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  • From: Catherine Adamson <cadamson AT alumni.unc.edu>
  • To: ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [ocba] Should I feed more?
  • Date: Wed, 28 Apr 2010 14:09:31 -0400

Hi all,

Wanted to get the wisdom of the list on this question:  If you have a top feeder on, will in-house bees go and get syrup, or does feeding of necessity take foragers away from their work?

I had removed my top feeder a week ago when I put the second hive body on (package started April 10).  The girls had filled out 9 frames with lightning speed, and took 1.5 gallons in 7 days, but didn't seem to have much space left for laying, as fully 6 of those frames were crammed with syrup.  Checking back yesterday, I found that they had eaten through more than half of that stored syrup and replaced it with masses of brood - more than the volume of a football, most of it now capped.  Laying is continuing, and the queen is laying a beautiful close pattern.  But the bees had drawn no more comb during the week, had not touched the second hive body, and few bees had even gone up there.  My guess is that with so many larva to feed, they didn't have surplus syrup to eat to produce wax scale at the pace they had been.

I'm clearly going to have a giant jump in population starting in 5 to 7 days.  I know the spring flow is not really on yet, and all the uncapped stores I saw in the hive were transparent, so I suspect they're not bringing nectar in yet.  Should I put more syrup on to encourage the girls to draw out the second body and make sure they have enough to feed the next round of larvae?  Or would that dissuade them from seeking nectar as the flow starts?

Thanks in advance for your advice,
Catherine


  • [ocba] Should I feed more?, Catherine Adamson, 04/28/2010

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