Communal feeding

[Oaktreepotter]

With 11 hives and only four box (Miller-type) feeders, it occurred to me that there might be some merit in setting these up as communal feeding stations. ie Set up the four boxes in different places in the apiary with syrup, the bees from different hives would enter from below as normal and take the syrup back to their respectve hives - job done! The advantage would be they would take back only what they needed, there would be no robbing as they would simply be collecting from a 'nectar' source as if it were a patch of flowers. It also means I can feed all 11 hives at the same time.

So there must be a downside to this cunning plan or everybody would be doing it........please list these below!

Thanks.

Chris

 

[bees4u]

Not a good idea I'm afraid, any other bees in the area will come & rob this feed and you have a risk of disease spreading. It could cause robbing, any of your hives not quite as strong as the others may well be robbed out. to make spare feeders, use an empty super, any flat tray, fill with syrup & float straw on top of the surface so the bees don't drown, make sure surface is completely covered. The other problem may be time of year now, getting too cold for them to take it down. Good luck regards Jean

 

[Into the lions den]

Apart from the obvious potential for disease spread.........

In the Uk you are unlikely to be far from other bees, or should I say outwith flying distance from other bees.........I am sure your neighbours will be very thankful for the donation of part of their winter feed from you. To some extent you will be providing a degree of free feed to every hive so minded to come and get it within perhaps a mile at this time of year.

This system (using open topped steel drums, the syrup covered with straw, and then some arrangement to keep the rain out) is common in places where there are large apiaries spread far apart ( it is common in Canada), and especially if a single operator has a vast number of hives to feed in a short time.

The lack of Miller feeders need not stop you feeding all at once internally either. tip the frames out of some of your supers back at the shed, get a supply of 'zip lock' poly bags (resealable style ones often sold in freezer places etc). Pour your syrup into a ziplock bag, lay the bag flat onto the top bars of the brood box, and usin a Stanley knife or similar sharp blade, slit the top surface of the bag a few times. The bees will feed perfectly happily from the cuts. Put your empty super on top to serve like an eke. Repeat as many times as needed to give the bees all they need for winter.

Honest...........it DOES work.

ps.........have been asked this by someone a bit too mean to buy a new bag each time.........you CAN refill them, but strictly in situ. Just open one of the slashes up a bit with your fingers, and with a jug or whatever pour syrup into the bag again until almost full.

 

[Tom Bick]

Not tried the zip bag myself but seen it in action and it definitely works.

 

[Into the lions den]

Just to back up Jean, an alternative is any open topped container, as she says covered with straw or other floating material for the bees to walk in and not drown in the syrup, again with the empty super round about to keep the other bees away.

Slightly surprised at the 'too cold for syrup' type advice. we are still hard at the syrup feeding, and the bees are hard at taking it down. Currently taking about 7 days to process 14Kg (10 litres) of invert syrup in a feder with a plastic barrier which slightly restricts the number of bees able to get at the syrup at one time. Taking about 3 or 4 days if the barrier is out and straw used instead. We can keep going with this for a couple of weeks yet.

Maybe feeding arrangement is different for you. We scrapped all our traditionally made wooden (ashforth style) hivetop feeders in recent seasons as they did indeed cut a couple of weeks off the syrup taking window.

By tonight the last of our wooden hives will have their syrup on, but they do have a full size hivetop poly feeder which gives a lot of warmth.

The full poly hives with poly feeders will take syrup pretty well for at least another month.

 

[Midland Beek]

Feeding syrup to the bees belonging to other beekeepers in your district is not acceptable beekeeping practice.

 

[mbc]

By tonight the last of our wooden hives will have their syrup on, but they do have a full size hivetop poly feeder which gives a lot of warmth.

Any chance of some piccies of these feeders ?

 

[Chris B]

Another downside of open feeding - it only works when bees are flying, maybe only 8 hours a day at present. A feeder on the hive can potentially operate 24 hours a day.

