Michelle the best way to feed them honey is to leave more honey in your hive when you go to harvest.

I wholeheartedly agree with Rattlerjake.

We should all strive to be the change we would like to see. Volunteer to be the Bee Steward in your area. We have several programs in my community that are taught by volunteers. We have a program to educate at all of our Elementary Schools. My beekeeping friends and I visit many schools in our area to educate the community about honeybees. We also have a booth set up at our County Livestock Show that educate our community. Many of us set up at the local farmers market and fairs to spread the plight of our honeybees, the impact the honeybee has in our lives, how the extinction of the honeybee would impact our lives, and ways to help them thrive. I find volunteering for these educational opportunities very rewarding and well accepted by our community.

Feeding bees honey from an unknown sources increases the chance of spreading diseases. Much of the honey on the market has been adulterated.

It doesn’t hurt to set up a feeding station for bees during “lean” times of the year. You can try to locate the hive by watching which direction they go when they leave your feeder. https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=honey+bee+feeding+station+

If you know that your hive was healthy, just killed off by yellow jackets, then it is safe to say that the honey is ok. If the hive “mysteriously” died out, and you see no signs of disease, then it is probably ok. But if you believe that the hive had health issues then the honey shouldn’t be given to you bees. If you fear wax moths or hive beetles may be transmitted, you can freeze the frames for a couple of days to kill any eggs and larvae; be sure to thaw the frames before giving to you bees.

If you enjoy the bees you can provide a “feeding station” for them just like you do for the birds. You can use dry sugar or a sugar syrup, but if you use a sugar syrup be sure to put small branches, leaves, or other “debris” in the syrup for the bees to climb on so they don’t drown. There are many videos on youtube showing how to feed bees.

Although what you said and the way you think is admirable, it is far from correct. Natural plant nectar is VERY similar to sugar water, it is mainly sucrose and water. It does NOT harm your bees when used as a supplement when NEEDED! There has been a lot of research done between nectars and sugar water in feeding to hummingbirds, that is why table sugar is used. Bees will NOT feed exclusively on sugar water when natural sources of food are available. With that said, there IS a product that should NOT be fed to bees, but many commercial beekeepers use and that is HFCS. HFCS is NOT the same as nectar or table sugar. The one thing that is spot on is that beekeepers need to ensure that the bees keep enough honey over winter for their survival needs. BUT there are instances when that is not possible, like when a swarm is captured too late in the year for them to build up adequately. In that case I remove a frame or two of honeys stores from another hive to supplement them – I can do that because I have 50+ hives, but the average backyard beek doesn’t have that luxury. Remember that “honey” is NOT a bee’s only food, they also need pollen (for protein), it is sometimes necessary to also provide a pollen/protein source over winter.