Feeding YOUR BEES In The Winter / Beekeeping 101

It's December! Which means it's time to put my winter feed on my lighter hives for the winter. It is super simple, only takes about 3 minutes per hive without having to prep or use an oven to make candy boards. I hope everyone is having a great BEE WINTER so far :)
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beekeeping, beekeeping 101, overwintering bee hives, feeding your hives in the winter, northern climate beekeeping, Michigan beekeeping, putting sugar on hives, how to feed in the winter, candy boards, shims for beehive, overwintering tips, overwintering set up, entrance reducers, insulation foam

[@daleb8512]

We add water to the sugar to help form it into blocks. Bees move up because it's warmer in the upper box.

[@johnn1a2]

Friendly advice don’t judge the amount of stores in your hives by we’re the bees are. Tip hive in fall make mental note how heavy or write note on outer cover. I have some singles over 80 lbs and clusters are right up top of hive.

[@beefitbeekeeping]

That’s good to know thank you! ♥️

[@robertpeterson6638]

Good job girl

[@cleverjoe]

Good job, I do the same but I put the sugar on top of the inner cover, with holes to access it, then styrofoam. Good luck and go bees!

[@beefitbeekeeping]

That's a great idea! 🥰

[@JCsBees]

You could put a notch in the foam insulation coming out the front. Would give any moisture a place to exit too.

[@johnn1a2]

Awsome idea Jason easy quick fix to let moisture escape

[@beefitbeekeeping]

That is a genius idea why didn’t I think of that 🤦🏼‍♀️ thank you!!

[@robertcampbell943]

Glad your back with Beekeeping videos! After the last one we were afraid you might pack it in. Your passion will keep you in the game and you will continue to grow towards a very happy life. Keep the videos coming as we really look forward to them. Good luck and bee safe. 😊🐝

[@beefitbeekeeping]

I’m not going anywhere, my bees have forever captured my heart so I will definitely keep on them and the videos ☺️ thank YOU for being here!! ♥️☺️

[@mikemcgilvray8558]

Your bees are on top because heat rises don't open it up when it is cold

[@mikemcgilvray8558]

Should have e done this before it got cold

[@BlaineNay]

I suggest harvesting in August. Harvest only the surplus. Leave each colony enough of their own honey as they need for the entire winter (here at a mile above sea level in the Rockies, that's the equivalent of one full deep supper. All the winter stores needs to be contiguous so the colony can access all the honey without breaking the cluster. In following this advice given to me over 60 years ago, I don't need to feed my bees. Further, I think it is poor practice to crack the propolis seal after early October. If it's cold enough to need gloves and a jacket, it's too cold to open the hive.

[@shawnboutersebouterseurban387]

Suggestion use your inner cover that you didn't put back on as a top vent. Put the inner cover over your shim, then foam, and then outer cover

[@beefitbeekeeping]

Hmmm yes this is a good idea. Why didn’t I think of that 🤦🏼‍♀️🤣

[@thehturt5480]

Told You ,You're not alone. Keep persevering and You shall be fine.😊🍀🐝

[@beefitbeekeeping]

It truly is amazing the family that is here. Thank you ☺️♥️

[@PapaBee165]

I feed my bees dry sugar and they take it with no problem. It also serves to absorb moisture in the hive.

[@Gfthce3426]

Smiling.!. Loving these winter days and moments of quiet time, feeding the rancher's cattle out on the snowy range and biulding beehives for the coming spring. Thanks Em ! ,All the best hoping right back at yuh ! Bee Smiling ! Spring will be here plenty soon.

[@beefitbeekeeping]

☺️♥️ positivity radiates from your text, I love it!! Thanks for being here!

[@aaronnylander7522]

Hello 👋 I am deaf. You know sign language? Nice your bees 🐝 hives. Me too . I have 3 hives in samll house keep warm. Minnesota very cold. I live Minnesota north. 3 hive much honey 🍯 for winter bees eat honey. Soon feed for bees too. I like learning how bees live weather. Have good time .

[@louiseibbotson588]

Have a good Christmas Emily , let’s hope all our bees 🐝 are snug and plenty feed . 🐝❤️

[@beefitbeekeeping]

Yes indeed ☺️ And Merry Christmas to you too!

[@dcsblessedbees]

Keep up the great work😁Emily. I made sugar bricks basically what ya did just in a more packed form. Winter can sure have it's up and downs as a beekeeper but Spring is on it's way.😉Least that's what I keep telling myself.👍

[@beefitbeekeeping]

Yes it is! And I can’t wait! I have a lot of exciting things planned for spring. So I better enjoy the slow days now while we have them 🥴

[@senshi763]

Awesome I like your video I'll like to know more about bee feeding

[@carolannjacques268]

Nice to see you!

