How To Make Honey Bee Feed Stimulant & Important Beekeeping News

[@suffolkshepherd]

100 % correct on the Ultra bee and blue feeder. It is now October and the bees are all over it. When I first put them out in August they did not touch it.

[@cqammaz53]

Add the saucer or small plate to put on your blender You just need to hold it down at the beginning but it works great

[@joedenton7023]

Your walking around in shorts and a T shirt, we had snow here in Alabama yesterday and lots of rain before that, it’s been a crazy November! Thanks again for the videos, I passed your channel on to a friend just this morning, we all need to learn as much as we can about caring for the bees!

[@toddachten2224]

I also add 1 1,200 mg capsule (cut open and dump in) of soy lecithin to the mix when blending. It aids as a natural emulsifier to keep the mix combined. Works great. My only advice to viewers if you feed internally or hive top.......this WILL incite a robbing frenzy so be prepared and reduce entrances on weaker hives.

[@WilliamMcNett]

Bought liquid Sunflower lecithin off Amazon. Because I couldn't find any. Didn't think about supplements 🤔

[@greghill9958]

David I really like your videos and i consider you a friend.

[@annsykes1755]

Thank you for this! You are making your bee food for a huge number of hives. How many drops would you put of each in a gallon mixture? Thank you!!!

[@MrSnapper1d]

Hey Dave, If you emulsify using a 2:1 sugar syrup instead of water it will emulsify much better.

[@christynm.8933]

THANKS..I'm new to beekeeping..I'll add sugar when making this recipe tomorrow!!❤👍

[@ssikka1000]

Thanks David, How did I miss this video? Nosema kills bees. I had this when I purchased bees in FEB. Told Heather you didn't do anything then. Then recover it because I may have used honeybee healthy. Bees didn't make it thru March. Bees were flying in Feb and spitting orange like substance. Big problem with California bee suppliers due to Rain. I am ok for now. You are indeed the best teacher for honey bee care. Keep up the good work. Thanks for your videos..

[@brucewest4862]

How much water is in the blender before you start blending?

[@antoniettepacheco5798]

How many ounces of water did you use? Thank you!!

[@rustyrulze]

Is it important that the mix stays cool before you add it to your sugar mix ?

[@maryduff8831]

My husband and I were trying out rice bran for bringing deer in .... lol .... ya the bees loved it and deer ignored it. They hit the rice bran hard and carried 30 out of 40 lbs away.

[@russiane.lection-hacker2057]

Cool. I would not have expected that!

[@apc7736]

I don't know the nutrition content of rice bran. It might be great for bees. But honey bees will bring sawdust back to the hive too....

[@maryduff8831]

I was shocked as hell watching them all over the pile. It had gotten wet because of heavy dew my husband and i watched them chewing holes into the rice bran and carrying it off. In 3 days it was all gone it was taken all of about 200 feet through the woods to some bee boxes.

[@russiane.lection-hacker2057]

@@maryduff8831 When the queen is still laying, but there is no pollen, bees go half nuts looking for food for the brood. I never thought rice bran to be on their menu, but considering that rice is about 50% carbohydrates, it makes sense. Not much protein though. Did you add something to the mix that might have provided that?

[@maryduff8831]

Straight rice bran ... i looked up the nutritional value and a cup has 16gm of protein ... surprised its that high for a cup. Just straight rice bran from the feed store. All total i think it took them 3 days to cart off the last 30 lbs of a 40 lb sack. Impressive to watch them work.

[@MichaelSmith-bl7bj]

Dang David you are jacked💪. Your honeybees are too scared to get out of line. Lol. Another good video brother👍

[@davidhaught84]

Lol. Thank ya. I try to keep them in line.

[@kendallonmainstreet7540]

Can I ask, why do you tilt your hives forward in winter?

[@KingpinRable]

Question, when do you stop feeding them pollen? Or do you leave it whole winter?

