Honeybees cannot live solely off of sugar; they require protein and carbs for energy.
Your bees can benefit from being fed a simple sugar water solution. Just mix the appropriate ratio of sugar to hot (not boiling hot, just warm) water and stir until all sugar crystals have been dissolving completely.
Contents
1. Sugar Water
Sugar water (commonly referred to as simple syrup) is the go-to feed for honey bees. Composed of equal parts white granulated sugar and water, this mix mimics plant nectar for which honey bees forage for sustenance.
Sugar water cannot provide bees with all of their nutritional needs; while it provides extra nutrition and helps protect them from disease, it cannot sustain an entire colony of bees. Therefore, it is imperative that one learns how to make and feed sugar water effectively and when.
Feed your bees using an airtight container such as a glass canning jar or plastic jug. Punch 6-8 small holes into its lid using the tip of a nail or another sharp tool; this allows bees to enter and exit without interrupting their work in the hive. Some beekeepers add Honey-B Healthy or lemongrass/spearmint essential oil drops as supplements that promote bee health by discouraging mites/fungi growth.
2. Sugar Syrup
Sugar water can be an effective alternative when natural honey supplies run low or dry, providing beekeepers with an alternative food source to feed the bees during times when natural nectar stores have dried up completely. Beekeepers generally opt for a 2:1 sugar:water ratio in fall for feeding their honeybees during dry spells – closer to natural nectar’s consistency which aids bees as they dehydrate for winter pantry storage needs. Some beekeepers boil their sugar syrup sterilize it while others do not; either way, beekeepers must bring sugar + water close to near boiling before stirring thoroughly so as to dissolving crystals fully before returning it back onto the heat as prolonged boiling can result in partially undigestible or toxic syrup for your bees!
Once the solution is chilled, it can be transferred into a feeder at the hive entrance. To add extra nutrients to the sugar water, beekeeper experts advise filling half a freezer bag with sugar water, punching or drilling six to eight small holes on its upper surface before punching through or drilling out six to eight larger ones on top.
3. Honey
Honey bees depend on nectar from flower nectar to meet both their energy and protein requirements, providing energy and protein sources necessary for their survival. Foraging bees collect nectar and store it in special stomachs where natural enzymes convert sucrose to glucose and fructose before eventually being converted to honey by producing propolis – another food source essential to bee colonies’ survival and working abilities.
Bees consume pollen produced by flowering plants and other parts of plants. Pollen contains minerals, vitamins and proteins which bees transport back to their hive to be shared among their sisters and beetles for consumption.
Over winter, providing syrup with higher water content than stored honey runs the risk of fermenting and spoiling their stores while also introducing potentially harmful bacteria into their system. This could result in dysentery or other illnesses for the bees.
4. Bee Pollen
Bees can obtain all of their protein requirements through natural means; however, supplementing their diet with protein-rich foods like pollen patties or fondant can be helpful to supplement their protein needs in spring when new colonies build out their comb, or in winter when honey stores have run low.
Bee pollen is a bright yellow powder created from flower pollen and bee secretions collected by worker bees when landing on flowers, packed full of proteins essential for rearing drone brood and keeping strong hives alive.
Although some research exists on pollen substitutes, most studies lack negative controls and thus put colony health at risk – for instance by increasing pest and pathogen loads or shortening queen lifespan. There is an overwhelming need for additional studies evaluating different diets both laboratory and field settings.
