Worldwide Beekeeping

Beekeeping => General Beekeeping => Topic started by: The15thMember on October 15, 2023, 04:47:05 pm

Title: Adjustment to Hive Top Feeder
Post by: The15thMember on October 15, 2023, 04:47:05 pm
I was given a hive top feeder recently, and I hardly ever feed syrup, so I was standing in the garage looking at it thinking, "What am I going to do with this?", and suddenly an idea came to me.  I bent up the hardware cloth to allow the bees access to the feed chamber, and then I filled it up with some old comb that was full of uncapped nectar.  I put it on top of a hive that was a little light on stores, and they picked it all clean in a few days.  I wanted to cycle out this really dark comb, and I wanted to let the bees clean out what they could from it, but I've been trying to get away from open feeding, since I think it makes mites really spread around the yard in the fall.  Yesterday I filled the feeder up with like a gallon of wet wax from crushing and straining, something else I would have just set out in the past.  I'm hoping this will help with mite management in the fall, and I'm totally psyched about it.  8)
 
(https://i.ibb.co/mcN0Ggb/What-s-Gonna-Happen-137.jpg) (https://ibb.co/mcN0Ggb)
Title: Re: Adjustment to Hive Top Feeder
Post by: iddee on October 15, 2023, 05:11:09 pm
 :thumbsup:
Title: Re: Adjustment to Hive Top Feeder
Post by: Bakersdozen on October 16, 2023, 11:49:42 am
Good idea!  I have a couple of those that I never use.  Coincidentally, last night I was thinking about giving them to someone who would use them.  I understand they are making them better these days so less bees drown.