[@southtexan1761]

I would love to have that feeder.. I have got a swarm that comes to my house every single day to eat. I will try to catch them come the end of February but right now they act like they are in starvation mode.. they are literally wearing me out giving them 2 gallons of brown sugar/ water/ molasses mixture that I make for them. They love it..

[@p.markmcgonigle4568]

How far away (close to) the hives should the pollen feeders be placed?

[@freeman6147]

Great information - thank you :-) However I am confused because a precise quantity of essential oils is mentioned but an imprecise quantity of water. This would make the end strength of each mixture different. If not, to keep the strength consistent for the three water containers mentioned, you'd surely need to vary the quantities of essential oils? Perhaps either 4, 4 & 3 teaspoons or 8, 8 & 4 or 16, 16 and 8. teaspoons ... Or perhaps add 1, two or 4 tablespoon to the 1/2 pint of water and proportionately more for the greater volumes of water used to make the mix. Or not? Can anyone recommend a more precise strength?

[@WarpedYT]

Super awesome, I love your videos, I need to plug your store info into one of my upcoming episodes.

[@tonyaburton5376]

on your now oils are they 100 percent organic oil or aromatherapy oil thanks rusty

[@bonnie5293]

How often do you add this brood builder to your sugar water?

[@mikeschickensandgarden3370]

Should you put some of that in with dry sugar for over winter feed. I’m in Ohio if that makes a difference. No hives yet I’m just trying to learn as much as I can before I do

[@roycarter6235]

I'm in the Blue Mountains Australia the home of Tea Tree Oil. I will give it a go. I'm not sure where I will get the Wintergreen from. I took note of what David said. If I only have Tea Tree Oil, that will do. I wonder if it is related to or the same as eucalyptus oil. Thanks for a great site. I learn a lot from it. As a extra, they use Tea Tree Oil as a disinfectant so I'm not surprised that it is effective in this application.

[@barrybrum]

Hi, David. I'm watching this on May 25, 2022, almost 3 years after you filmed it. Do you still use the same ingredients/mix in your supplement today, or have you changed it? Have you run a test without the essential oils vs. with to see the difference in consumption?

[@T0tenkampf]

Do you feel there is value in buying the doubly expensive organic oils from NOW? I use their products all the time and love them for the money. Why would you not use lecithin as an emulsifier in this?

[@earlconaway3398]

Hi I’m a new beekeeper in South East Georgia and seen some videos about stimulates and was wondering is there a particular reason you don’t use lavender in your recipe

[@seangovan8164]

Thanks so much. I had no idea that you could get oil and water to stay blended without lecithin, so I put off making my own stimulant. Honey B Healthy is kind of expensive. Now I just need to find an old beat-up blender.

[@sundaycaradine2171]

go to thrift stores for blenders

[@henryngwenya5761]

I caught bees from an ant hill in winter and they were few in population and put them in a wooden box and made my own frames and did just as jb the bee man does ,I used their comb for the frames. What iam worried of is are they going to work on the comb or they will swam away?

[@sweetirisfarm]

*I need to get some more of this mixed up.*

[@joelee829]

Will this mix feed work with cane sugar

[@deetuggle4119]

I'm seeing bad feedback about using essential oils in the feeders. Have you had any problems with them?

[@wayneynot]

Hey David, I've had my bees about a year now and they haven't made any honey so far, they have nectar but they don't cap it and they become really aggressive. I have a total of 3 hives.

[@jonathanswoboda]

Aggression is very seasonal at least up in Canada. In the spring and summer my bees are very gentle, I don't need a suit. Once we hit September they get really aggressive and I have been stung just walking near the hives (happened twice), you really need a suit to go into them.

[@russiane.lection-hacker2057]

If your bees don't cap their honey, the first thing to check is ventilation. If the workers can't get enough airflow going they can't get the moisture out, and they won't cap the nectar until it's dehydrated enough.

