Sloppy fondant

[The Poot]

The recent unseasonal weather is causing fondant to turn sloppy on a couple of my colonies. I appreciate this can be a problem when the bees are tightly clustered in Winter “proper” if it flobs down onto them, but is it anything to worry about this time of year? I’m assuming not......
There was an article about this on the Apiarist website recently.

 

[hemo]

Place the fondant above a whole or piece of QX, depending on how it is fed /placed on the colony.
I tend to feed in small quantities (1ltr ice cream tub) above the CB feed hole.

 

[The Poot]

Place the fondant above a whole or piece of QX, depending on how it is fed /placed on the colony.
I tend to feed in small quantities (1ltr ice cream tub) above the CB feed hole.

Thanks Hemo, I perhaps should have said - the fondant is in a tub above the crown board feed hole

 

[hemo]

Use a small off cut of mesh either above the hole or place a piece directly above the frames so sloppy fondant doesn't squidge between frames coating them.

 

[Apple]

Place a matchstick or similar under one end of the tub so the the fondant can breathe.
I am now using the stiffer freezer zip lock type bags over the feed hole with a hole in the plastic so that the bees can get in... seems to work.
A 1kg slice of fondant fits nicely and is not so messy to administer.
Chons da

 

[The Poot]

Use a small off cut of mesh either above the hole or place a piece directly above the frames so sloppy fondant doesn't squidge between frames coating them.

Thanks - I’ll do so once it stops raining - looks like next week some time!

 

[The Poot]

Place a matchstick or similar under one end of the tub so the the fondant can breathe.
I am now using the stiffer freezer zip lock type bags over the feed hole with a hole in the plastic so that the bees can get in... seems to work.
A 1kg slice of fondant fits nicely and is not so messy to administer.
Chons da

I wondered where you going with the M word!
I can see the smaller opening in a bag would prevent slumping from a the containers I currently use.

 

[hemo]

Thanks - I’ll do so once it stops raining - looks like next week some time!

Personally if my fondant was sloppy I would opt for placing something on the tops bars so fondant sagging down from above doesn't get between the seams, bees can then still access the carton above to clean it out thoroughly.

 

[ShinySideUp]

I have fondant on two of my hives and previously they have taken it all down however it is just sitting there now in an upturned plastic container. Have they had enough? Should I take the remaining stuff off?

 

[Goran]

Sloppy fondant... I would presume, they want to sell You more water than sugar ( miss the ratio) or not inverted enough. The ones we make are elastic, we even cut stripes and put directly on top bar and are not sloppy..
Clearer with a pics about what I said.

 

[Boston Bees]

I have fondant on two of my hives and previously they have taken it all down however it is just sitting there now in an upturned plastic container. Have they had enough? Should I take the remaining stuff off?

No need to take it off - it is there as an emergency feed just in case they need it.

 

[drex]

I have fondant on two of my hives and previously they have taken it all down however it is just sitting there now in an upturned plastic container. Have they had enough? Should I take the remaining stuff off?

How close is it to the bees, ( above crownboard ?) , do you have insulation round and over it? It has been much colder recently, so they may just have been clustered. No harm in leaving it on. If they need fondant I just give them a big dollop and do not look again unless It hefts light. In spring any fondant left gets made into syrup.

 

[Curly green finger's]

How close is it to the bees, ( above crownboard ?) , do you have insulation round and over it? It has been much colder recently, so they may just have been clustered. No harm in leaving it on. If they need fondant I just give them a big dollop and do not look again unless It hefts light. In spring any fondant left gets made into syrup.

they may come to need it in February.

 

[ShinySideUp]

It is on a hole in the crown board, covered with a plastic container and above that is the insulated roof. Hasn't been that cold here in Cornwall, it hardly ever goes below 2 or 3 degrees C.

I will have a look on Thursday when it's supposed to be a little colder as that's when I will trickle my OA which also gives me a just few moments to peer in and see how the bees are doing.

 

[BugsInABox]

It is on a hole in the crown board, covered with a plastic container and above that is the insulated roof. Hasn't been that cold here in Cornwall, it hardly ever goes below 2 or 3 degrees C.

I will have a look on Thursday when it's supposed to be a little colder as that's when I will trickle my OA which also gives me a just few moments to peer in and see how the bees are doing.

Could it be water vapour getting into the sugar and softening it?

 

[elainemary]

It is on a hole in the crown board, covered with a plastic container and above that is the insulated roof. Hasn't been that cold here in Cornwall, it hardly ever goes below 2 or 3 degrees C.

I will have a look on Thursday when it's supposed to be a little colder as that's when I will trickle my OA which also gives me a just few moments to peer in and see how the bees are doing.

I have a Nuc with a similar set up ie hole in feeder with insulated roof & fondant in a plastic tub. I was worried re sloppy fondant like you, due to condensation from bees respiration. So I’ve mopped up the liquid which was actually mainly around rather than in the tub. I gently prised the feeder up and there were lots of bees on the inside of the feeder roof and no evidence of sloppy fondant over them or between the seams. So I’ve left it as it is. Normally I’d do what others have said ie put fondant over a queen excluder with an eke around & more surface area for the bees to reach the fondant too. Using the feed over the hole was a bit of an experiment, on balance think it’s not worth disturbing the bees to try and change it all now & they seem ok.
Hope this helps
Elaine

 

[robmort]

I had a similar problem; the hard candy over the crown board hole was softening and running down due to condensation despite thick insulation above. The bees weren't taking any so I took it away to stop more runnning into the hive. I re-hardened it and will put it back later if needed.

 

[Apple]

My Grandfather would take a 1lb bag of white granulated sugar in its paper wrapping, dunk it in water for a minute or so and place the whole lot on top of the frames.
Never had crownboards, just a calico cover over the box.
Calico sheet was put back on with a couple of hessian potato sacks over the lot... hives were WBC's
Come Spring even the paper from the sack had been eaten away!
That was around 1958... sixty plus years ago.

Nadelik lowen

 

[Ian123]

Could it be water vapour getting into the sugar and softening it?

Like honey candy/sugar absorbs moisture

 

[Curly green finger's]

My Grandfather would take a 1lb bag of white granulated sugar in its paper wrapping, dunk it in water for a minute or so and place the whole lot on top of the frames.
Never had crownboards, just a calico cover over the box.
Calico sheet was put back on with a couple of hessian potato sacks over the lot... hives were WBC's
Come Spring even the paper from the sack had been eaten away!
That was around 1958... sixty plus years ago.

Nadelik lowen

Some grandads were still doing it in the 2000s. But on top of a CB.