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Author Topic: Sugar candy with pollen patty  (Read 3541 times)

Offline Bush_84

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Sugar candy with pollen patty
« on: February 26, 2013, 11:24:46 pm »
I was reading a blog today about making hard candy with protein powder mixed in.  I am thinking of trying hard candy due to my fondant getting runny and out of curiosity as to if hard candy is taken better than dry sugar.  It is even better if I can mix in my protein supplement into the candy.  Anybody have experience with this?  I have been thinking of ways to feed dry sugar and a protein patty at the same time and this may be the solution, but I want to see if others have tried.
Keeping bees since 2011.

Also please excuse the typos.  My iPad autocorrect can be brutal.

Offline Finski

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #1 on: February 27, 2013, 03:41:19 am »
Absolutely, it will not work.  Patty itself has 50% sugar that it will not ferment. Idea is that bees eate patty as much as possible, that they make more brood. Patty must be soft that bees can bite it with their jaws.  I use in patties fructose that it suck moisture from air and keeps patty soft.

At same time they use sugar as much as they need energy.

Bees need not dry sugar or candy at same time. If their stores are low in the hive, only wise way is to give 60% sugar syrup.
Using hard sugar they must carry lots of water into the hive. It is vain work.

If hive has allready enough honey stores, more sugar only fills brood combs.



But it is easy to try yourself what happens. One human life is not enough to try everything what guys write in internet with their "fresh thinking".

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« Last Edit: February 27, 2013, 05:11:22 am by Finski »
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Offline dfizer

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #2 on: February 27, 2013, 09:14:32 am »
Do bees take the sugar and store it away in open comb?  My hive is relatively heavy yet when I fed a honey ball they took it down like it was nothing... in two days it was gone which led me to believe that they were hungry but I really don't think that's the case given how heavy the hives are... I guess they took it and stored it away...

David

Offline danno

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #3 on: February 27, 2013, 09:23:26 am »
I made several hundred pounds of candy with  mega bee in it.  about 150 bricks.  each colony got 2 last oct/nov

Offline Finski

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #4 on: February 27, 2013, 09:25:30 am »

Bees are not hungry but they have a habit to keep the hive clean. They think that sugar's or honey's place is in combs and not everywhere.

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Offline Finski

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #5 on: February 27, 2013, 09:31:16 am »
I made several hundred pounds of candy with  mega bee in it.  about 150 bricks.  each colony got 2 last oct/nov

Why don't you feed to hives full of 1:2 syrup?
Dry sugar feeding in autumn has no idea.
Bees move into combs 10 kg sugar a day as syrup.
Idea is to be fast that they do not continue brooding with continuous feeding.

Megabee is protein product for brooding. To feed it in autumn is a bad thing.
And those bees which feed larvae, will die before winter.
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Offline danno

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #6 on: February 27, 2013, 09:41:00 am »
I made several hundred pounds of candy with  mega bee in it.  about 150 bricks.  each colony got 2 last oct/nov

Why don't you feed to hives full of 1:2 syrup?
Dry sugar feeding in autumn has no idea.
Bees move into combs 10 kg sugar a day as syrup.
Idea is to be fast that they do not continue brooding with continuous feeding.

Megabee is protein product for brooding. To feed it in autumn is a bad thing.
And those bees which feed larvae, will die before winter.
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I dont feed much 2 -1 because I leave alot of honey for there winter feed.  The candy never gets touched in autumn because they are clustered below eating honey.  The candy is for the colony that eats it way to the cover.  It keeps it alive long enough for me to get to them.  The candy doesn't have alot of protein in it.   Its just alittle bit better balance emergency diet
« Last Edit: February 27, 2013, 10:56:40 am by danno »

Offline Finski

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #7 on: February 27, 2013, 09:59:26 am »


I dont feed much 2 -1 because I leave alot of honey for there winter feed.  The candy never gets touched in autumn because they are clustered below eating honey.  The candy is for the colony that eats it way to the cover.  It keeps the alive long enough for me to get to them.  The candy doesn't have alot of protein in it.   Its just alittle bit better balance emergency diet

OK, you have so much hives that you know what to do.

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Offline T Beek

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #8 on: February 27, 2013, 10:18:19 am »
Nah, he just does it different Finski, like many other beeks.   

