over wintering on fondant

[pargyle]

Sorry if my first post was misleading! I must think before I use my fingers!
E

Haa Haa ... There are very many of us here that do that ... and sometimes when it's written and posted you realise that what you wrote has no bearing on what you intended to write ... by that time you have ten people already taking you to task on the rubbish that you didn't mean to write in the first place .... There should be a 'retract post' button ....

 

[oliver90owner]

I believe that best practice is to give a strong syrup now and a block of fondant as emergency energy store for use in mid winter or early spring

No. Some just feed the bees with fondant instead of sugar syrup in the autumn. Some just use fondant as an emergency supply during the winter. This poster seems to be neither one thing or the other. Still not sure whether he intends removing honey and just feeding them on fondant alone when winter comes or feeding them now which is early enough for the to take it down and store in cells.

 

[AmyB]

For the last two years I have fed fondant alone. I use a 12.5kg block on each hive, placed on an excluder, in an eke. Some hives hardly touch it, others use most of it. I do not feed any syrup as I live with my mother in law and taking over the kitchen to mix syrup is not a good plan!

 

[garethjbarry]

I plan to feed them fondant alone and take all supers off when the flow here stops. Hope that helps.

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

I do not feed any syrup as I live with my mother in law and taking over the kitchen to mix syrup is not a good plan!

Time for supercedure, perhaps.

Dusty

 

[oliver90owner]

I plan to feed them fondant alone and take all supers off when the flow here stops. Hope that helps.

No, not really. It would make more sense the other way round.

 

[davnig]

"I think you mean 2.5KG - weight of single pack"

nope - he meant 12.5kg - the weight of a single standard catering block (from whatever source).

i use 4-6kg chunks on top of single BBs in winter if they need it. so if they are assumed to be running into winter w/o top up syrup in autumn then, depending upon hefting weight, i would agree that a full block would be prudent.

ah, i'm thinking ambrosia packs

 

[AmyB]

Time for supercedure, perhaps.

Dusty

I wish I could cull the old queen!

 

[mbc]

Time for supercedure, perhaps.

Dusty

I wish I could cull the old queen!

 

[garethjbarry]

I plan to feed them fondant alone and take all supers off when the flow here stops. Hope that helps.

No, not really. It would make more sense the other way round.

Please could you explain. I plan to take any honey for myself and replace with fondant, i would rather sell the honey and pay for fondant. Bit like finmann ..... speaking of which where is he and his thoughts?

 

[oliver90owner]

You need to read your post . Normally writings are in chronological order. Makes understanding the relation of one event to another much more sensible/credible. The English language has certain rules for easy understanding.

Were you removing supers before or after feeding with fondant? Pleases try to be more precise, or ambiguity ensues ... and the lesser understanders of the language are befuddled.

 

[garethjbarry]

So the plan is to keep the supers on whilst there is still nector about. As soon as it stops take the supers off for me and replace with fondant. Does that make sense? :-D

 

[oliver90owner]

As soon as it (nectar flow) stops take the supers off for me and replace with fondant my brackets insertion.

Makes a different sentence than "I plan to feed them fondant alone and take all supers off when the flow here stops."

More than a subtle difference. Being accurate and precise certainly helps others to understand exactly what you intend doing.

 

[garethjbarry]

So what is your advice?

 

[oliver90owner]

Post #22.

Emergency feeding is best avoided.

 

[enrico]

The advice seems clear now! You can do it if you want, it will work, but there are other methods. The final choice is yours!
E

 

[Ely]

Please could you explain. I plan to take any honey for myself and replace with fondant, i would rather sell the honey and pay for fondant. Bit like finmann ..... speaking of which where is he and his thoughts?

He will probably respond through PMs were he isn't hounded

 

[BeeJayBee]

I believe that best practice is to give a strong syrup now and a block of fondant as emergency energy store for use in mid winter or early spring

Now (at this moment, this year) some parts of the country are still waiting for the heather to open, and won't be giving any feed of any sort until that crop has been harvested otherwise it would be contaminated with syrup.

So the plan is to keep the supers on whilst there is still nector about. As soon as it stops take the supers off for me and replace with fondant. Does that make sense? :-D

It makes sense, and sounds about right. You'll have to work out the timings yourself. You may want to harvest your honey before the ivy flowers open.

 

[Margaret Elisabeth]

Now (at this moment, this year) some parts of the country are still waiting for the heather to open, and won't be giving any feed of any sort until that crop has been harvested otherwise it would be contaminated with syrup.


It makes sense, and sounds about right. You'll have to work out the timings yourself. You may want to harvest your honey before the ivy flowers open.

Local weather and temperature dictate what will happen in nature. You have to judge what is happening locally in this, just as you do with nectar flow and ripening of honey in the hive.
Last year(my first winter) I left on the honey in one super without an excluder and when the weather got cold, enough for a coat and scarf and my thicker clothes, I fed with syrup then very quickly changed to fondant when it was frosty. My hives are in a windy cold garden and we often wake to snow that has fallen overnight and would make it unwise to open up. However I used nowhere near a full pack. I sliced a two inch thick slab off and put it in a freezer bag which I then made holes in and placed it on top of the bars topped it with insulation then the crown board and roof.
How successful was it?
Answer: My colony survived the winter: Many in Sheffield did not. 67 losses (aprox) reported at my local association. Problems: there was mould growth on the top of the crown board when I opened in March to check if they were alive. It was still cold here and the bees were not taking the fondant as far as I could see. So I slit the package to make access easier and added another package. The weather warmed slightly and bees started flying to my boggy area for water and were using the fondant so fast that they were chewing through the plastic to get at it faster.
What will I do this winter?
After treating for varroa (which I know already is present in one hive) I intend to move a super under the brood box (BB) Lay fondant on the bars of BB. insert an eke large enough to accommodate the slab of fondant which will almost cover all the bars, to be sure wherever the colony is it is accessable and cover with the crown board. Use a super as an eke to contain insulation and close up the entrance with a reducing block and mouseguard. I will report in spring on how successful this is.

 

[Yellowdrama]

I tend to split the fondant into 1/2Kg packs and only use from about mid January (depending on result of hefting the hive). One has to be careful that the fondant does not dry out too much as the bees cannot use it then (cover the top with clingfilm to stop drying out too much) I only give winter syrup feed mid September