- Joined
- Sep 4, 2019
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- Location
- Melbourne, Australia
- Hive Type
- Langstroth
The subject of “feeding bees” has received much attention, from many people, over a very long period of time. Many opinions have been expressed, and these have even led to disagreement.
I have suggested four questions, “Why? When? Where? How?” I could even suggest a fifth question - “What?” What should we feed to them?
If we did not feed them at all, the bees would eat honey which they have stored. So the question of What? actually becomes “What other food could we provide for them if they do not have enough honey?” Perhaps the real question should be “Why should we feed them at all?”
Bees are being kept in many parts of the world, and some of these places have climates where feral bees could not survive at all – for example places which have very cold winters. In situations like these it becomes very easy to understand that bees need assistance through the winter – they need extra food to keep themselves warm enough through the cold of winter. But sometimes they need to be provided with food because their keeper may have removed too much of their stored treasure of “liquid gold”.
The almost universal answer which is given is to use sugar – sucrose – whether that is refined from sugarcane or sugarbeet. The recommendation is also to use white sugar, and not raw sugar. But then the question becomes: “Should we use syrup, or fondant, or candy or . . . . . ?” And then, “If we feed syrup, what concentration should it be? 1:1? or 2:1? or something else?”
For those who want to feed fondant, there are warnings (or at least cautions) about the toxicity of Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) to bees. There are also cautions about the use of baker’s fondant which includes ingredients which we enjoy, but which may not be helpful to bees. And then there is the very real consideration of how much time, care, and effort which is required by anyone who wishes to make fondant for their bees. I know that at least some beekeepers consider that fondant-making is a labour-consuming process.
For those who have decided that their bees need to be fed, the question has often been asked, “When should I feed?” Should it be in the last few weeks before winter? Should it be in Spring? It is known that bees may ignore syrup which has been provided for them if the syrup becomes too cool for them. When syrup remains within the reach of the bees but they ignore it because it is too cool, the syrup may become mouldy and thus may be unusable even it it was warmed again. There is also the concern of syrup being stored by the bees and capped as fake honey.
When bees have sufficient stored honey, and do not need to be fed, it will have a moisture level which is consistent with honey which is harvested. The bees need a source of water to dilute it before they consume it. Likewise, when bees are fed fondant, or candy, or granulated sugar they need water to dissolve it before they can consume it. If bees have access to their own stored honey they will use it when they are not able to forage for nectar. If they are able to gather nectar, they will do so, and use the nectar for their immediate food requirements, rather than just rely on their stored honey.
Beekeepers who supply fondant for their bees leave a supply of it above the honey frames so that the bees can have ready access to it through the cold winter months. Sugar in solid form is usable by the bees, even though syrup may be ignored by them in the same time period.
It is a well established fact that bees will feed on granular sugar, although the observation has been made that bees will sometimes remove it from their hive. I have found that if granular sugar has been moistened, and then been compacted into a suitable tray, then it will dry out to a hard “cake” which the bees will feed from. If the grains of sugar are “cemented together” the bees do not remove them from the hive. I read very recently of a beekeeper using syrup to moisten granulated sugar, to produce hard blocks of caked sugar. The method is very simple, and requires only little effort. The resulting sugar cakes can be placed on the hive frames in the same way as fondant. They can be left in place in the hive throughout the winter time when feeding may be required. The sugar cakes will be maintained at a temperature where the bees have easy access to them. The bees will feed on them when they do not have sufficient stores of their own. I have come to the conclusion that this kind of sugar cake may have more advantages than other methods of feeding sugar to bees.
Years ago I enjoyed watching Professor Julius Sumner Miller as he presented many different demonstrations of a scientific nature, in a TV program which was titled, “Why Is It So?”. He died in 1987, so it is possible that some readers of this forum may not have heard of him. The following two paragraphs quote a couple of his memorable pieces of advice.
What we do, if we are successful, is to stir interest in the matter at hand, awaken enthusiasm for it, arouse curiosity, kindle a feeling, fire up the imagination.
The intellectual process must be stirred. A feeling for knowledge for its own sake must be engendered. Learning will then be an exciting adventure which few can escape, nor will many wish to. And it will bring the spirit to a great awakening which can likely last a lifetime.
A quick Google search has provided this brief introduction to him:
Julius Sumner Miller
Why is it so? - the ground-breaking TV series with the enigmatic Professor Julius Sumner Miller - ran on the ABC from 1963 to 1986. ... series, and made them available for twenty first century enjoyment - over both dialup or broadband connections. Now you too can watch some 'enchanting experiments' with the good professor!
Julius Sumner Miller was an American physicist and television personality. He was born on May 17, 1909 in Billerica, Massachusetts, USA, and died on April 14, 1987 in San Jose, California, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for The Hilarious House of Frightenstein (1971), Why Is It So? (1963) and The Don Lane Show (1975). He was married to Alice Brown
At least some of those programs are still available on Youtube.
