spring feeding ?

[bulldog]

ok, this will be my first spring with my bees. i can still hear them buzzing away inside there (six months of worrying is over ) although it hasn't been warm enough for them to come out yet. but it soon will be. am i correct in assuming that i should feed them 1 to 1 sugar water ? and if so, can i just use a bucket feeder out in the field away from the hive or should i use a hive feeder. also should i buy some pollen patties or something to feed them in addition to sugar water ? thanks in advance.

[indypartridge]

Congrats on your bees making it thru winter!

am i correct in assuming that i should feed them 1 to 1 sugar water ?

Don't assume. Check. Temperatures should be in the mid-60's in your area by the end of the week. If they are light on stores, yes, feed.

and if so, can i just use a bucket feeder out in the field away from the hive or should i use a hive feeder.

If they need fed, put the feed on the hive. The weather often bounces from warm to cold this time of year. You don't want them stuck in the hive with no food during a cold, rainy week.

also should i buy some pollen patties or something to feed them in addition to sugar water?

There should be pollen available about now. Maples, willows, elms are the usual early sources in my area. If they are not bringing any in, you might want to add a pollen patty.

[VolunteerK9]

I posted a similar question earlier. Most of my hives came out of winter with plenty of stores left in the hive. I set out some 1:1 in a gallon chicken waterer on my back deck. In about 2 weeks time 6 hives had barely consumed 2 gallons. The pollen sub patties, half the hives used them, the other half barely touched them. One school of thought is that 1:1 will trigger the queen to start laying more, kind of a pseudo spring flow. Others here say not to feed. In my .02 I don't think it will hurt to go ahead open feed, but if they still have some good stores, I think it may be a waste of $$. Try it for a week or two where you can monitor it. If they arent just sucking it down, then chances are they either have plenty of their own or they are getting it elsewhere. Im quite a bit south of you, but mine are bringing in pollen like mad right now. I dont think that a pollen sub is necessary in my area.

[Brian D. Bray]

Spring feeding should be done in the fall.  That is make sure they are feed properly and have sufficient stores for the winter to get them into spring.

Spring feeding can often be detrimental, causing the bees to expand to aggressively with brood production with not enough stores to survive a week of being hive bound due to bad weather.

When feeding bees in February and March the same care should be taken as is done in the fall, the syrup needs to be warm when placed on or in the hive.  Once the temperature of the syrup drops to below the mean day time temp the bees will stop taking it.  Then it needs to be reheated and once again feed to the bees.

Feed inside the hive to build stores and some brood buildup, feed outside the hive to stimulate foraging and maximize brood buildup.  Bees are stimulated more through foraging than through in the hive welfare feeding.

[organicfarmer]

i think it is still a little early to start stimulating as cold is still upon us in this area. Feed only if their stores are low. Once you start feeding and stimulate though, you cannot stop. I'd feed inside the hive and i'd feed only in emergency.