Some beekeepers opt to feed dry sugar during the winter season in order to keep their hives alive. This practice can be done several different ways.
You can use a jar with its lid, a shallow tray, frame feeder or even plastic freezer bag for this purpose. All of these methods work best if you provide space between the container and top bars of frames for bees to move around.
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Sugar Cakes
Sugar cakes are a common wintertime source of nutrition for your bees. These solid cakes of sugar are easily digestible by bees and can be loaded directly on top bars or placed inside a candy board (a shallow box a few inches deep).
Sugar cake recipes vary among beekeepers, but all have one common goal: creating an abundant cake of sugar for your honeybees to feast upon. They’re an affordable and tasty way to keep your hives fed during the cold months.
To make sugar cake, simply mix together equal parts sugar and water. Press it into an insulated inner cover, let dry overnight or over several days, and finally top the hive with it.
Sugar Pile
Winter feeding bees with dry sugar is an effective way to provide them with nutrition during the cold months. Bees require water for liquefying sugar crystals, and dry sugar provides this without worrying about spoilage from liquid feed during this period.
Dry sugar can come in the form of a candy board, fondant, or granulated sugar poured onto newspaper and placed just above your cluster. Alternatively, you could offer both light and heavy syrup for added sweetness.
You can make light syrup using a 2:1 ratio of sugar to water, or higher for heavier syrup. No matter which ratio you choose, give the bees plenty of time to turn the sugar into liquid before harvesting it.
Sugar Syrup
Sugar syrup is used in many drinks, such as sodas, iced tea and fruit punches. In addition, some cocktail recipes call for it.
Sugar Syrup is made by dissolving equal parts water and sugar in a saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring continuously to ensure that all sugar has completely dissolved.
A suitable ratio to use when making syrup is 1 part sugar to 2 parts water (or more for thicker consistency). You can make the syrup ahead of time and store it in the fridge until needed.
Winter feeding bees dry sugar is an efficient and quick way to help feed a hive when they’re starving or have low honey stores. It also serves to encourage brood rearing and the formation of wax comb foundation.
One way to provide bees with dry sugar is a bottom board feeder. You can purchase these online or create one yourself by placing a box with a sliding slid in front of it.
Sugar Candy
Bees require plenty of carbohydrates during winter to generate heat. These can be found in honey stored within the hive or sugar solution.
Some beekeepers prefer to prepare dry sugar for their winter feeding bees. There are various methods, from granulated sugar on top of newspaper to solid feeds like candy boards or fondant.
For the simplest method, pour granulated sugar directly onto a sheet of newspaper or tissue paper that sits atop bars in the hive. Bees will tear through the paper and consume the sugar as they chew its way through.
A more complex method involves making a sugar board or fondant out of sugar and water. While these recipes require specific ingredients and time in the kitchen, bees tend to accept them better than granulated sugar does.
