Autumn Feeding

Now the 'retail' honey thing is out of the way, its now time to concentrate on 'bee' honey.
A healthy hive can produce three times the amount of honey it needs but poor weather, bad winters and disease can mean the bees may need some help to get through the winter.

The varroa treatment has started and I need to think about what feeding may be necessary.
Autumn feeding is usually some form of syrup. Although its just sugar and water you wouldn't believe the debates on the forums about what mixes to use.
As far as I am concerned you use 1 lbs sugar to 1 pint of water in early Spring and 2:1 later. In winter I switch to fondant blocks.

There are a bewildering array of different feeders you can use.
At the top end of the market there are Ashforth feeders which holds two gallons.

These are put on top of the brood box and the bees come up through a slot to feed. I have two of them, one that only fits the WBC hive and the other will be put on The Beast.
Very nice but they are £50 each. I have eighteen hives so not having £800 handy, I use plastic contact feeders.
The ones I use are called rapid feeders and hold four pints, so obviously need filling up more regularly, but they only cost £3.50.

In each apiary I will have a 25ltr container of syrup to keep the feeders topped up so I buy a few 25kg sacks of sugar from Bookers.

How much to feed them?

As in all things opinions vary. I know two very experienced bee keepers who belong to the Association, one gives a gallon per hive and that's it, the other feeds as they need it. I'm of the latter school of thinking.