>Some would say the successful beekeeper doesn't need to feed if only the

> surplus is removed.


Absolutely right Jeffrey.  "Surplus" by definition is honey is excess of
what the colony requires for wintering.

But beekeeping is regional.  In the case of Canada, as I understand it, the
main crop of canola honey granulates rock hard, and bee winter poorly on
it.  Thus it needs to be removed and replaced with cured sugar syrup if
there is no fall flow.

Here in the California foothills, there is never a fall flow.  This means
that colonies may winter on dark honeydew, which can lead to dysentery.
 Again, they may benefit from a better quality honey or syrup.  However,
from a long-term perspective, I breed for bees that winter well on the
local natural stores.

The gist of Allen's advice was to make sure that colonies don't run short
of stores at any time, with which I heartily agree.  What I observe is that
colonies that do not have adequate honey reserves act "desperate" and
"demoralized," no matter what the season.  I know that those terms are
anthropomorphic, but you get the point.

As we went through our colonies every November, giving them oxalic
dribbles, we can't help but notice that the colonies with adequate stores
are in "happy and calm" tight clusters, and hardly notice us when we crack
the hives.  On the other hand, those colonies lacking in stores are wide
awake, and obviously not settled down in a conservation mode.

We steal from the rich and give to the poor, swapping frames of honey
between hives, and offering syrup if needed to help the colony to arrange
its stores at this late date.

--
Randy Oliver
Grass Valley, CA
www.ScientificBeekeeping.com

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