Fondant as a backup

[Do224]

As mentioned elsewhere, I'll be feeding my bees invert until they're at 40lb stores. Given my inexperience and that I REALLY dont want to lose my bees over winter I'm also thinking I'll add a couple of kgs of fondant over the feeder hole as a backup...

Does this sound like a reasonable idea and if so, can I just put the fondant on after I finish feeding syrup or do I need to wait and put it on later in the winter?

 

[blackcloud]

You can be safe and put it on now or smarter and put it on later if it's actually needed. Its more the varroa load that will cause losses.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Does this sound like a reasonable idea and if so, can I just put the fondant on after I finish feeding syrup or do I need to wait and put it on later in the winter?

If your frugal black bees have 40lb of stores I doubt you’ll need any. Review in February

 

[B_north]

The thing I have found with feeding sugar, or fondant for that matter, early, is that if we got a cold snap that lasted the little buggers settled up on the sugar and would not move back down.
This did not happen to all my hives but one just seemed to be content to hang out in the warm humid top and eat the sugar first. They moved down later in the winter. The opposite is the preferred way, stores first sugar last.

Upside, they lived well, downside they ate sugar at a rate I would rather they did not and had half their stores unused in the spring.

Lesson learned, sugar for me will go on late while watching the weather conditions for a nice warmish window in which to apply.