[@beefitbeekeeping]

☺️😘♥️

[@stevenkawano9746]

Wow 24°🥶The coldest I have ever been in was 35° I thought That was cold! No wonder the sugar really does look like snow! I'm Sure ur bees Miss U too my friend but that was sweet when u said u Missed their presence☺️🐝💛Good thing u checked on them when u did too what a relief! Well Good luck with #beewinter can't wait for the next episode and Great seeing U again and Hope ur doing well, Always Here to support my Favorite Keeper in Any way I can, take care of Urself and ur winged friends, see U in the next one, Emily☺️👑🐝💛👍 #beewinter #myfavoritekeeper #emilyisthebeesknees #sugarsnow #beefitbeekeeping #beefithoney #staywarm #whitechristmas #friendssupportfriends💛

[@beefitbeekeeping]

♥️☺️ thank you Steven you are always the BEST! I hope you are doing well my friend!

[@stevenkawano9746]

@@beefitbeekeeping 😊💛🐝💛😊I Am Thank U, going on a cruise to Ensenada Mexico on Sat so I'll be in Mexico for my Birthday in tues☺️🎈🇲🇽Hope U have a Wonderful weekend too my Favorite Keeper☺️

[@framcesmoore]

Great video good to see u back hope every thing is better for u. Have a Merry Christmas Emily

[@beefitbeekeeping]

Just taking it one day at a time but it is getting better thank you ☺️♥️ Merry Christmas!

[@markmiller4047]

It looks like you're doing everything right. Emily, winter will be over soon and we will be back into our bees before u know it. Luv the smiles 😃 still praying for u hang in there

[@beefitbeekeeping]

Thank you ♥️☺️ spring will be here before we know it and I can’t wait!

[@halfasshuntingclub5330]

I gave my hive a candy board yesterday. They sure were happy to see me…not! Thank goodness for bee suits!

[@ebonypegasus9864]

Don't they feed off all the honey they collected over spring? I'm glad you love them and keep them fed. I love bee's, don't own any but love seeing them around. I don't think I'd be allowed to have my own hive.

[@bernardardis8796]

Glad to see you growing a great family here.. I am wondering if i need to feed a few colonies as well and i like your method it was what i was leaning towards as well

[@beefitbeekeeping]

Just depends on how much honey was on them going into winter but it definitely wouldn’t hurt either way! ☺️ hope you’re having a great bee winter!

[@frankgailey164]

Michigan beekeeping dig it

[@frankgailey164]

Sweet tuquk

[@rodneymiddleton9624]

Thanks Emily. I have to get sugar on my girls too. Thanks!

[@beefitbeekeeping]

You got this! ♥️

[@johnn1a2]

Always good to do when light hives. I have 6 that swarmed late and hives the ones they left made queen and had some brood, married up some to strengthen, they are only about 60 lbs so added sugar boards. I do what ur doing inside house before cold moves in, and let completely dry as they absorb the humidity in air. I install all my sugar in light hives late fall, can’t see waiting till it’s cold if they need it. I screen my sugar shims and put split paper towel on screen ( screen big enough for bees to get through) and add my sugar with water and vinegar ( stops mould). I always have a ventilation hole in all my brood boxes all my hives are all singles, plus a 2 inch Stryofoam board on top of hive. When I have shim on put ventilation hole in it and plug hole in hive box. Always a good idea to score paper on inside of outer cover. Just in case if queen is at top of hive she may be killed, slim chance but I figure why test fate. I too use entrance reducer, my entrance is about 2.5 to 3 inches wide. I like to be able to reduce my 3 inch opening (at times reduce to 3 bee widths) if windy and open when nice and sunny( especially if entrance plugged with ice from internal moisture dripping out) and need to remove dead bees. The way I do this is I cut strips of that insulating I call it bubble wrap that’s shiny insulation, and with big tacks can regulate entrance width. I like to get paper plates make my sugar water vinegar mixture dry on paper in dead of winter no need to do paper lift hive if light, don’t take inner cover completely off open enough too add dry sugar wafer that I peeled off pie plate. Great video I have some 60 lb single hives that with the amount of winter bees they have will start tipping some hives end January to check weight. Good luck to all

[@beefitbeekeeping]

Thank you for taking the time to share all of that with me, I really appreciate all of the tips your shared ♥️ hope you’re keeping warm!