[@alg8884]

If u r in Jamaica, sometimes the flow is not strong enough for them to fully fill out comb to the top. If the nectar never reached capacity in terms overflowing the comb, the bees are less likely to cap. In this case use a shallow super or gently flash the frame towards the ground. If the contents stay put, u can extract.

[@wayneynot]

@@alg8884 I'm actually lived in Florida right now, the house that you see is a retirement house I'm building in Jamaica.

[@alg8884]

@@wayneynot K, kool.

[@amathonn]

Usually I use Honey Bee Healthy but ran out last week so fed some plain sugar water. Bees didn't take it so I assumed they had enough food and I pulled it. A few days later I noticed a couple of the jars had black mold in them - but not the one that had HBH. Does HBH have a preservative in it?

[@stevejackson5062]

Hey David, could you put your source for your oils in there comments? Thanks

[@edcoffin3514]

David, can you buy smaller pollen feeders like the one you use?

[@mrcool240]

so helpful thank you Love you videos!! 🐝

[@SuperSavagebliss]

When in 2-19 do your packages ship?

[@stephendunn8782]

David, when you mix up your sugar water how long do you store it? From what I’m being told these essential oils prevent fermentation. Have you seen the same results?

[@dontannery1805]

Should you feed them this every time you feed?

[@heavymechanic2]

I use these oils often because the mint scent helps with mite control and even added some of the oils to sugar brick in the winter, the bees are doing fine. Read about Apiguard and how it works, this certainly wont hurt unless you use too much. Hope this helps.

[@stephendunn8782]

David how old is your blue pollen feeder? Looking to buy one but want to make sure I’ll get several years of service out of it.

[@thomasmiller1383]

Will the essential oils harm the rapid feeders?

[@carlosgarcazon9711]

thanks for the video...

[@Donovan_Walker]

Is that a pint of water?

[@pnwRC.]

What is the cost for someone to get into bee keeping. I currently have NOTHING for it. I know I'd need bees, a hive, smoker, & bee suit as the minimum. Are there any other essential items that would eventually be needed? What would the total investment be to get started?

[@pnwRC.]

@Terese Durand Thanks for the info

[@dennistaylor3796]

Get a hood and a white turtle neck shirt. Rubber bands or bicycle Velcro bands for pants legs

[@phillully4472]

David, Thanks for the heads up on the Brushy Mountain bees. wasn't awate they went out of biz ! So thanks.

[@SparkieDog1]

Thank you very much for sharing.

[@SherCts]

where do I purchase this blue bee feeder?

[@donaldmccann3217]

Why not lemon grass I read somewhere that lemon grass oil would help with mites

[@leroydalton173]

How often do you feed the sugar water?

[@smith7195]

Hello David, how soon after the pollen flow should I feed. The day after or a month later or does it matter? Thanks for all the informative videos.

[@charleneshinsky1248]

I cant find food grade wintergreen?

[@brettwillbornsr.8437]

We have had real cold temps here in central Texas . I have reduced the hives and the entrance . I am also feeding like you have advised with syrup and pollen . Lows have got down to 22 degrees already . Which is real cold for this time of year here . I notice dead bees on the ground this afternoon in front of the hive. About 50 . Is this normal . I have treated for mites also with the fogger about 2 weeks ago. I am going to put sugar in tops of all my hives tomorrow . And this is happening to all my hives . Temp will be back into the 70 tomorrow . I should have looked closer to see how many where drones . I will do that too. Love your vids.

[@russiane.lection-hacker2057]

If you have a healthy size colony, 50 dead bees is nothing to worry about. Bees don't live long. In warm weather they'll die while foraging. When it's cold and the bees ball up, the old ones will die inside the hive. As soon as temperature allows it, workers will throw out the dead bees. If it's warm enough outside they'll drag the corpses away from the hive, but if it's cold they'll just drop them outside the entrance.

