When to stop feeding syrup to just-installed package?

[maggie_lee]

Hi all,

New beekeeper here, on Thursday I installed my first package. I have a top bar hive.

The can of syrup That Came with them was nearly full, and I had made a feeder too, so I Put both in the hive.

How can I tell when they don?t need syrup anymore?  Maybe I should check a maple?

- the syrup is going down very slowly, my pint jar feeder has gone down less than a quarter inch in 4 days.

- SOme bees were already bringing pollen in on Sunday.

- tons of henbit is blooming and some white cloveR and wild cherry.  BlackBerry is starting. Poplar hasn?t started yet.

- it was getting up past 70 this weekend, but it was rainy and chilly Today.

Thank you for your thoughts!

[iddee]

I would leave it on until you make your first inspection, then decide if they need it when you see what they have stored.

[FatherMichael]

Keeping bees, like most things is life, is both an art and a science.

I know one package bee seller says to feed for 40 days.

Last spring I got a strong nuc that felt light after a few weeks even though we had a major flow; so, I started feeding and they boomed.  They just needed a boost to get started, apparently.

[cao]

what iddee said x2

[jalentour]

I don't live near my hives so I need to do things a little differently.  Iddee and cao are correct, but my experience is bees won't take sugar syrup if something out there is better.  For that reason I feed packages two quarts or more per week.  The more they take the more I feed.  I winter medium over deep, once they reach that size I slow it down adjusting for dearth. 
All locations are different, and five beekeepers will give you six different answers, I suggest you speak to people at your local bee club and see what they are doing.

[guitarstitch]

In my relatively limited experience, I typically feed until they either stop taking the syrup or until I'm ready to super the hive.

[maggie_lee]

Thanks everybody!  One of my beekeeping neighbors also said she finds bees prefer natural food if they can find it and will just bypass the syrup.  So yea, I dont reckon it will hurt to keep a jar of food in there and watch.

[Terri Yaki]

OK, after reading several different thoughts on when to stop, I still don't know so I'll see what the thoughts are these days.

Got my nuc on April 14 and have been feeding them all along. For a short bit, feeding slowed but right now, they're drinking it like drunken sailors. I gave them six cups of syrup on Sunday and it's gone already. Hive is thriving, tulip poplars are in full bloom and abundant around here but they are still building wax. What to do?

[The15thMember]

Well since you just caught a swarm, my guess would be that the flow in your area is strong enough that you can stop feeding at this point.  Your girls have almost two boxes drawn out now, so they should have enough comb to do what they need to do.  In my opinion, that is a major reason to feed a new nuc/package, so they can draw the comb they need for the hive to function, especially since there may not be a nectar flow on naturally.  Whereas swarms come with bees primed to draw, so they don't need the extra boost.       

[Terri Yaki]

I already had some made up so I gave it to them. I've heard a lot that if they're taking it, keep giving it. So we'll see what they do with it.

[The15thMember]

I already had some made up so I gave it to them. I've heard a lot that if they're taking it, keep giving it. So we'll see what they do with it.

I can see doing that too, because they should stop taking it if your flow gets good.  It's just a question of whether you care if they plateau for a bit now if your flow is weak.  If you don't feed the swarm, they will tell you a lot.  If they keep building comb and growing, then you are out of the woods.  If they seem to be struggling, then maybe not. 

[Terri Yaki]

The swarm has apparently found the tulip poplar trees and are bringing it it. What puzzles me is that they are all heading towards the state park when there is a huge tree about 200' in the other direction and I'm not seeing any bees on it.

[The15thMember]

This happens to me during the sourwood flow sometimes.  I have 3 sourwood trees around the house, but in some years the bees don't seem to prefer them, but fly over the river towards WCU, where they have several trees in full sun which have more blooms.  I guess the economy of traveling a little farther for a higher density of flowers is something that works out for them sometimes.  Or perhaps those trees produce nectar with a different makeup which they prefer.  I know that sourwood honey is a different color based on the pH of the soil in which the tree is growing, so it wouldn't surprise me if the sugar makeup or content varies too.  The other factor is also that the tree's quantity and quality of nectar varies even hour by hour in some species, depending on the conditions, and all that plays into the bee's decisions as well.  The bees know best, and certainly better than us.   

[Ben Framed]

what iddee said x2

Make it X 3 for my two cents worth lol.