[kejramer]

I have used the search, however I can’t find an answer.
I have one hive that made it through winter and I am get a package for second hive. My first hive has caped brood, but mostly scattered over frames of open cells filled with sugar water, fed all winter and cell of caped "honey"
Can I open the brood nest with foundationless frames and use the "drawn" frames with my package?
Also how is best way for feed package from left over comb honey?
Stain and thin out the honey or just honey. Going to use entrance feeder, but have top entrance for bees.
Thanks

 

[honeyman46408]

You can give your package a BIG jumpstart with a frame of brood as for the "left over comb honey" I am not sure what you have but if it is in frames just put the frames on the box with the package (I have never feed a package with sugar water just frames of honey from dead outs.
Good Luck

 

[AmericasBeekeeper]

Like honeyman said the brood will give them a great head start. Feed undilluted honey, no reason to ever dillute honey for feeding! Entrance feeders are more prone to robbing, but if it works for you go ahead. Scattered brood is not a good sign. It means the queen is weak, there was diseased brood, or something like a virus or chalkbrood.

 

[Beeslave]

Packages seem to do better with stimulation from sugar syrup then just being given frames of honey.

 

[StevenG]

You will get the package built up quicker if you feed it copious amounts of sugar syrup, and keep feeding until they quit taking it or they've drawn out all the brood comb you need... e.g. if you're shooting for 2 deeps for brood nest, you'll feed until they have all 20 frames drawn out, and are ready to move up into an extracting super. This assures that they're ready for the upcoming winter.
The bonus is, if they build up quickly enough, you might even get some surplus honey from them before the season ends!
Regards,
Steven

 

[Beeslave]

To many people don't realize when you feed the heck out of a colony so they get 2 deeps drawn out and then you stick a honeysuper on they will move that sugar syrup into the honey super to make more room in the 2 deeps for the queen to lay. The bees don't leave syrup where they originally put it if they want to make room for the queen. It has to go somewhere and it is usually up!

 

[kejramer]

Thanks Guys
My first hive; by scattered I mean that the frames have brood, honey (some capped) in "sections" but brood is continuous. All frames except the outside are mixed like that. Outside frame have clear honey, witch I think is sugar honey from heavy feeding, bad fall here.
So if I have sugar water honey how is best to feed that to the package?
Put the honey in the entrance feeder same and sugar water?
I only have at this time entrance feeder. However I am using top entrance, lower entrance is closed by feeder and entrance reducer.
Plan is to open brood nest with empty frames with starter strips. Use drawn comb in my new package. We see how it goes.

 

[StevenG]

As Beeslave mentions, there is danger in contaminating your extracted honey. The procedure that works for me is to feed heavily, until the deep brood frames are all drawn out, and I put on a shallow or medium of foundation on top. I do not use a queen excluder. I stop feeding when I put the shallow or medium on. The bees then use honey or stored syrup to draw that foundation into comb. Frequently the queen moves up into that super and lays some eggs, but that's ok.

Then, as they fill that first super, I add another super. By that time the queen is being confined to the bottom of that super (first one above the deep brood nest), and she goes no further up. Plus now anything used and stored above that shallow super will be bonafide honey, and not syrup. I leave the first super added for their winter stores. I winter my colonies in two deep brood boxes, and a shallow or medium for extra stores.

For me it is important to get them built into their winter configuration as soon as possible, so that no matter what happens thru the summer, they'll be ready for winter. FWIW, of 14 colonies this year, I lost only 1 over the winter. And I do not treat for mites. The only thing I put in the hives, besides the bees and foundation, is syrup and pollen sub...haven't done sub yet, plan to though.
Regards,
Steven