[@brettwillbornsr.8437]

Russ Ian E. Lection-Hacker after a hive inspection I honestly think it was a bee war or bees trying to rob. Saw some of that while I was inspecting . Numbers where great !Temps yesterday high was 70. Today's high 46 no bee movement .

[@russiane.lection-hacker2057]

@@brettwillbornsr.8437 Robberies are common this time of the year, but not below 50 F. Either way I would not worry about 50 dead bees in front of a hive unless it's on a daily basis. I recommend watching the landing board and the entrance, and learning to interpret what you see there. You can know most things about a hive without ever opening it.

[@brettwillbornsr.8437]

@@russiane.lection-hacker2057 great . If I have some days in the close to 70 degrees can I still feed sugar water through the winter? Thank you in advance.

[@russiane.lection-hacker2057]

@@brettwillbornsr.8437 Usually that is not a good idea. The main cause of winter colony loss (outside of diseases and parasites) is heat loss. The main cause of heat loss (outside of hive breach) is moisture. Bees will store the syrup, and try to dehydrate it. This will cause more moisture, making it even harder for the bees to stay warm. In addition, they will probably not succeed in dehydrating the syrup to honey, which means the syrup can start fermenting, giving the bees that consume it diarrhea. The sick bees will fly out to defecate. Many will succumb to the cold, which means more bee loss. If you want to feed your bees in winter, give them (candied) sugar. They will add water themselves (if hive humidity didn't do that already). You can give it to them in a top feeder, or as a candy board. Long answer. hth

[@Cindisplayground]

Thanks, Dave!

[@frankreece2646]

How often do you give the oil treatment?

[@dwainland1310]

How long is this mixture good for?

[@charleneshinsky1248]

Love your videos

[@creatorediillusioni]

really enjoy your video! always new things to learn, thanks a lot!

[@charlesthomas5737]

David, I use the Tea tree oil for Nosema, in my winter sugar water feed mix and it really works great. My question is what does the spearmint, and wintergreen oils do for the bees health. also could you put your source for your oils in the comments section. Thanks

[@robbailes9614]

Looks like David doesn’t answer questions sent in by his viewers. He must be busy

[@christynm.8933]

He should get a person to answer all these fan questions since the channel has grown SIGNIFICANTLY now in 2023 compared to 2019 when this vid was made.

[@noahriding5780]

Does using Honey B healthy or similar stuff make much of a dent into your overwintering success rates? This is what I'm most concerned with. There are many videos of Honey B healthy like products out there, but few of them actually state how its affecting their colony survival rates. Thank you.

[@davidhaught84]

The biggest thing that I've noticed with using it is the mite reduction. It acts as a repellent.

[@noahriding5780]

Thank you

[@stevendavison263]

Hey David. Thanks for another great video. My queens that I bought this year from you are doing great. They are so calm and in return so is the rest of the hive. I will be buying more queens from you next year. I've got three more hives that I'm adding to my apiary next spring, I like buying nuc's for these hives because they already have a headstart. But you don't ship nucs in the mail. Keep these great videos coming. Thanks!

[@Charlotte10035]

I'm in Ohio. Since the nucs are smaller hives, how do they over winter? Why have nuts instead of the regular size hives? I love my bees, but have lost 3 hives 3 years in a row! :-(. Hubby says that first jar of honey is going to be preeeeetttttty expensive! lol. This winter, we make frames to hold sugar cakes and I put a pollen patty in each. Praying!! I have a pollen feeder out, but have never seen that first bee in it and I know it's dry. Color me baffled!

[@parsonroy]

David, do you know if our bees visit tomato flowers when available?

[@russiane.lection-hacker2057]

Honey bees can get pollen and nectar from tomato flowers, but it's not their favorite. Tomato growers use bumble bees to help pollinate their tomatoes.

[@parsonroy]

@@russiane.lection-hacker2057 Thanks

[@parsonroy]

@@davidhaught84 Thanks.

