there's a risk of it dripping between the frames and encasing bees.

The bakers fondant we use comes in a thick blue polythene wrapper, we cut fondant and polythene at the same time because it's less messy, then rearrange the polythene so there's an access gap. They don't destroy this blue stuff, but they will waste time shredding clingfilm and taking it from the hive.

We leave the poly feeders on from the autumn feed time until removal in spring. If the bees are OK and they have not finished their syrup we just leave it on. Proper invert bee feeds are sufficiently concentrated that they do not ferment.

Have probably fed over 75 tonnes of fondant over the years though none recently. We do not remove the blue polythene, just cut it along with the block, and once you bag the block here is always one white face inside the HD bad, and this is the face we choose to slash and expose the fondant and invert over the cluster.

Have NEVER seen fondant drip down between the frames and entomb the bees. I HAVE seen some of this happen and fondant drip a little from the surface and and be on top of bees that were already dead, usually a small queenless colony or similar. The fondant dripping happened AFTER colony death and was never the cause of it. Maybe 20 hives in 30 years of using the product. ( For the true significance, this is less than a colony a year out of over 1000 per year on fondant.)

The bes have a great time in late winter and early spring trying to shred and remove the HD poly bag material. it just keeps the house cleaners active, and even then its no big deal. Birds collect the shredded remnants the bees drag out for nest lining.

 

[richardbees]

Lion,

I agree with Chris B - as my shallower wooden Nationals already heft lighter than i'd expect for mid-November. They don't need emergency fondant but if I thought they did, as I anticipate trickling OA in about a months time, I couldn't put fondant direct on top of the frames....

 

[Into the lions den]

I couldn't put fondant direct on top of the frames....

Why not? We used to just lift the cake and trickle, then replace the cake. Bear in mind its in a bag accessed vis a slot, not a big exposed surface.

800 of our hives are Smiths btw.....exactly the same brood box size as the National.