 

[newportbuzz]

if you could be fairly sure of not feeding other peoples bees would it be worth while stationing these feeding stations beyond the threshold for the food within X distance all out the door response and within the directional instructions window.

cant find figures to hand right now but i seem to rember 30 yards as the threshold so if a feeding site was situated at 45 yards would it actually start robbing?

 

[bees4u]

Just to back up Jean, an alternative is any open topped container, as she says covered with straw or other floating material for the bees to walk in and not drown in the syrup, again with the empty super round about to keep the other bees away.

Slightly surprised at the 'too cold for syrup' type advice. we are still hard at the syrup feeding, and the bees are hard at taking it down. Currently taking about 7 days to process 14Kg (10 litres) of invert syrup in a feder with a plastic barrier which slightly restricts the number of bees able to get at the syrup at one time. Taking about 3 or 4 days if the barrier is out and straw used instead. We can keep going with this for a couple of weeks yet.

Maybe feeding arrangement is different for you. We scrapped all our traditionally made wooden (ashforth style) hivetop feeders in recent seasons as they did indeed cut a couple of weeks off the syrup taking window.

By tonight the last of our wooden hives will have their syrup on, but they do have a full size hivetop poly feeder which gives a lot of warmth.

The full poly hives with poly feeders will take syrup pretty well for at least another month.

Yes I agree with you L/D they will take the syrup down for some time yet if the weather doesn't get too cold, once they go into cluster some times they can't find the feed again & need it trickled down to remind them. Also there is a point that it needs to be capped because if it hasn't got thymol in it, late feed can ferment

 

[Chris Luck]

I feed using large open containers starting in February mainly with the previous years wax capping and residues, but also containing honey and sugar syrup. This is placed in an open sided field shelter on metal supports about 1.5 metres from the ground. Distance from nearest hives about 30 metres in all cases and it works just fine.

I also find it's an attractant, (the honey), for any Asian Hornet queens that are floating around which presents a great opportunity to kill them before they even think about setting up home.

I wouldn't do it in late summer / autumn.

Chris

 

[Into the lions den]

Also there is a point that it needs to be capped because if it hasn't got thymol in it, late feed can ferment

We use syrup that is 72% solids. It never ferments. Even if the bees are unable to take it all in autumn, so long they took enough to survive they can come up and take little bits all through winter if mild enough, and finish it off in spring. they can direct store this stuff, even wihtout sealing, and there are no problems.

 

[Into the lions den]

Any chance of some piccies of these feeders ?

I can get my son to take some pics of the ones we have for the wooden Langstroths (made in Canada), and the Smiths (made in Poland from my own mould), and maybe one for the poly Smith/National (made in Sweden).

However, they differ little from the hivetop feeder that you can see me lifting aside to see what was in the nest area of a hive in my album showing the Co-op bees in Scotland last winter......fwiw these were the small ones that did not take all their syrup in autumn, but by the start of April it had all gone and the hives were steaming ahead. To bees4u: as per my reply to you, this is 72% syrup, and was already at least five months old at the time of the pictures, four of which would have been while on the hives.

 

[mbc]

Just had a bowse through your albums itld, great pictures and interesting captions, thank you.
So the poly national feeders also have a baffle to the side of the feeder like the one in the feeder ?

 

[Into the lions den]

yes.......a slot the bees can come up, and a compartment they gain access to the syrup but cannot get into the syrup to drown..........also slightly slows down the rate they take it al which prolongs the stimulus it gives.

 

[Oaktreepotter]

Thanks to everyone for their contributions. Lots of food for thought.

Chris

 

[drstitson]

"We use syrup that is 72% solids. It never ferments"

would that be food of the gods?

but why then do we have problems with honey >20% water and fermentation if 28% ok? natural yeasts on pollen etc.?

 

[Finman]

.
why don't you bye more feeders.

Open feeding is nonsense.

 

[Chris Luck]

Open feeding is nonsense.

That's that then, definitively that.

Chris

 

[Vergilius]

With 11 hives and only four box (Miller-type) feeders

Why??? Before expansion, you should consider whether you have enough equipment to cater for all the colonies - and if you don't, buy/make more before the time you need it...

I think everyone agrees that open feeding is a big no-no.

Ben P