[@ronallard1409]

David do you know what the difference is in a stronger mix have on the bees? thankyou for your vidio's Ron Allard

[@petercaston3879]

Love your video,I'm a beekeeper from Venezuela a survivor haha I'd love to get your help ready for any help.ive been trying to make my own pollen parties with soy flour but when I place it in my colonies they throw it out I've tried different formulas ,we've got very little pollen coming in so my brood levels aren't that high

[@jman414999]

Dave I live in MA and we have had snow already and its supposed to get really cold can we still use sugar water? I have already put dry sugar in the hives?

[@megamcg4412]

Only buy from barnyard bees?

[@jpthedelawarebeeman6239]

Very informative video David thank you. By the way what kind of guarantee do you give when you ship your packages? Do you do anything for any kind of loss while in transport?

[@HolisticClips]

Most packages expect almost 1in of dead bees at the bottom

[@thegardenfarmer]

Hey friend. Will your bees survive well in Cleveland Ohio? Our winters are rough... lol

[@thegardenfarmer]

@@davidhaught84 great. I'm a brand new beeHAVER, not quiet beekeeper status yet, had 1 colony this past season and learned a whole lot along the way. Ended up losing my colony in the last week when we had temps in the 20s, it was my fault of course....didn't do any preventive medicine with them. Only was able to feed them a gallon of the essentials and only 1 varroa treatment before the cold days. But I'm not giving up, I got all kinds if equipment I made, enough for 6 colonies(10framers), 6 your style queen boxes but 3 frame instead if 2(for my zone), and 6 swarm traps. I'll be looking at making an order of probably 3 packs of bees from you. Keep up the videos. Thanks again. Jarred

[@carldaniels3659]

where do you purchase the bulk liquid ingredients?

[@WilliamMcNett]

Look like the best concentrated mix posted on the internet 🙂 Way too many posted about using a whole cup or quart in a gallon of syrup 🙃

[@johnnykanoo]

kellybee is still up and running

[@ABC-cr9mi]

daamn man you're on some of that honey juice!

[@jessenhartman]

Honeyroids

[@ronnieholloway9109]

Thanks dave

[@russsherwood5978]

thank ya fer the video

[@watsonfrawley9461]

David You talked about feeding your bees sugar water until early December. Do you worry about freezing temps at night in the top feeders?. I'm using the same ones you sell.

[@watsonfrawley9461]

@@davidhaught84 thanks.

[@phillully4472]

David, is there something you can ad to raw thicker honey to keep it less viscus and fluid so that it can pour from a container? this is not crystallized honey just thick raw honey.

[@beasbeesrva2615]

Phil, if you own a refractometer, you can increase the moisture content of the honey to 17.5-18% and the honey will flow much better. Too much water and the honey may ferment so you need to be pretty careful with how much you add.

[@phillully4472]

@@beasbeesrva2615 thanks for your helpful info. but no i don't have one of those tools i just was asking for personal reasons as i have 10lbs. of thick raw unflitered honey for at home consumption. how would i do what you suggested? would this be like adding some water to this honey?

[@beasbeesrva2615]

@@phillully4472 That is pretty much it. I would warm the honey to make it easier to mix and start with a tablespoon of water per pound. Mix thouroughly, allow to cool back to room temperature, and check the viscosity by putting some on a fresh hot buttered biscuit.

[@michaelmurdock7869]

Hi David- do you sell the essential oils ? If not where do you buy them?

[@barrywest3758]

Cooooollll info! Umm, umm, good ole' mountain dew! Here kitty, kitty, kitty! Your cat looked like she was on a mission! Honeybees find that stuff addictive and gives them a more powerful buzz! LOL

[@DooBees-ub1me]

Thanks David

[@beckycory9023]

You can take the blade out of the blender & it fits on a regular mouth mason jar.

[@donaldduffey2483]

David, I found the T-Shirts online at www.barnyardbees.com, but when I attempted to order them, your shipping calculator will not accept a German address. Do you not ship outside the USA?

