The Spring of 2024 continues to give the bees a hard time. Strong cold winds and never ending rain (and showers) keeps them locked inside their hives, rapidly consuming valuable winter stores.
My preferred (and simple) method of topping up the bees stores is simply to add a block of bakers fondant resting on a queen excluder and using either a feeder or eke for the extra space (70mm). The bees rapidly take the feed down into the hive and it also acts as a good indicator of remaining stores and hive strength (without opening them up). Surplus will be used for spring build-up, for nice strong colonies.
A few tips; never place the fondant directly on the frames, it'll melt and kill the colony. Wrap the fondant and cut a few slits into the base (allowing bees access) this keeps the fondant moist. Use plastic food trays for nucleus hives or quick emergency feed. Buy in bulk for big discounts, we usually buy a pallet of 40 boxes (12.5kg) each.
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