Need supering advice

[srf_onezero]

I have been fortunate enough to have 3 supers on my 2 deeps of 2nd year Italians. I already extracted Super#1 and put the wet super back on (20 July)--this super has been refilled and starting to get capped.
I have Super #2 and #3 ready to extract today. My plan is to let them overwinter with the 2 deeps as they had on last winter.

-- is it too late to put the 2 wet supers back on for more honey? I am concerned that the field bees have nowhere to put incoming nectar--I think remaining Super #1 is mostly refilled. However, I am wondering if it is late in the season. There appears to bee plenty of wildflowers out (fireweed, spotted knapweed)--in fact goldenrod seems early this year.


Thanks,
Shawn
2nd year Beekeeper

[Keth Comollo]

Why not overwinter with two deeps and a medium?

[srf_onezero]

Why not overwinter with two deeps and a medium?

Would the medium be for additional brood or overwinter food? A local beekeeper indicated 2 deeps is sufficient. However, I could just leave a super as insurance?

Last winter I put on a candyboard in January and it was still being used in the spring (there were also frames of honey still in the top deep). However, the colony may have been smaller than it is now. I started the colony from a 3 lb package last spring. This colony seems to be really strong and has lots of bees. The early spring and shorter winter probably was helpful.

Thanks for advice.
Shawn

[Keth Comollo]

It is for food. I harvest now and the goldenrod flow is all theirs. Two deeps and a medium should weigh 150+ going into winter for me. This insures they have enough food and minimizes, but does not elminate, having to feed.

[ralittlefield]

I harvest now and the goldenrod flow is all theirs.

Do you manipulate the frames to place frames of honey above the brood? Will they access honey in the far outside frames?

[Keth Comollo]

I let the bees decide where to put the honey. Hopefully they have a lot overhead. I winter in two deeps and a medium now like to see that medium and most of the top deep full of honey for winter. My schedule this year is something like this (modified after discussions with Mike Palmer) . .

When I am done extracting about Aug. 10 I will treat the hives for mites and leave them all alone till near the end of goldenrod. Undisturbed they should start to feel the chilly nights coming and begin winter hive setup. No inspections, nothing to disturb them from their task. Every hive gets one gallon of Fumigillin which they will take because the flow is over. Then I weigh them and if they aren't at 150+ lbs. I feed them fast and furious 2:1 a gallon at at time to get them there and then wrap em for winter. No feeding whatsoever after Oct. 15. If they are 150+ I just wrap em.

On my overwintered nucs I don't treat for mites and look for the top super to be full of honey. Feed only if necessary.

[adam@azapiaries]

I dont know what local experience is in Marquette, but my policy here in Ct is to keep adding supers untill two weeks before the traditional end of the flow. I never leave honey supers on over winter. If bees dont have 80 to 100lbs of stores to winter on, it is a simple matter to feed sugar syrup till they have enough stores. Honey is worth five times as much as sugar. You may have at least four weeks left of nectar flow, so keep the supers on. Many years the fall flow can be a significant amount of a years poroduction. Goldenrod makes wonderfull amber honey, I bought and resold 30,000 lbs of it last year .

Last year, we had such a poor summer and winter flow that many of my hives wintered entirely on sugar syrup. They winter beautifully on it and any one who disputes this is just plain wrong. Each year, millions of hives winter with a significant proportion of their stores being from sugar syrup.

Sucessfull wintering depends upon having a strong population of young, healthy bees, adequate quantity of stores and protection from the elements. Once again, if dosn't matter if those stores are honey or inverted sugar. I know what I am talking about, I own 300 hives and always have lower winter losses than most other beekeepers do.

Enjoy your honey crop. Adam Fuller

[srf_onezero]

I just extracted Super #2 & #3 and put back the wet supers back on the same day (Friday). Yesterday (Sunday), I went back to pull off the top empty super and it already had capped cells. So I left both returned supers on. Are the bees just recapping left over honey from extraction or did they already bring in nectar?

I think the conventional wisdom is to put 1 super on at a time.
-- Is it ok that I put two empty supers on at once?

Not sure how near the end of the season we are at (things seem early this year). I am wondering if the honey flow ends soon, will I end up with a hodge-podge of empty cells, uncapped and capped cells all over the 2 returned supers?

Super#1 that I extracted and returned in July already is refilled and being capped.

Thanks,
Shawn