On 8-Jun-09, at 3:51 AM, Peter Edwards wrote: > Randy: > >> This paper suggests that a very late pollen flow or feeding >> may actually be detrimental to wintering. > > Certainly not my experience. Availability of pollen late in the > year produces a flush of young bees that overwinter well. Hi Peter Randy and all Heather Matilla, the author of the work Randy quoted, did her work at the U of Guelph in Ontario. Southern Ontario winter weather, while not really severe, is certainly different than Stratford on Avon. Could the different climates not affect the results? Getting the bees to cluster early in the fall seems to be the way to go here. We had a joint meeting of the Dufferin and Wellington Beekeepers Associations to hear Heather speak about her work. She found that early spring feeding of pollen or substitute was very beneficial whereas autumn feeding was less so on the spring buildup of colonies. Bob Darrell Caledon Ontario Canada 44N80W *********************************************** The BEE-L mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html