I have suggested four questions, “Why? When? Where? How?” I could even suggest a fifth question - “What?” What should we feed to them?
If we did not feed them at all, the bees would eat honey which they have stored. So the question of What? actually becomes “What other food could we provide for them if they do not have enough honey?” Perhaps the real question should be “Why should we feed them at all?”
Bees are being kept in many parts of the world, and some of these places have climates where feral bees could not survive at all – for example places which have very cold winters. In situations like these it becomes very easy to understand that bees need assistance through the winter – they need extra food to keep themselves warm enough through the cold of winter. But sometimes they need to be provided with food because their keeper may have removed too much of their stored treasure of “liquid gold”.
The almost universal answer which is given is to use sugar – sucrose – whether that is refined from sugarcane or sugarbeet. The recommendation is also to use white sugar, and not raw sugar. But then the question becomes: “Should we use syrup, or fondant, or candy or . . . . . ?” And then, “If we feed syrup, what concentration should it be? 1:1? or 2:1? or something else?”
For those who want to feed fondant, there are warnings (or at least cautions) about the toxicity of Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) to bees. There are also cautions about the use of baker’s fondant which includes ingredients which we enjoy, but which may not be helpful to bees. And then there is the very real consideration of how much time, care, and effort which is required by anyone who wishes to make fondant for their bees. I know that at least some beekeepers consider that fondant-making is a labour-consuming process.
For those who have decided that their bees need to be fed, the question has often been asked, “When should I feed?” Should it be in the last few weeks before winter? Should it be in Spring? It is known that bees may ignore syrup which has been provided for them if the syrup becomes too cool for them. When syrup remains within the reach of the bees but they ignore it because it is too cool, the syrup may become mouldy and thus may be unusable even it it was warmed again. There is also the concern of syrup being stored by the bees and capped as fake honey.
When bees have sufficient stored honey, and do not need to be fed, it will have a moisture level which is consistent with honey which is harvested. The bees need a source of water to dilute it before they consume it. Likewise, when bees are fed fondant, or candy, or granulated sugar they need water to dissolve it before they can consume it. If bees have access to their own stored honey they will use it when they are not able to forage for nectar. If they are able to gather nectar, they will do so, and use the nectar for their immediate food requirements, rather than just rely on their stored honey.
Beekeepers who supply fondant for their bees leave a supply of it above the honey frames so that the bees can have ready access to it through the cold winter months. Sugar in solid form is usable by the bees, even though syrup may be ignored by them in the same time period.
It is a well established fact that bees will feed on granular sugar, although the observation has been made that bees will sometimes remove it from their hive. I have found that if granular sugar has been moistened, and then been compacted into a suitable tray, then it will dry out to a hard “cake” which the bees will feed from. If the grains of sugar are “cemented together” the bees do not remove them from the hive. I read very recently of a beekeeper using syrup to moisten granulated sugar, to produce hard blocks of caked sugar. The method is very simple, and requires only little effort. The resulting sugar cakes can be placed on the hive frames in the same way as fondant. They can be left in place in the hive throughout the winter time when feeding may be required. The sugar cakes will be maintained at a temperature where the bees have easy access to them. The bees will feed on them when they do not have sufficient stores of their own. I have come to the conclusion that this kind of sugar cake may have more advantages than other methods of feeding sugar to bees.
Years ago I enjoyed watching Professor Julius Sumner Miller as he presented many different demonstrations of a scientific nature, in a TV program which was titled, “Why Is It So?”. He died in 1987, so it is possible that some readers of this forum may not have heard of him. The following two paragraphs quote a couple of his memorable pieces of advice.
What we do, if we are successful, is to stir interest in the matter at hand, awaken enthusiasm for it, arouse curiosity, kindle a feeling, fire up the imagination.
The intellectual process must be stirred. A feeling for knowledge for its own sake must be engendered. Learning will then be an exciting adventure which few can escape, nor will many wish to. And it will bring the spirit to a great awakening which can likely last a lifetime.
A quick Google search has provided this brief introduction to him:
Julius Sumner Miller
Why is it so? - the ground-breaking TV series with the enigmatic Professor Julius Sumner Miller - ran on the ABC from 1963 to 1986. ... series, and made them available for twenty first century enjoyment - over both dialup or broadband connections. Now you too can watch some 'enchanting experiments' with the good professor!
Julius Sumner Miller was an American physicist and television personality. He was born on May 17, 1909 in Billerica, Massachusetts, USA, and died on April 14, 1987 in San Jose, California, USA. He was an actor and writer, known for The Hilarious House of Frightenstein (1971), Why Is It So? (1963) and The Don Lane Show (1975). He was married to Alice Brown
At least some of those programs are still available on Youtube.
