Warmer weather brings the girls out! And the bee candy is a success too!

Like most of the country, we've been in the dreary pits of winter lately.  The weather here has been frigid.  We've already had two significant episodes of wintry precipitation with another on the way next week.  This is the time when I look out the kitchen window and wish that I could suit up, fire up the smoker, and head for the hives.  Soon enough I suppose.  Spring will be here before you know it.      

But out of the cold weather we've had lately, a warm day finally emerged last week.  As the sun was shining bright, the temperature reached into the 50s, and the bees emerged from their hives.  Here you can see the girls from the yellow hive as they decided to venture out and enjoy the warmth.  This is the biggest colony I have, and even in winter their numbers are high.  Click on any of the pictures to see the larger version.  

Not to be outdone, the girls in the lime green hive came out to bask in the sun.  I've worried more about this hive than the others, and I've had my doubts about their survival.  But out of all three colonies, this one had more bees hanging around outside the entrance.  Even though this is a Carniolan breed which is generally darker in color, you can see some lighter, yellow bees in the foreground.  Those are younger bees which indicates to me that the queen has been laying.  In all probability, this is probably the first time they have ever been outside the hive. 

I wanted to check and see if the bees were taking the bee candy I made over the holidays.  And as you can see, they are.  While the lime green hive had adequate stores, the orange and yellow hives seemed to be rather low.  So I made bee candy to help get all three colonies through the winter.  After all, its not the temperature that kills bees in winter...many times they starve to death.  In my opinion, the bee candy patties I made are much better than using the "mountain camp" method of feeding.  That's because it doesn't leave a big, gummy mess like the mountain camp method does.  Plus the candy patties are fairly easy to make.  I made enough to feed the bees through this winter, so once they finish these patties, I have more in storage.

The bees have eaten a hole in the side of this bee candy patty.  Another thing that makes this method unique is that the natural heat from the cluster inside the hive had risen and softened the patty.  That made it easier for the bees to take it apart and consume it.  This is just one of several patties that the bees had made holes in.  The other patties are the ones I had broken in half and they had a jagged edge for the bees to start working on.

A part of the warm weather ritual for the bees includes housekeeping.  That also includes removing dead bees from the hive.  Bees are extremely hygienic and will not tolerate trash and dead bees to clutter their house.  Here you can see some dead bees lying on the stand in front of the entrance.  I watched the bees as they would drag some of the dead ones outside, then dump them over the front.

A housekeeping bee rests on a leaf after she dumped her dead sister on the ground.  While many bees will just dump the dead ones outside the hive entrance, some will actually pick the dead bee up, fly away from the hive, then dump them.  After that manuever, she'll fly back to the hive to begin the task all over again.  The living bee is on the leaf, and just behind her (in the white circle) is her dead sister.  

Overall I was very pleased and excited to see that my three colonies were so active on a warm day.  While there is very little I can do with my bees at this point, I know that this is the time to start getting prepared for the spring.  Before you know it, it will be swarm season, time for splits, starting new colonies, experimenting to see what works and what doesn't, and just enjoy what beekeeping is all about. 

Here's hoping that 2011 will be a very successful year for your beekeeping endeavors, and in your personal lives too!  I have a feeling that 2011 is going to be a great year for all of us!

Bee happy, fellow beekeepers!

How to make candy for your honey bee colonies!

It was in February of 2010 that I worried that my bees may starve through what was left of the winter.  When we started out last winter, the hive was heavy with honey.  But it was a long winter, and like every other living being, the bees ate to survive.  The hive became very light and I could tell that their honey stores were depleting.  That's when I decided to use the "mountain camp" method of feeding to keep them from starving.  With the mountain camp method, which you see above, basically you lay a piece of newspaper or wax paper across the top frames, then you add a layer of sugar, wet it with warm water, add another layer of sugar, wet it, then keep repeating until you build up a decent store of food. Pros: The bees have food and shouldn't starve. Cons: Its messy and gums up the hive.

