Placing fondant in trays

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TOBY-3652

Drone Bee
Joined
Oct 13, 2010
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Location
uk north lincs
Hive Type
National
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30
Hi just a question im planning to place some fondant in trays over hole in crown board xmass time or later . Do i place cling filmover fondant or lid and how biger hole do i make in top so the bees can feed ??
 
Don't worry to much about plastic trays,just stick the fondant straight on top the crown board,over the feed hole.
 
I keep the fondant in its plastic wrapping, this means that the fondant lasts longer in the hive if the bees are not taking it down quickly. I cut a small slit in the wrapping so that the bees can get to the fondant.


Ben P
 
Suggest you make an eke about 2" high and put the fondant on a shallow tray on top of the frames under the crownboard. I use ice cream carton lids with a narrow slot in the middle for the bees to crawl up through. If the bees are not desperate for fondant, making an eke out of 2" x 1" would not take more than an hour. Doesn't have to be perfect - bees don't care. Later you will have an eke handy for other purposes of which there are bound to be a few and, if needs be, you can tart it up later.
 
I am with ben,I run bottom bee space and dont like to leave a large gap over winter between the top of the frames and the crownboard.

I see it as a big area to keep warm above the cluster over winter.

If its a smaller cluster the gap could make all the difference between spring bees and a frozen cluster of dead bees.
 
I agree make an eke ,place your fondant rolled flat in a plastic bag with hole(s) cut in it. Put it directly above the bees, this does three thing keeps a bubble heat below for the bees, softens the fondant and avoids the possibilty of isolation starvation. Later on towards spring if it is a strong stock on subsequent fondant they will probably build comb in the eke or the fondant bag.
 

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