Feeding Bees though the winter.

Beekeeping & Apiculture Forum

Help Support Beekeeping & Apiculture Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

als_bees

New Bee
Joined
Dec 26, 2009
Messages
7
Reaction score
0
Location
Lincolnshire
Hive Type
National
Number of Hives
5
Hi fellow friends, I wish to do my own sugar feed this winter. I have used Thornes fondant before, but this year I wish to make my own. Dose anybody have any recipes - mix quantities. I am going to put it in margarine tubs to set. I have tried it once and it did not set. Anybody help with this.
 
Hi fellow friends, I wish to do my own sugar feed this winter. I have used Thornes fondant before, but this year I wish to make my own. Dose anybody have any recipes - mix quantities. I am going to put it in margarine tubs to set. I have tried it once and it did not set. Anybody help with this.

I make my own fondant and use this receipe.


http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/archive/index.php/t-82.html

Cheers
S

PS you do not want the mix to set too hard
 
i'm a newbee - whats the advantage of fondant over sugar syrup?
 
whats the advantage of fondant over sugar syrup?

You can't feed sugar syrup in the middle of winter. That is about the only one, apart from ease of use - asolid as opposed to a liquid to handle.

Regards, RAB
 
i'll get some made for winter/spring then
 
In order to use syrup remember to feed early - you should be feeding as soon as the veroa treatment has finished. (mid Sep)
Feed them as much as they will take- don’t forget you stole all their stores (honey) so you must replace it. They need time to take it down and convert it to useable stores. If you give them sugar syrup directly in the winter, they will try to use it before storage and natural evaporation, This will cause dysentery
We take a frame of stores from brood chamber in the hive during the height of the season and freeze it. Then in spring, when they need it most we defrost and give them back (end March/April)

NEVER EVER FEED YOUR BEES COMMERICAL HONEY FROM A JAR – It contains all kinds of bad news!
 
Thks people I will have a go this weekend. I bet the misses will go bonkers when she see what I am doing with her pan.
 
I bet the misses will go bonkers when she see what I am doing with her pan.

I think many of us have been there at some point.
I remember the first time I used half the kitchen utensils to make wax candles..
 
What wrong with just buying it? Surley it is the more cost effective (your time, energy for warming, and materials cost) V 12Kg slabs at about £8-10 each.

Nothing wrong with buying it but you get an awful lot of fondant from a 25Kg bag of sugar and £2 bottle of glucose syrup. Tight or what?

You can also add anything you like, I like to add fructose as well !

Cheers
S
 
What wrong with just buying it? Surley it is the more cost effective (your time, energy for warming, and materials cost) V 12Kg slabs at about £8-10 each.

and you wont suffer severe injury from a rolling pin..
 
1Kg of fondant takes me about 15 mins.

Sugar I get for 56p a Kg.
 
and you wont suffer severe injury from a rolling pin..

And the extra cost buying a new handbag and or shoes and or (or as well as)a meal out:driving::bigear:

I will stick with buying fondant:cuss::leaving: And thats from a tight Yorkshire Man
 
i'll get some made for winter/spring then

In spring you can go back to syrup. Some authors suggest very thin syrup to imitate nectar, so the bees think there's a good flow on and breed accordingly- I would have thought particularly good if you've got pollen coming in but no nectar, eg if you have willow nearby.
 
And the extra cost buying a new handbag and or shoes and or (or as well as)a meal out:driving::bigear:

I will stick with buying fondant:cuss::leaving: And thats from a tight Yorkshire Man


I guess it depends how much you need.

5 hives, maybe you are right.
 
Do you put it on the crown board over the holes or on top of the brood frames in the winter. Also do you need to put some honey on it to let the bees know its there?
 
I saw an american beekeeper adding salt to his syrup to stop it freezing.
Anyone tried this in the uk?
 
666bee, I warm an egg sized chunk in my hands and slowly press it down through the hole in the cover board....and replace as used.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top