I think the unseasonably warm weather that many of us are experiencing is part of the concern. As a first year beekeeper, I'm still concerned. I fed in the fall because I had a hive that had replaced their queen in mid summer. With no previous experience to guide me, I kind of thought that the girls were doing OK. When the new queen got going, things took off. BUT....by then, the flow(s) had, for the most part, gone by. So...I fed....and fed. I stopped when I had two deeps full of syrup...top to bottom and front to back.
The weather stayed warm and the girls kept flying. Pollen kept coming in as did a little nectar. I threw a medium on top of the two deeps and they pulled about 4 frames before the first cold hit. Of those 4 frames, two were either partially filled, or filled and capped. I decided to leave the medium on, mainly because I couldn't decide what to do plus I had treated with Apistan so I couldn't take anything for myself anyway, even to sample.
Now, with the warm weather sticking around, I'm not sure of the protocol. Do bees eat MORE when it's warm or LESS? I was thinking that they need to generate heat when it's cold and would eat more. But, maybe they're more active when it's warm and need more honey.
So, lifting a super tells me that the thing is darned heavy. But, with the warm weather, will it be a LOT lighter a week from now, when the weather is possibly too cold for the girls to take syrup? Maybe I should anticipate what they need a week or two down the road and feed them now. We do that in the fall.....anticipate what they'll need for the winter...and act accordingly.
It seems that it would be easier if the weather had gone from warm to mild to cold...period. None of this extended, protracted, indian summer.
Bottom line for me is that my head tells me that I should try and feed, mainly because I can. My heart tells me that the girls will be OK so long as I check them early and often in the late winter / early spring, when stores are sure to be lower than they are right now and the colony will have lots of new and hungry mouths to feed.
Thoughts?