Treatment and Feed Recipes

By Robert Coselli

In my early years of being a beekeeper I would always hear of these wonderful mixtures and concoctions other beekeepers were feeding there bees, however everyone had a variation on a recipe and it got confusing as to what was the right one to use, in essence the choice is yours and it is up to you to fine-tune the mix to your colony. The Default recipes however are as follows.

August - October: Winter Syrup (Winter feed Mix)

This mix is fed to bees in the late Summer after the honey is harvested to allow them to build up stores ready for the winter. The bees will fill all empty comb cells with sugar syrup however it is highly unlikely that they will make more comb.

Feed 1 pint of syrup at a time thus preventing mould to form in the feeder.

Always Wash the feeder with hot soapy water between feeds if black/green mould appears in the mix.

Feed the bees until they can no longer take the syrup.

Ingredients

1 Pint water

1 lb 3 oz of sugar

or 1:1 By volume i.e. 1 x honey jar of water to 1 x honey jar of sugar

Method

Heat the water in kettle until boiling. Add the boiling water to the sugar and mix it until all of the crystals have dissolved, if the crystals are not dissolving pour the solution into a pan and reheat until all sugar has dissolved. Allow the solution to cool before serving it to the bees in a Feeder.

September - December: The Thymol Pattie, Varroa and acarine Treatment for Wintering Colonies

Toxicology of Thymol

NB: it is imperative that this preparation is made away from foodstuffs and there can be no chance of cross contamination with the Thymol.

Harmful if swallowed, inhaled or absorbed through the skin. Eye, skin and respiratory irritant Eye contact may cause serious harm.

At long last an effective Varroa treatment I believe works, and done properly and at the right time will keep the Varroa levels low until the following years treatment.

Equipment

1 x Pair of safety goggles

1 x Pair of Rubber gloves

Grease Proof Paper

Re-sealable storage container

Ingredients

100g Thymol (crystals)

180g Pura (Vegetable fat)

720g Caster Sugar

Method

It is vital not to exceed any of the weights shown as the above recipe offers a 10% Thymol mix which is optimum for its use in the destruction of Varroa mites.

1. Place the Pura vegetable fat into a saucepan and gently heat until melted

2. Mix the Thymol and Sugar together for about 2 minutes making sure there are no lumps.

3. Then slowly add the melted Pura to the sugar-Thymol compound and mix thoroughly

4. Break off a 5-8g piece and flatten it into patty which covers a 7”X 5” inch piece of grease proof paper allowing for a ½” inch border around the paper. The patty should be approximately ¼ inch thick.

5. Place the grease proof paper with the Thymol Pattie onto the top bars of the brood box and close up the hive.

The bees will then get to work removing the Patty and in turn releasing the Thymol and get covered in Pura. (It just happens that Acarine mites hate Pura which is also good for bees)

Check to see if a fresh patty is needed after the first week and continue the treatment until late November or a Zero Mite drop.

For best results place a 2 ½ inch thick Polystyrene block between the crown board and the roof. The block is cut to the same dimensions as the hive which helps maintain the hives temperature and can be left on all year.

(It keeps the Heat in and the Cold out and vice versa in the summer)

This method works very well in hot climates

December - January: Christmas Candy, Late winter snack and Vapour sponge

Candy should placed on the hive in mid December, It is in a block form and because it is placed over the hole in the crown board will absorb any humidity/steam Given off by the colony during its winter rest. It will also feed the bees if they are running low on stores.

Ingredients

410 ml Water

2 Kg Sugar

2 Tbs Locally produced Honey (From a known source i.e.: (a Local Beekeeper) – NOT from supermarket or shops) *

Method

Heat the Water in a Saucepan until boiling then add the sugar, Stir until the solution goes clear. Remove pan from the heat and place it on a piece of newspaper to protect the work surface and stop the pan cooling too quickly.

After five minutes stir in the honey and then wait for the liquid to start to form an opaque milky white crust over the surface. At this point pour the solution into 3 x 500g containers (Used margarine tubs are ideal) Allow cooling and hardening in a dry warm place for 48 hours

*Foul Brood spores & larvae can be found in honey especially non EEC Honey so it is imperative that you know where your getting your honey from and what condition their bees are in otherwise you will pollute your hive..

February - March

Spring Syrup - Comb Building Mix

This mix is fed to bees in the Spring/Summer months to enable them to pull out comb and build up the Colony (Bees will never pull comb from stored nectar)

A guideline is that 1 pint of syrup will energise the bees to pull 2 frames of 14 x 12 Brood or 3 standards

Ingredients

2 Pint water

1 Lb 3 oz of sugar

or 2:1 By volume i.e. 2 x honey jar of water to 1 x honey jar of sugar

Method

With Great thanks to Mr John Mumford of the Hertfordshire Beekeepers Association