Unfortunately we are lacking robust published research on this topic. Here at Oregon State University Honey Bee Lab, we use a simple recipe for candy boards: Mix 10 pounds of sugar with 1 Cup (8oz) of water. Create a “wet sand” consistency, then pack into boards or trays. Let sit overnight, then place on the top bars of the colony.

We like this method because it’s easy, requires no cooking, and, most importantly, the bees love it. Another bonus is that sugar is hygroscopic, meaning it absorbs moisture from the air. In the Willamette Valley, a brick of hard sugar candy can help manage in-hive moisture!

Attached is a detailed article about different sugars and methods, written by the late Ann Harmon, a frequent contributor to Bee Culture magazine. After discussing the many types of sugars available, the cooking processes, and more, she concluded that the best for bees simply white sugar and water. 

Thank you.

Thank you for this very complete answer!!  I'll be making up some candy very soon.  There's plenty of honey in the top box, which will lead me to another question:

The top, Deep box is FULL of honey and even capped brood.  I've been feeding HiveAlive in syrup and recently turned to feeding 2:1 syrup, until the weather really turns colder and they stop taking it.  AND I just pulled the Apivar strips out of the double deep boxes.

There are more bees, honey, and brood in the top box, with lesser amounts of honey in the bottom box, but plenty of bees (it was a darker, 60 degree day, so maybe they weren't foraging)... They HAVE been bringing in lots of pollen and still are.  They really liked the sunflowers I planted!

So.... Should I put the full Deep on bottom for winter, or leave it on top?  I've seen both recommendations, from my googling... What's the REAL answer?

Thank You!!

Ken

On 2025-10-09 11:04 am, Ask Extension wrote:

This is a great question, but unfortunately, there’s no clear answer. Yes, beekeepers follow both strategies (swapping the top and bottom boxes or not swapping) based on the colony structure in fall/late fall. The beekeepers that opt switching boxes make sure that the top box is full of honey so that the cluster that moves up during winter has good access to adequate honey. Generally the cluster tends to move up during winter, hence beekeepers use this strategy of having honey stores in the top box. Given your current colony configuration (based on your description) and time of the year, I would suggest keeping the existing colony structure intact and not disturbing it. As access to honey is critical for the bee cluster in winter, please make sure that there are adequate honey frames closer to the cluster. If possible, during late winter (January / February) on a non-rainy day please do a very quick inspection to see if the cluster has access to honey frames. At that time, you could move the honey frames closer to the cluster from the edges if needed.

Hope this helps. Good luck with overwintering your bees.