Feeding a weak colony requires only dry sugar placed in trays or on a division board feeder. A medium or strong colony must acquire water from outside their hive in order to liquefy sugar crystals and feed as normal.
It can be problematic when temperatures become extreme; an alternative strategy may be providing sugar syrup solution in an inverted container such as a jar, frame feeder, paint can with holes, plastic pail etc.
Contents
1. Dry Sugar
Fall and early spring temperatures tend to make feeding syrup in a hive too risky, leading to chilling of bees. Even then, feeding syrup could indicate that more honey was consumed than expected prior to spring; feeding further compounds the issue.
Many beekeepers prefer using dry sugar as an alternative source. This can either be simply placed around the inner cover hand hole (not recommended with Screened Bottom Boards) or spread onto paper laid over a cluster, and bees will naturally move up towards it and mix it with metabolic water released as they come close.
Some beekeepers use Winter Patties, pre-formulated and scented feed for bees that provide quick energy and protein sources. Others favor frame feeders – large plastic troughs the size of Langstroth frames which sit inside hives requiring bees to break cluster to access them.
2. Honey in the Comb
Beekeepers can feed their colonies honey by providing bags of crushed comb that they collected earlier in the year from their own hives, providing an incentive for bees to continue producing more comb. Doing this also keeps their stores full during winter.
As much as it would be ideal, when nectar flows naturally and there are abundant flowers for bees to forage on, sugar water cannot provide essential vitamins or trace elements required for their survival. If the weather becomes excessively wet and your colonies are producing insufficient honey to survive winter, sugar syrup could serve as a temporary measure and supplement their food; just be wary not to make this a regular occurrence.
3. Sugar Water Mixture
Newly installed packages of bees are fed sugar water for several weeks after installation to stimulate wax production necessary for comb building, and also to fuel their activities inside and outside the hive until they start gathering nectar from flowers naturally.
Beekeepers use various ratios of sugar to water when feeding new bees for brood rearing purposes in spring; during fall and winter months a 2:1 syrup mixture should be offered as it helps the colony build their stores for winter survival.
To create a simple sugar water mixture, begin by filling a jar or bottle with very hot tap water and slowly adding dry sugar until it dissolves completely. Mix well, allow to cool before refrigerating until needed as supplemental feed; some beekeepers opt to store large batches in 5-gallon buckets in their fridge for easier access.
4. Baggie Feeder
Baggie feeders are plastic feed bags filled with sugar syrup that beekeepers fill up and place on their hive, then the bees access it by cutting slits in them to gain access. They offer an affordable alternative to other forms of feeders.
Makeshift beehive covers are easy to make, adaptable to most any hive size, and take only minutes to assemble. Simply pour three quarts of sugar syrup into a 1-gallon size sealable plastic bag, lay it flat across your top bars and cut a small slit into its air bubble with a razor blade.
Advantages to this feeder type include not having to smoke and disturb your colony when filling it, while its disadvantages include its small capacity requiring frequent fills – sometimes daily! Furthermore, its vulnerability makes it prone to being stolen during feeding frenzy, and leaving it sitting inside during the day may result in bees drowning in syrup that pools at its base.
