Round rapid feeders feature large feed capacities. Refills can easily be completed from the outside without disturbing bees.
Beekeepers generally place pollen traps inside an empty hive box and cover them with a hive top; some beekeepers leave them in their hives year-round, particularly those using double deep brood boxes.
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Boardman Feeders
Boardman feeders are feeding trays designed to fit inside the entrance of a beehive with a quart sized canning jar screwed into its lid inside, for use at either the top or bottom of your hive, which allow for efficient monitoring of feed levels while not impairing inspections and not being vulnerable to drowning issues like other types of feeders are. They are available from bee supply stores or they can be made yourself using food storage containers inverted over their lid and with small notches cut in their top or even sticks placed between their lid and canning jar and lid to prevent syrup overflow. They allow for thorough monitoring while not impeding inspections or drowning issues that other types of feeders might face in addition.
Division board feeders may also be an option, although these require breaking open the hive in order to access and fill. Unfortunately, these are less ideal in colder environments because they force bees out of their cluster where energy-sapping travel can happen more rapidly and lead to exposure to freezing temperatures.
Division Board Feeders
Multiple types of feeders are available to beekeepers. All are essential, though newcomers may benefit from starting off with smaller feeders that are easier to maintain and refill with honey bee Healthy for optimal bee health.
Division board feeders replace one or two frames in your hive with feeders equipped with ladder-like structures on their inside to protect bees from drowning in sugar syrup. They’re easy to install and fill: just slide over one super, fill up your frame feeder, then slid back over again after filling up!
Push comb feeders work well to push comb construction, but can be challenging to inspect and are more prone to robbing as their syrup supply is not protected from other bees at the hive entrance. Furthermore, ants may gain entry and make the feeder unusable (even dead), requiring frequent inspections which could prove challenging for new beekeepers.
Ultimate Direct Feeder
With its 1-Gallon capacity, this round feeder fits over an oval hole in your inner cover or division board of your bee hive. Bees will enter through its central hole and travel along its ridged cone before eating the sugar syrup contained beneath a durable plastic cup.
This bee feeder provides an efficient and hassle-free method of providing additional food supplies to hives that need them, or providing aid for weak hives during winter. Easy installation and monitoring make this solution simple as refilling is possible without opening up or disturbing bees in their home hive.
Even though larger feeders will need less frequent refillings, make sure you tailor their size according to the overall hive volume. A bucket may hold too much syrup, causing bees inside it to drown if left too full of food; frame feeders that require opening up the hive for refilling should only be used by experienced beekeepers who can precisely time refills of their frames for refilling.
Top Feeders
Top feeders are an effective and popular way to provide winter food to bees. Not only are they durable and user-friendly, they’re secure enough to protect the syrup supply from being stolen by intruders and robbers.
Design of these feeders is straightforward; they consist of an inverted container placed over the entrance in a beehive’s inner cover. Bees enter through a hole, traveling up a cone-like structure until reaching their destination – usually syrup in an attractive plastic cup that sits just inside its opening.
Hardware cloth offers bees access to nectar at once, making it possible to give their colonies access to lots of food in one feeding session. But bee keepers must remember that providing feed may encourage disease and parasite spread leading to weak hives.
