packages - what are you feeding?

[nmallardi]

interested in hearing how u feed your packages - ie what to feed, how much, and what your favorite methods are...thanks

[Michael Bush]

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

[nmallardi]

I guess im still not sure if i should feed the bees upon introducing them to a new hive after being shipped by usps. there are flowers in bloom all around so my instinct is no but do they need a snack till they get their druthers and get acclamated or will they immediately fly out for nectar and build comb??

[beedeetee]

I haven't got a package in many years, but the problem that we can have around here is rain for days. So you can have all of the flowers in the world and the bees can't really benefit. So, if you have good weather forecast for several days and flowers, I wouldn't feed.

If the weather was going to be cool or rainy, I would because a package doesn't have stored food to keep them working doing stuff like making wax and babies inside of the hive.

[nmallardi]

thanks, this makes total sense. I will ready up some syrup as it looks like rain every other day for the foreseeable future..

[brooksbeefarm]

I haven!t got package bees in years either,I always feed 1 to 1 sugar water when I hived them to make the queen think their was necter coming in and she would start laying heavy.When the necter from flowers start coming in they will usally stop taking the sugar syurp.If you use a boardman feeder reduce the entrance to about 1 inch opening, with feeder on one end of the entrance and the 1 inch entrance hole on the opposite end.This helps to keep robbing down.Good luck with your packages.

[timgoodin]

I think that was my mistake last year, we went into fall with first year, light package bees and lost them during the winter due to starvation. Of course last year was not typical here in W KY. The late April freeze killed most of the flowers and then a drought all summer long. We fed on and off just 1:1 sugar syrup in an entrance feeder. The problem I had with the entrance feeder was robbing which we had to reduce the entrance drastically to keep that down. We also tried frame feeders but there were hundreds of bees drounded in those, I really don;t like them but plan to modify them some with some sponges and see how that works out. Drawing out all that comb from foundation takes a great great amount of nectar coming in. I'd feed a new package on foundation until about two deeps are drawn out and a medium for good measure. The flip side of this is if your brood nest fills up with nectar then the queen may stop laying and they may decide to swarm, I shifted frames of foundation in and out as they would fill the lower box last year.
Tim

[nmallardi]

i plan to fix some light syrup for rapid feeders which lie on top. they only hold a liter so perhaps i may be refilling a bunch. will see i guess. anyone know if i can use dextrose as i have quite a bit left from my corn liquor science project..

[Moonshae]

I hived two packages earlier this year, and didn't feed at all, and when I went in a week later to remove the queen cage, they had already stored a fair amount of honey, although it was still uncapped. IMHO, if they can forage, feeding is unnecessary.

[nmallardi]

i feel like in my area we are past the initial heavy flows of spring tree blossoms ie linden maple etc and they are forecasting rain for a while so i feel i better give them something at least until the weather clears for a bit??

[Fred Bee]

I always feed my packages 1 to 1 sugar water until they get established.