The biggest advantage of using a solid sugar feed is that moisture condenses in the sugar. Sugar is slightly hygroscopic – this means that moisture is attracted to it.
There are a number of different methods by which we can use dry sugar for winter bee feeding. We have already reviewed how to make a candy board and the Mountain Camp method of dry feeding.
An alternative to making candy boards, or the Mountain Camp method of sugar feeding is to make simple sugar cakes. Each person has their own method to make these.
I have seen a number of notes on the internet where people suggest including pollen substitute or pollen in their winter bee feeding recipe. This just seems to be a bad idea to me.
In late fall feeding, beekeepers often have a choice between granular sucrose and liquid syrups. Syrups made from corn, such as corn syrup and high fructose corn syrup are quite different from sucrose.