Just a quick observation on the relationship between honey flows and feeding syrup - in this part of Maryland the strongest flow is traditionally that of the tulip poplar and honey locust in May. Also it's usually the longest. But if we have periods of heavy rain (sometimes helpful in other flows) the nectar from the tulip polar blossoms is mostly washed out and the honey production suffers accordingly. Additionally, due to the loss of cropland, over-developement and other factors (less clover, alfalfa, etc) many parts of our county don't really see another significant flow after that, even in the fall so many beekeepers feed syrup and even pollen substitute from midsummer on which kind of mystifies me (as in why bother keeping bees then). I've always assumed that honeybees can obtain sufficient food stores (for their survival at least) from just about any environment.
