> or what it's worth i combine treatment free with no artificial feeding as a hedge that natural resistance to infection may be mediated by dietary elements found in honey but not in syrup.

I am sorry, but without some basis in fact, it isn't worth anything. Honey bees gain very little apart from carbohydrates from nectar. Hence, feeding sugar is a perfectly acceptable substitute for nectar, both as a stimulant to grow and as stored food for winter. 

In fact, many beekeepers have observed the stimulating effect of syrup feeding both on the resultant growth of the colony and the general overall effect which causes them to clean and repair comb, and even build new comb.

On the other hand, without fresh pollen, the colony can go downhill fast. No pollen substitute has been found which adequately mimics or replaces pollen as a food for bees, nor could it. Pollen is a complex and unique form of food, containing as it does, the components to fertilize and propagate the plant species.

Finally, if any part of the colony intake is apt to promote disease resistance, it would be propolis. Propolis is often made  from tree sap or exudates which form when trees are wounded. These exudates contain antibiotic and protective properties to protect the trees, and bees have co-opted these properties for similar utility in their nests. 

By the way, many people use the "treatment free" tag as if it were some sort of merit badge. Everyone would like to avoid medicating their hives, but realistically, some can't lest the colonies flat die. And you can't be a beekeeper with dead bees.

PLB

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