In order for the bee colony to overwinter well, it must be provided with a sufficient amount of food. Usually, during the flying season, bees themselves procure honey and bee bread for wintering, but sometimes there are unforeseen circumstances, like a rainy summer, an attack by thief bees and others. And then the beekeeper must replenish the stocks of feed in the hives himself, so that the bee colonies do not die of hunger.
It is necessary
- - sugar;
- - water.
Instructions
Step 1
At the end of summer, after the completion of honey collection, make an audit, that is, check how much honey is in a particular hive, remove low-copper and unfinished frames. During the examination, determine how much sugar syrup should be given to each colony.
Step 2
After identifying bee colonies with a small supply of honey, start feeding them. To do this, prepare a sugar syrup in a 1x2 ratio (1 liter of water to 2 kg of sugar). You cannot boil the syrup, otherwise it will quickly crystallize in the combs, and the bees will not be able to use it.
Step 3
In the evening in warm weather, pour the warm syrup into the feeders. They are of two types, those that are placed in the hives or next to the frames (inner), and those that are placed on the frames (upper). Place the feeders in the hives. Bees quickly choose food from them, so you need to replenish the stock in 1-2 days.
Step 4
If you could not feed the bees before wintering, then do it during it. There is one rule. You can feed bees in winter only when the outside air temperature is at least 2-4 degrees Celsius. For this, families wintering in the open air should be brought into rooms with an appropriate temperature.
Step 5
For feeding, use sugar syrup with the same concentration as for feeding for the winter - 1x2. Pour it into the empty honeycomb on the frame, remove the cover on the hive, unscrew the canvas covering the frame with the hibernating bees and place it on the edge. Cover with a canvas and lower the hive lid back into place. Use a lantern with red glass when working. In the red light, the bees cannot see anything and therefore do not attack the beekeeper.
Step 6
You can feed the bees in a different way using a half-liter glass jar. To do this, fill it with thick sugar syrup, cover with a thick cloth and tie. If everything is done correctly, then when you turn it over, the syrup will not drain, but only make the fabric damp. Remove the lid from the hive, unscrew the canvas in the corner and place the jar upside down on the frames with the bees. After a day, you need to see if the jar is empty, replace with a new one as necessary. When the bees are fed, remove the jar and cover the hive with a lid.