[@ayanabdullah7733]

I like you

[@beefitbeekeeping]

😘

[@shawnsolonski2681]

I miss our bee's too. They are in California for pollution while I'm stuck in Minnesota.. Not a better feeling then working with them.. And kinda even miss the stinger.. lol 🤣

[@beefitbeekeeping]

I get that entirely! In a weird way I miss getting stung too. My body adapted to it so much that if I didn’t get stung for a couple weeks i noticed I would start to crave my bees 🤣 sounds crazy but yeah 🤣🤣♥️

[@benjaminmeadows1380]

That's cold down here in Florida 37 this weekend 😳

[@beefitbeekeeping]

Ooooof that’s cold for Florida tho! You guys get the humidity down there so 37 feels like zero 🥶 hope you’re staying warm!

[@benjaminmeadows1380]

Yelp my bees are not jacket but doing well checking them tomorrow so have to do work on Saturday at my regular job

[@tas2583]

Hi Emily, hope all is well! I have a lot of success using the mountain camp method here in Michigan (Mason County area). I put my sugar on dry, about 8-10 lbs per colony, in two large strips on the top frames, with a bare space down the middle to allow the bees access. They will remove a very small amount of it before it hardens, but the waste is negligible. Oddly enough, my bees consistently seem to prefer the sugar over their own honey, as the overwintered colonies will have consumed nearly all of the sugar, and maybe only a half to 2/3s of their honey. (I overwinter in a single deep brood box with one medium on top full of honey stores). Like you, my bees also move up into the top box rather quickly. I don't think they are out of food below however, they just prefer to move upwards. Probably a warmth thing.

[@beefitbeekeeping]

I think it is a warmth thing. I didn’t realize it but hot air raises so it makes sense they would move up as that’s where all of the heat is coming off of their cluster. Hope you’re having a great bee winter ♥️

[@jonathanstevens9919]

i made shims and stapled hardware cloth to bottom and i packed the sugar in them then let it set to dry for a day then went out and could just place the frames with sugar on them so it quicker while in bee yard. I also heard it is best to spread the sugar out so when they do move around they will always have sugar above them

[@jonathanstevens9919]

i also just took a drill bit and drilled a hole in the front of the shim and staped hardware cloth on the inside so they have the upper entrance it is lot quicker to drill a 1" hole or so and stape cloth on it instead of cutting a notch in the frame

[@beefitbeekeeping]

Good thinking, I like that. I may go around and drill a hole for them as an upper entrance. Thank you!! ♥️

[@jonathanstevens9919]

@@beefitbeekeeping no problem keep making videos

[@johnnybstuddd4482]

Do you ever make sugar cakes? I make them the same way your doing, but make them inside and pack the sugar tighter. Its like a giant sugar cube. The bees always seem to like them. Good video.

[@beefitbeekeeping]

I haven’t made those yet but I’ve seen them done! I may do that in February once it’s really cold 🥶 thank you ☺️

[@mikemcgilvray8558]

Got my bees first year put 4 pounds in and forget it till spring

[@Fred-ff6bv]

put the paper on top of the inner cover, spacer ring on top of that, sugar on the paper, hole through paper where inner cover hole is, insulation and then the top.

[@carlsledge3868]

I don't have to feed sugar cause I saved back enough capped deep frames to give every colony at least 2 each stored in the bee's freezer, I'm in mid Georgia and my bees are still flying and finding some pollen, I open feed 2 -1 with around 12 drops of lemongrass oil , 8 ozs. of orange or lemon juice and 1.5 caps of apple cider vinegar per gallon, for their gut health and amino / citric acids.

[@beefitbeekeeping]

Thanks for that recipe! I screenshotted it so I could use it. Yes this is my first year having to feed. My bees were in a bad location before. Was right outside of a city so not many resources. They paid for it. So hopefully next year I won’t have to worry about feeding at all.

[@carlsledge3868]

@@beefitbeekeeping Glad you got you bees moved and they're doing OK, there is a version of the mountian camp sugar method that works pretty well and similar to your, but you don't need the bowl, just a mister bottle of warm water, you pit the news paper on lightly mist it pour a 1/2" or so layer of sugar mist it, then just keep making layers till you have the poundage or amount you want, never used it myself but seen many videos on it.

[@inrussian]

How did that work out

[@ohio1970]

Im curious,are the hives protected from bears ?

[@beefitbeekeeping]

Luckily there aren’t any bears in my area in southern MI. At least they never come down this far YET! 🤞🏼

[@catalintgjiu]

these are italians bees?

[@beefitbeekeeping]

Started with Saskatraz, then when I expanded I moved in a Carnolian/Italian cross, then when I expanded again moved in local queens from a treatment free breeder so not entirely sure what breed of bees those were but now I have a mix of them all

[@tomsuelyblaisdell]

If I don't see your next video in time, a have Happy Christmas! May I suggest you find a United Pentecostal Church to help you with your journey through life? God bless!