Crystallised supers back to bees

[Eyeman]

Ok - most agree that the crystallised honey in a super frame should have the cappings scratched and then sprayed with water before giving it back to the bees.
Any consensus as to where should the frame / frames be placed. Or doesn't it matter?
Some options:
1. Alternating with frames of foundation in a super which is then placed over the queen excluder.
2. Below the brood box?
3. Above the crown board with the feeder open?
4. Into a strong colony ?
5 Into a less strong colony with space in the brood chamber?

Thanks for any suggestions

 

[beeno]

Presumably it is OSR, so I would only use it to make up nucs or nadir the super later, so that they can move it up into brood box for winter stores.

 

[Finman]

I am just giving to my hives last summer crystallized honey frames.

I have over 10 years experince about this, and I do not start to think new ideaa from beginners. I have really much teached British beekeepers, how to handle crystallized frames.

I wonder, why advices cannot be in fixed text in forum. Again, and again.


First, do not give than 1-2 frames armt same time. Bees have not capacity too much to do this kind of work.

I use now there ways


- artificial swarm. 3 crystallized frames in one group. Then others foundations.
The Queen wants to lay in old combs, and bees eate the honey and draw foundations..

- 2 frames into between larva frames


- rape honey is coarse, and bees handle it like sand. They carry out the stones.

But brake the capping. Spray water on then.

Out in upper box such 2 frames. Not more.
Bees lick about 1-2 mm sugar from surface.
Next day take the frames of. Shake the bees, and dip the frames into 40C water.

Let the sugar melt a while and return the frame to the hive. Now bees continue by themselves the cleaning and mission executed.

Let some day brake and when weathers are again bad, do the same.

.

 

[thenovice]

I am just giving to my hives last summer crystallized honey frames.

I have over 10 years experince about this, and I do not start to think new ideaa from beginners. I have really much teached British beekeepers, how to handle crystallized frames.

I wonder, why advices cannot be in fixed text in forum. Again, and again.


First, do not give than 1-2 frames armt same time. Bees have not capacity too much to do this kind of work.

I use now there ways


- artificial swarm. 3 crystallized frames in one group. Then others foundations.
The Queen wants to lay in old combs, and bees eate the honey and draw foundations..

- 2 frames into between larva frames


- rape honey is coarse, and bees handle it like sand. They carry out the stones.

But brake the capping. Spray water on then.

Out in upper box such 2 frames. Not more.
Bees lick about 1-2 mm sugar from surface.
Next day take the frames of. Shake the bees, and dip the frames into 40C water.

Let the sugar melt a while and return the frame to the hive. Now bees continue by themselves the cleaning and mission executed.

Let some day brake and when weathers are again bad, do the same.

.

this looks interesting advice but I struggle to reconstruct the literary translation to English. Can some native help out?

 

[YorkshireBees]

Ok - most agree that the crystallised honey in a super frame should have the cappings scratched and then sprayed with water before giving it back to the bees.
Any consensus as to where should the frame / frames be placed. Or doesn't it matter?
Some options:
1. Alternating with frames of foundation in a super which is then placed over the queen excluder.
2. Below the brood box?
3. Above the crown board with the feeder open?
4. Into a strong colony ?
5 Into a less strong colony with space in the brood chamber?

Thanks for any suggestions

It depends on your circumstances and the state of a colony.

Personally I have just added a super of part crystallised honey onto 2 different colonies that are short of stores for building up brood / foundation. I sprayed each frame (both sides) with a water mister and added the super as normal above a QE. (*They don't have any super other than this*)
I will leave it a week and inspect to see how they are doing.
I nadired some supers last Winter but found the wax was very dirty in the Spring when I removed them so personally I won't use that method again.

 

[Finman]

this looks interesting advice but I struggle to reconstruct the literary translation to English. Can some native help out?

Interesting

 

[Eyeman]

It's not OSR honey but left over stuff from 2015 that I've just got around to trying to deal with.
Finman I've read you description before but it didn't say where to place the crystallised frames.
As they are shallow frames I don't want to put them in the brood box so the AS option is out.
Will go for 2-3 frames in a box of foundation over the QE and see how they go.
Thanks

 

[Finman]

Will go for 2-3 frames in a box of foundation over the QE and see how they go.
Thanks

Sounds good. I am doing the same

 

[sean-a]

this looks interesting advice but I struggle to reconstruct the literary translation to English. Can some native help out?

Perhaps if your Finnish and Russian is up to scratch you could ask in either of those.

I like to learn and Finman has a lot of experience he is happy to share. His English is a lot better than my Finnish.