The recipe we've been advising since 1979 for extender patties has always called for granulated sugar. It came from a paper by W.T. Wilson, J.R. Elliot and J.L. Lackett. The wording below may be slightly different. ANTIBIOTIC EXTENDER PATTIES (for 2 hives, increase as needed) 1/3 lb solid vegetable shortening 2/3 lb granulated sugar 2 Tablespoons Terramycin 25 Stir the TM 25 and dry sugar into a uniform blend. Mix the antibiotic/sugar blend with the shortening, without heating. Yields 1 pound. Divide into two, 1/2 lb patties. To make handling easier, use a sheet of heavy brown wrapping paper. Give 1 patty per colony. Place the patty on the paper, on the top bars of the lower hive body (center of the brood nest). Remove antibiotic patties before the honeyflow. In our experience these patties last up to 6 weeks (depends on the behavior and number of bees) and work well to prevent AFB or prevent/treat European foulbrood in high risk blueberry pollination situations. They don't work in colonies weakened by European foulbrood (the bees don't mobilize them enough). I wouldn't use them on hives with pollen traps, because bits of the patty end up in the tray. If a commercial dough mixer is used to blend the shortening, you'd have to watch because at some point the mix changes from being slightly friable, to being sticky smooth (like cake icing, maybe harder to handle by the scoop.) Confectioners = icing = powdered sugar is used in a dry mix (1 part TM 25 to 5 parts sugar) with antibiotic, for dusting on the top bars (2 level teaspoons per hive, avoiding the area immediately above brood cells, to avoid damaging brrod). Granulated sugar would not adher to the antibiotic powder to make the mix attractive. I understand that some people powdered a small amount of granulated sugar in a food blender, either because they didn't have any commercial powdered sugar, or were concerned about the small amount of powdered starch in the commercial product. Kerry Clark, Apiculture Specialist B.C. Ministry of Agriculture 1201 103 Ave Dawson Creek B.C. V1G 4J2 CANADA Tel (604) 784-2225 fax (604) 784-2299 INTERNET [log in to unmask]