Granulated Stores - What to do?

[3bees]

Several of my colonies came through the winter with excess stores. The bees are surrounded by Ivy so most of the excess is granulated. I can melt them down in my steam wax extractor but this seems a terrible waste.

Is there a simple way to give it back to the bees this autumn?

 

[Finman]

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To give back old autumn honey have a good change to give to them strong nosema.
Sugar is better alternative.

 

[sherwood]

I personally have steamed out about 80 lbs of the stuff and added a 1/3 by volume of water and Thymol to stop it going off and am storing it to give back to the bees this winter when I will boil it and add more water to avoid all the nasties. If your bees didnt test positive for nosema you could get away with just heating it.

 

[oliver90owner]

First ask yourself why they had so much excess stores after winter. These stores were good for last winter? So should be good fo next winter, but better used in the season for nucs and feeding if there is a break in the forage available.

The simplest way is to give them the frames! Can't think of anything simpler!

But somehow, I am thinking you fed fondant when they did not need it or they went into winter with far too much stores, or you did not extract enough honey at cropping time.

I feed back shallow frames of stores under the brood in autumn, rather than feed sugar. The frames might be left over the winter, but I generally give them plenty of time to re-organise those stores for themselves.

 

[For want of a better word]

As above trust Tractor Man!
I melt it down and make mead... or ciser! ( but usually this is not left over winter stores... but horrible OSR stores, I could not be too bothered to take off when the yellow weed was giving a flow!)

If you thymolated the Autumn sugar feed, feed it back to the bees


Yeghes da

 

[Finman]

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To get those combs to be used during this summer it is better dilute stuff off. Its value is zero.

To melt combs or melt what .... Is an idiot innovation to extract poo from valuable combs. There goes foundations and the honey what bees need to extract wax.

 

[Finman]

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Basicly the colony has too much room over Winter, if it cannot consume stores.
Limit the wintering room, that it cannot store all what nature offers.

It is same with syrup feeding. They would store 100% more if you give space too much.

 

[Dishmop]

Cut in into nice little bits and put it into nice little plastic containers....and sell it.

 

[3bees]

Cut in into nice little bits and put it into nice little plastic containers....and sell it.

The stores have granulated - Ivy is the main forage here in Autumn, see my original post

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Cut in into nice little bits and put it into nice little plastic containers....and sell it.

Plenty of tourist (only ever one purchase) trade in Norwich? That's the way to get rid of ivy honey comb

 

[Finman]

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Quite a game with those ivy stores.
.

 

[Dishmop]

The stores have granulated - Ivy is the main forage here in Autumn, see my original post

Yeh I know but somebody will love it.... Leave any jar in the kitchen cupboard and it will probably granulate anyway...

 

[Dishmop]

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Quite a game with those ivy stores.
.

Should be great fun in a Flow Hive....

 

[Hebeegeebee]

The simplest way is to give them the frames! Can't think of anything simpler!

I agree. Honey will last a year with no problems. Why make things complicated?

 

[Dishmop]

Plenty of tourist (only ever one purchase) trade in Norwich? That's the way to get rid of ivy honey comb

I bet they's buy it if it was for sale at Sandringham..

 

[sherwood]

First ask yourself why they had so much excess stores after winter. These stores were good for last winter? So should be good fo next winter, but better used in the season for nucs and feeding if there is a break in the forage available.

The simplest way is to give them the frames! Can't think of anything simpler!

But somehow, I am thinking you fed fondant when they did not need it or they went into winter with far too much stores, or you did not extract enough honey at cropping time.

I feed back shallow frames of stores under the brood in autumn, rather than feed sugar. The frames might be left over the winter, but I generally give them plenty of time to re-organise those stores for themselves.
__________________
You seem to know more than I do Oliver (not) I fed my bees no fondant as they had plenty of syrup, The problem was that after feeding them there was a reallly long mild spell and the Ivy kept giving and giving and the bees kept storing and storing, hence the brood frames where bogged down with the stuff. I have of course fed the nucleus's and swarms of unknown origin this after 3 days but I am still left with an excess which as I said I will feed to the bees in autumn.

 

[sherwood]

The problem was that after feeding them there was a reallly long mild spell and the Ivy kept giving and giving and the bees kept storing and storing, hence the brood frames where bogged down with the stuff. I have of course fed the nucleus's and swarms of unknown origin this after 3 days but I am still left with an excess which as I said I will feed to the bees in autumn