[@robbailes9614]

It would be great if some of the more experienced bee keepers would answer some of the questions in the comments. David must have not have time to do this which is totally understandable. I’d just like to see what the right answer is to some of these gray questions that viewers are asking.

[@justinmitchell1704]

Would you work with me on shipping for bees for next year?

[@justinmitchell1704]

@@davidhaught84 yes 2

[@nufsaidtv2779]

Wow good to much like that

[@Social_Infidel]

Good to know Dave, I could use a new Queen for a Queenless hive!

[@russiane.lection-hacker2057]

Interesting tip for sure, but this seems like half the story. Somehow I doubt that putting that jar in the fridge is going to benefit the bees in any way. So, do you feed it to them? As is? Do you water it down? When do you feed it to them? How?

[@russiane.lection-hacker2057]

@@davidhaught84 Thanks! I'm definitely going to try it.

[@randyrejer4219]

Thanks David. Where's Goosey?

[@russiane.lection-hacker2057]

Holding the camera.

[@katiemulholland4301]

Holy oils!!! Do you sell the oils?

[@DIYSolarandWind]

Holy smokes you have a gazillion bees

[@Quarterhorsey1]

Hi Dave, Since its too cold to feed syrup here in NW MT ann the bees are basically tucked in for the winter, can i add your concoction to the sugar cakes im making for the candy boards? And if so, how much of the formulation would you add to say 10 lbs of dry sugar? Is this concoction of yours mainly for Fall feeding or can it be fed year round? Thanks so much!! :D

[@Quarterhorsey1]

@@davidhaught84 Thanks so much for that! So if adding it to dry sugar only for right now, would i have to do the emulsion process (5 min blender) or can i just shake it up in the jar and then mix the dose into the dry sugar? :D

[@gidsbaltv8660]

banyardbees.com do you ship to Philippines? Do you accept Western Union Money Transfer as mode of payment?

[@scottchapman1096]

Can you make sugar cakes with this?

[@amineamine-ip1dj]

Thx for your videos pls can some one write thé three ingrediant down ? Thank you

[@aarongriffin81]

In his mixture, he used 4 Tsp tea tree oil, 4 Tsp spearmint, 2 Tsp wintergreen.

[@aarongriffin81]

After it is mixed, he uses 1 tablespoon of the mixed product to 1 gallon of sugar water.

[@amineamine-ip1dj]

@@aarongriffin81 thx very Much really appreciate it

[@skinnybeeman4584]

Hey David if it Nov 18 tell me what the lottery numbers are for saturday. LOL

[@donaldduffey2483]

LOL-

[@johntraynor8777]

HAS anyone had a reply from David as to when you start adding the Essential oils to there sugar water feed????

[@davidhaught84]

Always add essentials to you sugar water. Except for lemongrass during dearth.

[@allenkracower4787]

Don’t the oils cause robbing?

[@davidhaught84]

It will if there is lemongrass oil in it. I Don't ever recommend using lemongrass except for swarm traps.

[@shannjill]

Fat bee man adds a whole cup of this mix to a gallon of sugar water. Too strong?

[@dannywalden457]

Dave my girls have stopped eating sugar water already.???

[@CrossroadToCountry]

They wont take sugar water when the temp is below 50 degrees or so. You can use solid sugar in one of those fancy sugar feeders he sells though for winter feed.

[@leventebalazs7782]

Hey David, amazing videos, can see you love your bees and really know them... Got an important question, I've ordered essential oils branded "Now ". All the oils are ordered its written " Not for internal use"... So I'm not sure, can I use these with my bees? I've ordered lavender, spearmint, wintergreen, rosemary, lemongrass, eucalyptus essential oils to use with my bees. Please advise me on this matter, many thanks. Regards, Levy

[@eveillanderson]

🐝- - - - -

[@unknownphantom6844]

First