HI all new to forum and have A question

[firetool]

:lol: Hi all,
 Its good to be on here I look forward to getting to know ever body on here and learning and shearing alot.
 I am just getting started in bees this spring! Can any body tell me if the sugar water that we are supose to feed to the bees, can this be just regular suger or do I need some kind of speacle sugar for them? I am getting the Pollen patties from Mann Lake but I need to know if I need speacle sugar to feed them also.
 Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

 Brian

[Robo]

Yes, use only white table sugar that is commonly available in your supermarket.  It is the best for the bees.

[firetool]

I am suposed to mix it at a rate of one to one correct.( 1 cup of sugar to one cup of water) :roll:

Thanks,

Brian

[Horns Pure Honey]

There is also a 1 to 2 ratio of 1 cup sugar to 2 cups water.

[BigRog]

one to one ratio is one pund of sugar to one pound of water. (one pint is one pound of water)
A pint of water and a pound of sugar.
2 to 1 would be
A pint of water to 2 pounds of sugar.

Cups of water and sugar are not equal and will not give you the proper measurement.

[firetool]

YOU RANG,LOL
 Thank you BigRog this is good information. Do I need to heat it to get that much suger to desolve all the way?

Thanks,

Brian

P.S.- they used to call me lurch in school becouse I am very large. :lol:

[Finsky]

:lol: Hi all,
 Can any body tell me if the sugar water that we are supose to feed to the bees, can this be just regular suger or

 I am getting the Pollen patties from Mann Lake but I need to know if I need speacle sugar to feed them also.

If you have food enough in hive, there is no need to give sugar or sugar water.

I just read that if we give sugar water to bees at spring, they have big work to do when they dry up water away. It condensates vainly to inner cold walls. The extra moisture makes troubles. - That makes sense to me. Chalk brood and nosema like moisture.

I have fed my bees 12 years on spring with pollen patties. That patty also consist sugar, and other consumption of sugar is small.

Very important to spring development is the insulation of hive. When I took into use styrofoam boxes, spring development accelerated clearly. Same you can read from Israelian and German research.

2 years ago I took into use terrarium heaters, and I can say that with pollen feeding and with warming spring development is 3 times faster than in natural way. Many in this forum is sick of my heaters  

Bees need water when they raise larvae. They get water from soil, if it is bare.

If you have snow in the ground, do not start pollen feeding. Bee larvae will come sick and plenty of larvae will dye. When part of snow is melted, brood will be in good condition. This I have noticed. I think that it is lack of drinking water

http://maarec.cas.psu.edu/bkCD/management/feeding.html
.
.

[Robo]

Rog is right, the easiest way is pounds of sugar to cups of water.

Here is some info on ratios and times of year.
http://robo.hydroville.com/html/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=5

Spring is a vague term, so I agree somewhat with Finman that you don't want to feed syrup too early,  but once there is brood to feed, the syrup is actually  less work for the bees than honey or sugar.  With honey or sugar, they need to dilute it with water before feeding as with thin syrup they do not.

This is quite easy to observe by provide both and they will take the syrup as first choice.

By the way,  2 to 1 is the only one you need to heat the water, I just use hot tap water.  Some believe boiling the water kills all the bacteria and therefore the syrup doesn't mold as quick.  This is a fallacy,  because as soon as the bees start feeding, they introduce bacteria from their mouths.   A bit of cider vinegar or essential oil will make it go longer before spoiling.

How do you plan on feeding it to them?  Don't be deceived by all the fancy feeder options, the inverted jar is the cheapest and perhaps most effective.  Check out this post on feeders.
http://beemaster.com/beebbs/viewtopic.php?t=1319

[Finsky]

Rog is right, the easiest way is pounds of sugar to cups of water.

This is quite easy to observe by provide both and they will take the syrup as first choice.

 Yes same with me. Normally I take sugar frames from those hives which have too much and I give to those, which have a lack.

So we go to may and they get willow honey.  If someone is lack of food, I pour straight to combs sugar liguid, about 60% sugar. If sugar liquid is sronger, it makes bees very thirsty and they want to come out even if in cold weather.

For a long time I have not feeded sugar liquid to bees after cleansing flight.

My hives have  plenty of sugar after winter, because I feed them full in September.  Consuption is high during Marsh and April.  At May they get food from willows, but still I need to check, that hey have at least one week food in the hive.  

There are some  cold summers when I have given sugar in June.  

In our climate in May consuption of  honey is greater than coming in.  It is bad weathers which make that.

[leominsterbeeman]

Do not heat the sugar water,  but do heat the water.


So first heat the water to a boil.  

then add the sugar to the water....
 1 pound of sugar  for each pint of water.

let the mixture cool.

[BigRog]

Do not heat the sugar water,  but do heat the water.


So first heat the water to a boil.  

then add the sugar to the water....
 1 pound of sugar  for each pint of water.

let the mixture cool.

That would be for a 1 to 1 mix
2 to 1 would be 2 lbs sugar to 1 pint of water.

[Jerrymac]

Here is oour weather for the next few days;

Today: Mostly cloudy, with a high around 75. West wind between 15 and 20 mph.

Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 37. North northwest wind between 5 and 15 mph.

Wednesday: A 20 percent chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a high around 46. East northeast wind around 15 mph.

Wednesday Night: A 20 percent chance of rain. Cloudy, with a low near 34. East southeast wind between 10 and 15 mph.

Thursday: A 30 percent chance of rain, mainly after noon. Cloudy, with a high near 46. Southeast wind between 10 and 15 mph.

Thursday Night: A 30 percent chance of rain. Cloudy, with a low around 35. South southwest wind around 15 mph.

Friday: A 20 percent chance of rain before noon. Mostly cloudy, with a high around 57. Southwest wind between 10 and 15 mph.

Friday Night: A slight chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 40. West southwest wind between 10 and 15 mph.

Saturday: A slight chance of rain before noon. Mostly cloudy, with a high around 60. West southwest wind between 15 and 20 mph.

Saturday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low near 39.

Sunday: Partly cloudy, with a high around 60.

Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 35.

Presidents' Day: Partly cloudy, with a high around 61.

Right now out to the west of Lubbock are all sorts of weeds with little yellow flowers. Not dandylions. I'm sure there are many scattered around in the city. And possible other stuff scattered through out town. If the bees have any pollen and/or honey I would sit back and see what they can gather. But if they seem to be a little short on stores you might supliment them to get them through to Saturday.

[Robo]

Do not heat the sugar water,  but do heat the water.


So first heat the water to a boil.  

then add the sugar to the water....
 1 pound of sugar  for each pint of water.

let the mixture cool.

That would be for a 1 to 1 mix
2 to 1 would be 2 lbs sugar to 1 pint of water.

Or for 1 to 2,

1 lb sugar to 2 pints of water
 :D

[Anonymous]

I just use hot tap water what ever the ratio. I just fill the blender with the amout of water and the sugar for the ratio I want and mix till fully desolved then pour it in to the gallon jars I get from the delli. They now call me when thay get a couple.
 :D Al

[Horns Pure Honey]

Yeah you dont want to carmelize the sugar or it will make your bees sick or worse kill them, bye :D