Winter stores - at least one full super of honey

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BBG

Drone Bee
Joined
Oct 18, 2010
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Location
Devon & Dorset
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Langstroth
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Polystyrene & lots more next year again hopefully
In the old days, :coolgleamA: I used to leave at least one, sometimes one and a half full supers of honey on for the winter AND feed syrup.

From the posts I read, it appears nobody leaves a super of honey for winter stores.

Is this correct.

Answers please.
 
Seems size of b/b dictates a lot.

e.g. 14 x 12 big enough to hold enough for winter (if fed properly)

National - perhaps needs super - on my nats I have super (under) whereas on jumbos they should have enough in the b/b
 
Left fullish super on top of a fairly crowded WBC standard brood. No super on the other smaller colony in a National standard as I didnt want them to have the extra space to keep warm.

Intention by next winter to be all on 14x12 and not bother with any extra supers.
 
I left a super on each of my colonies and fed them up with lots of apinvert in case we had a mild winter. :smilielol5:

Since added large lumps of fondant as well over the crown board.
 
fed them up with lots of apinvert in case we had a mild winter.


so now we know who to blame for the weather!!!!!!:seeya:
 
so now we know who to blame for the weather!!!!!!:seeya:

I was predicting gale force to hurricane speed winds like we had back in the 80's, not snow. :blush5:
 
I follow the Gale principle. No supers of honey for the bees; syrup in the brood box.
 
Like Hombre for me. All supers off in Aug/Sep, feed up to a full brood box and then top up with fondant during winter if needs be.

Ben P
 
I always move full super to below broodbox in September on nationals, super on top of BB on WBC but leave no supers on Beehaus. Not sure why, just seems right somehow...
 
I agree with the posts from PeterS and Msr A. If you are on 14x12 then you are leaving the equiv of a super on for winter ....... and giving extra brood rearing space in summer.

If you are of a mind to winter on B&1/2 then switch to 14x12.

To follow the original post though, you are not necessarily leaving them a super of 'honey' of course, but if your autumn feeding has progressed as it should then that 14x12 should be full nevertheless.

No point fussing over stores - or giving fondant piece meal - throw a decent slab on or dont, constant opening to check and add another 0.5 Kg is no good for them and is un-helpful busy-bodying. I will OA them over the Xmas holiday, at the same time I'll throw 2.5Kg of fondant on each hive. If they use it, they needed it. If they dont use it then it will make the spring syrup.

Call it feeding, call it insurance. I call it a prudent plan B. My bet is that like last year (which was a pretty harsh winter) it will ultimately become light spring syrup
 
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I agree with the posts from PeterS and Msr A. If you are on 14x12 then you are leaving the equiv of a super on for winter ....... and giving extra brood rearing space in summer.

If you are of a mind to winter on B&1/2 then switch to 14x12.

To follow the original post though, you are not necessarily leaving them a super of 'honey' of course, but if your autumn feeding has progressed as it should then that 14x12 should be full nevertheless.

No point fussing over stores - or giving fondant piece meal - throw a decent slab on or dont, constant opening to check and add another 0.5 Kg is no good for them and is un-helpful busy-bodying. I will OA them over the Xmas holiday, at the same time I'll throw 2.5Kg of fondant on each hive. If they use it, they needed it. If they dont use it then it will make the spring syrup.

Call it feeding, call it insurance. I call it a prudent plan B. My bet is that like last year (which was a pretty harsh winter) it will ultimately become light spring syrup

:iagree:
Will either upgrade to all 14x12 or sell off all my wooden national hives and frames and swap over to poly langs over the next couple of years and run plastic frames.
 
I leave a super of honey in place if possible, if you count one super plus a 14x12 box. If it looks as though they're going into winter with less, I feed until both boxes are more or less full. Late influxes of Himalayan balsam honey have recently meant that I haven't fed much, although I gave them a few pints of syrup this year. The long hive had slightly less, the National had a brimming super plus a more or less full 14x12 box.

I work on the principle that replacing the bees costs more than either the honey or the sugar involved in keeping them going.... and keeping the honey is less hassle than faffing around with fondant in the middle of winter.

Having said that, one of my hives is already too light: this mix of very cold weather with milder intervals is hell on food consumption. This will be the earliest I've ever fed fondant.
:banghead: "never tell the bees your plans..."
 
GB you make a good point with the late natural forage (although that will have varied by region). We had good late HB but mercifully next to no ivy :)

On 3 of 4 hives I hardly had to feed, to the extent that the fumidil I had to treat with this year that needed 5 ltr of syrup per hive to administer didn't quite all get taken up.
 
As it was my first year - I left a full super for the bees, in the hope that they get through the first year. I also fed syrup and fondant, if they do die at least I'll know I did all I could!
 
Queens, I'm thinking on WBC you'll be leaving a super for them every year?

No experience, just from what I've read.

P.S. You got your snow at last (plenty of it too)
 
I believe a WBC 14x12 would be okay without a super if properly fed,and of course the strain of bee makes a difference.
 
I agree with the posts from PeterS and Msr A. If you are on 14x12 then you are leaving the equiv of a super on for winter ....... and giving extra brood rearing space in summer.

If you are of a mind to winter on B&1/2 then switch to 14x12.

To follow the original post though, you are not necessarily leaving them a super of 'honey' of course, but if your autumn feeding has progressed as it should then that 14x12 should be full nevertheless.

No point fussing over stores - or giving fondant piece meal - throw a decent slab on or dont, constant opening to check and add another 0.5 Kg is no good for them and is un-helpful busy-bodying. I will OA them over the Xmas holiday, at the same time I'll throw 2.5Kg of fondant on each hive. If they use it, they needed it. If they dont use it then it will make the spring syrup.

Call it feeding, call it insurance. I call it a prudent plan B. My bet is that like last year (which was a pretty harsh winter) it will ultimately become light spring syrup

That's my intention. they have/had a packed bb, with an almost full super, national, going into winter. OA, the fondant at the same time. I don't want to keep going in and out changing their winter set up, then them having to repair the damage I've done being so nosey.
 
:iamwithstupid:

Heft hive. If light (for that time in winter) feed a large slab of fondant.

No point in constantly disturbing the cluster...

Ben P
 

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