Mailing list for the Person County Beekeepers Association, Roxboro, NC

[Randall Austin <s.randall.austin AT gmail.com>]

Several folks asked me about the cremed/whipped/spun honey that I 
brought to the PCBA Christmas party last night. I've attached an article 
that explains how I make it. It is easy to do in either small or large 
batches and makes a great novelty gift.

Also, Whitney asked me to remind everybody to keep an eye on your 
colonies' honey stores. With the warm weather we've had thus far this 
winter, our bees have been more active than is good for them. They've 
been flying around burning up honey, and I've seen colonies that are 
still raising brood (which they really shouldn't be doing right now). We 
should always check our stores periodically in the winter (all you have 
to do is lift the hive from the back to see how heavy it is), but they 
are eating more than normal this fall/winter.

If your hives are light, FEED them!!! Sugar is a whole lot cheaper than 
bee packages. And if someone doesn't believe in feeding their livestock, 
they should get out of beekeeping and take up stamp collecting.

2-to-1 sugar syrup in half-gallon jars, inverted over the hand-hold in 
the inner cover surrounded by empty supers, is what I have used for 
winter feeding for 11 years with excellent results. Feeding doesn't have 
to be fancy or expensive. Don't over-think it, just do it if your hives 
are light. If they aren't light, you don't need to feed but keep monitoring.

An otherwise strong, healthy hive that has starved to death is a 
pathetic sight, a sad waste. I've had it happen and I sure wish that 
wasn't the case. I think I'll go lift my hives right now!

Randall

Attachment: honey_with_a_twist.pdf
Description: Adobe PDF document