"different strokes for different beeks."  8-) 8-) 8-)

Not every beek in the World 'takes all honey in the Fall' and feeds sugar (dry or syrup) all winter as Finski likes to advise.  Many beeks instead "try" to leave their bees enough honey, adding candy boards, honey balls, dry sugar, whatever as "insurance" not necessarily meant to be their winter feeding. 

Most years half my colonies never end up touching the stuff "because" they were left enough honey.

Some beeks consider the particular practice of 'taking all the honey and replacing it with sugar' neglectfully abhorant  :shock:
"Trust those who seek the truth, doubt those who say they've found it."

Offline beeman2009

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #9 on: February 27, 2013, 10:35:57 am »
I've read a lot about these " honey balls " but don't find any recipes to make them. Anyone willing to share? Sounds interesting and I would like to try them.

Thanks   :th_thumbsupup:
All things may be lawful, but not all things are advantageous.

Beeman2009

Offline Finski

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #10 on: February 27, 2013, 11:27:17 am »
Nah, he just does it different Finski, like many other beeks.   

"different strokes for different beeks."  8-) 8-) 8-)

Not every beek in the World 'takes all honey in the Fall' and feeds sugar (dry or syrup) all winter as Finski likes to advise.  Many beeks instead "try" to leave their bees enough honey, adding candy boards, honey balls, dry sugar, whatever as "insurance" not necessarily meant to be their winter feeding. 

Most years half my colonies never end up touching the stuff "because" they were left enough honey.

Some beeks consider the particular practice of 'taking all the honey and replacing it with sugar' neglectfully abhorant  :shock:

You should write a beekeeping book, "How not to do like Finski"

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Offline T Beek

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #11 on: February 27, 2013, 11:40:28 am »
I've read a lot about these " honey balls " but don't find any recipes to make them. Anyone willing to share? Sounds interesting and I would like to try them.

Thanks   :th_thumbsupup:

Well, the credit belongs to BlueBee.  That's where I learned of them.  Basically you need some reputable honey, either your own or someone you know (no store bought, you just don't know what's in that stuff), add honey to dry sugar until the consistency allows you to form balls.  There you go.  have fun.
"Trust those who seek the truth, doubt those who say they've found it."

Offline T Beek

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #12 on: February 27, 2013, 11:43:50 am »
Nah, he just does it different Finski, like many other beeks.   

"different strokes for different beeks."  8-) 8-) 8-)

Not every beek in the World 'takes all honey in the Fall' and feeds sugar (dry or syrup) all winter as Finski likes to advise.  Many beeks instead "try" to leave their bees enough honey, adding candy boards, honey balls, dry sugar, whatever as "insurance" not necessarily meant to be their winter feeding. 

Most years half my colonies never end up touching the stuff "because" they were left enough honey.

Some beeks consider the particular practice of 'taking all the honey and replacing it with sugar' neglectfully abhorant  :shock:

You should write a beekeeping book, "How not to do like Finski"

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Interesting title  :-D  There's certainly a lot of data in the achieves  ;)  One could probably write two books.
"Trust those who seek the truth, doubt those who say they've found it."

Offline Michael Bush

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #13 on: February 27, 2013, 11:48:36 am »
It seems to me that bees need sugar when they need sugar, and pollen when they need pollen.  Mixing it just makes more work for them to sort things out.
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My book:  ThePracticalBeekeeper.com
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Offline BlueBee

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #14 on: February 27, 2013, 11:58:26 am »
How about this for a book:  "How to keep poly hives from turning into bee freezers 101."  ;)

In response to the original question, I did try to feed my bees a mixture of honey and protein powder (whey) a couple weeks ago and they snubbed their nose at it.  



I may give Whey another chance if/when we warm up a bit more and the snow melts.

Offline Finski

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Re: Sugar candy with pollen patty
« Reply #15 on: February 27, 2013, 12:31:56 pm »
How about this for a book:  "How to keep poly hives from turning into bee freezers 101."  ;)


That is secret knowledge and only Michigan beekeepers know how to do it.


This video knows the answer but it does not tell.

Weird Michigan Bee Hive Behavior


Michigan style

Fox Blocks Insulation of Hives


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« Last Edit: February 27, 2013, 12:54:58 pm by Finski »
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anything