A few months ago, I knew my bees were running somewhat low on stores.  So to beef them up, I fed them 2:1 syrup until they stopped taking it.  Then I considered using the mountain camp method again to get them through this winter.  But then I saw a blog post where fellow beekeeping friend and blogger, Steve at Steve's Apiary in Cedartown, Georgia, posted a recipe for bee candy.  When I saw his blog post, I figured I would give it a try.  It looked easy enough and might be fun.  So I ran down to the grocery section at Walmart and purchased the ingredients, but you can find them at any grocery store.  I doubled Steve's recipe since I have multiple hives, but you could cut it in half if you need to.  Here it is:

Bee Hive Candy  
Ten pounds of granulated sugar
32 ounce bottle of clear Karo Syrup
2 1/2 cups of water
1/4 teaspoon of cream of tartar (to keep it from crystallizing)
Pure vanilla extract
Heavy grade paper plates (don't use foam plates)
Candy thermometer

First I put the sugar and Karo Syrup in a large, stainless steel stock pot. Then add the water and the cream of tartar.  My advice is to use a pot with a heavy bottom.  If you don't, when the syrup starts cooking, it will burn and you'll have to start over again.  I started out with a high heat, then once it starts to boil, I turned it down to medium high.  Oh, and prepare to stir, stir..and stir some more!

The syrup has to reach 240 degrees Fahrenheit.  And it will.  Just keep watching the heat and stir, stir..stir!  At first, the syrup is cloudy but as the syrup heats, it becomes more of a clear liquid.  What do you do now?  Just keep stirring.  When it starts boiling, take your candy thermometer and keep checking it until the mixture reaches 240 degrees.  Once you get there, turn the heat off and continue to stir the mixture.

Keep watching your candy thermometer, and when the temperature drops to 180 degrees, you can begin to pour it in the paper plates.  But before that, I added a healthy splash of pure vanilla extract to give the mixture some smell to attract the bees.  But be CAREFUL!  The candy started to splatter after I poured the vanilla in, and I had to back away until it settled down.  But as I stirred the candy, the sweet smell of vanilla filled the air.  From the pot, I poured the mixture into the paper plates with a metal ladle.  The entire mixture was enough to fill nine large Chinet paper plates. 

If you don't think that all that stirring is enough to build up your biceps and triceps, then maybe scrubbing and washing the pot and spoon will give you a workout.  Actually it wasn't that bad at all.  I'm sure the dish washer would easily remove the candy residue, but I just decided to wash it the old fashioned way.  

How did the bees like it?  See for yourself!  The next day, I broke a few of them in half to give them a rough edge and to make it easier for the bees to get started.  Before I put the candy in the hive, I laid down a sheet of wax paper and punched small holes in it so the bees could easily get to the candy.  I also sprinkled some Mega Bee pollen substitute around too.  The bees went right to it and started eating away.  I consider this to be a great success.  So did the bees.

The next time I make bee candy, I think I may experiment some.  I may try some essential oils or maybe a splash of Honey-B-Healthy.  Or I may try some other natural additives to see what the bees are more attracted to, for example, citrus or mint extracts.  Oh, and by the way, I couldn't help but test the final product to see what it tastes like.  My opinion?  Marshmallows.  Its nowhere as fluffy as a marshmallow, but tastes just the same.  I'm no fan of marshmallows.  So I'll leave the candy for the bees.

Just a note: You can find cheaper syrup besides Karo brand, but I wouldn't.  Karo lists just corn syrup and water in the ingredients.  I found a cheaper brand that was full of preservatives and things I'd never heard of.  It pays to read labels.  Second, unless you're an excellent candy maker, you need to use a candy thermometer, and if you don't have one, buy one.  Don't chance it because you will mess it up.  And last, be careful.  The boiling candy mixture is extremely hot.  If it gets on your skin, you can count on a really nasty burn.  Protect your hands with protective, insulated gloves...maybe something like an Ove-Glove.            

If you decide to try it, good luck!  And thanks to Steve for passing along his recipe.