>> "Feed any colonies that may come anywhere close to running out during a dearth
>> generously, and well in advance.

> Some would say the successful beekeeper doesn't need to feed if only the
> surplus is removed.  Removing honey and then replacing it with sugar and
> water is a questionable idea in some beekeepers minds.

Thanks for bringing up one of the most prevalent stupid and
unsubstantiated ideas circulating in the "losers" set and a nagging
notion that can easily infect newcomers.

Remember, I am writing for people who wish to be a commercial success
and have to an easy, happy time of it, not someone who wish to suffer,
worry and pursue an idealistic course regardless of cost -- and in spite
of the abundant evidence that such notions are rubbish.

We have been over and over this here topic here on this science-based
list and have never managed to reveal anything more than idealistic and
somewhat theoretical reasons not to feed, while we have repeatedly
outlined and examined the good -- and sometimes urgent -- reasons for
feeding and the apparent lack of any detectable harm when the proper
procedures are followed.

Just to reiterate:

* Millions of colonies worldwide Bee thrive on sugar feed.

* Unfed colonies often die.

* Colonies which are adapted to withstand dearths are often not
productive.  I know.  I have had some.

* Honey flows are unpredictable, and dearths occur unexpectedly.

* Commercial beekeepers are constrained by economics and must act in
their own best interest and feeding hungry bees is in their best
interest, regardless of what reasons caused the condition.

* Sugar feeding can provide a significant profit advantage over honey
feeding under some circumstances.

* Some honies are not ideal for wintering and some are toxic and thus
must be removed.

* It is sometimes necessary to remove honey to lighten the hives for
transport

* Many beekeepers cannot predict how much honey it is safe to remove
from hives and cannot keep reserves of honey in comb because it
granulates hard or is subject to damage from other insects.

* The economics of sugar feeding in spring and fall in some locations is
compelling due to improved colony health, better populations, and better
survival.

* Build-up for pollinating some crops cannot be achieved reliably
without intensive management and feeding.

* There are many more more reasons.

Again, I am writing for aspiring winners, not aspiring losers.  Those
who wish to not feed bees are entirely welcome to refuse to feed.  In
all matters, some people refuse all evidence and do things the hardest
possible way.  Some do so because they cannot understand and some
because they will not understand.

In my extensive experience, I have seen it proven again and again that
if you don't have a trust fund behind you and you want to ship honey by
the truckload, not by LTL, and you want strong healthy bees all the
time, not just when you are lucky, feed your bees when they need it.

Whether to feed when the bees don't really need it is another matter,
but in my experience, those who use feed to stimulate and manage their
bees are a consistently more successful economically than those who do not.

There are some interesting environmental and economic externality
arguments that can be made against excessive sugar feeding, but the need
to feed starving bees trumps them IMO.

Follow and imitate the winners, not the losers -- unless you want to be
a loser.  Many people actually do chose to lose do and the extreme
examples are sleeping on the sidewalks in prosperous cities due to an
inability or refusal to understand the obvious.

There are various degrees of winning and losing.  Subsistence is the
goal of many, and they somehow manage to live at exactly that level
regardless of how good or bad things are around them, but others aspire
to more.

For my bees and myself, I want more than subsistence.

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