Early feeding

Ollie · February 14, 2010, 07:24:56 PM

Ok so now I gotta figure this one out...
Early feeding .....when? What location are you in? and what the reasoning is behind what you do?

I want to feed early, but not too much before the first flow or should I just do it?

Pollen patties and sugar water 2 to 1

homer · February 14, 2010, 07:39:09 PM

I start feeding as soon as the weather starts to warm a bit. In fact I'll feed sugar syrup much earlier then people suggest, and they drink it up like crazy!

Pollen patties are great to stimulate brood rearing before there is a bloom going on but they won't do much with them once there is a natural source. Be careful not to feed too much syrup once there is a flow going on or they are likely to back fill the brood nest with syrup an possibly throw off a swarm prematurely.

I'll start feeding in mid March in my area and we'll still have pretty cold temps then.

sarafina · February 14, 2010, 08:12:07 PM

I started feeding last week but we are much warmer here - will see 60's all next week and 40's-50's for the lows. Today was the first day of sunshine in days (seems like weeks) and the girls were flying like crazy and I saw some bring in pollen. I don't know where they were getting it from because we had an unusually cold winter and it killed off a lot of plants that normally bloom year-round. I don't feed pollen patties because it attracts SHB and we have them bad here.

Kathyp · February 14, 2010, 08:18:08 PM

i started feeding almost 2 weeks ago. much earlier than usual. i put out the poultry feeder and they started sucking it down.

our weather has been unusually warm and drier than normal. when i saw the queen in the observation hive get busy, and saw the bees outside flying and bringing in pollen, i figured it was time to start feeding. blooms are still about 2 weeks away.

contactme_11 · February 14, 2010, 11:06:17 PM

Quote from: kathyp on February 14, 2010, 08:18:08 PM
i started feeding almost 2 weeks ago. much earlier than usual. i put out the poultry feeder and they started sucking it down.

our weather has been unusually warm and drier than normal. when i saw the queen in the observation hive get busy, and saw the bees outside flying and bringing in pollen, i figured it was time to start feeding. blooms are still about 2 weeks away.

Wow. That seems crazy early.

Michael Bush · February 15, 2010, 12:15:39 AM

http://www.bushfarms.com/beesfeeding.htm

Finski · February 15, 2010, 01:34:18 AM

If the hive has enough stores, don't feed then with sugar. They need not it. It just stuck the warmed brood area.

I use to take extra winter food of if they have enough. Those frames I give to hives which are short of food.

Our snow melts away in April. Before that I can do only to sheck that they do not starve.
After snow melting I give patty and patty has 50% sugar.