In-Hive Feeders for Honeybees

In-Hive Feeders for Honeybees

Feeding honeybees is one of the most varied aspects of beekeeping. Beekeepers can feed colonies at the entrance, inside, or on top of the hive, and with large community feeders ready for all the bees in the neighborhood. Often, the sheer variety of these options creates confusion for many newer beekeepers as they figure out their own management style. Here’s a little primer on the many forms of in-hive feeders available and how to use them.

In-Hive Feeders Defined

What’s an in-hive feeder? Only one feeder is truly considered an in-hive feeder by traditional terminology. These feeders, more accurately called division board feeders, are the long, black plastic feeders, seen in beekeeping magazines, that reside inside the hive body near the brood. These plastic feeders take the place of one or two frames and hold between 1/2 to 2 gallons of sugar water, depending on the size selected. Many of these division board feeders come equipped with a cap and ladder system to prevent bee drownings, but this is not the case for all brands.

Entrance Feeders

Entrance feeders require the use of a single jar with a few holes poked into the lid. The jar is then loaded with syrup, flipped upside down, and nestled inside a tiny tray at the hive’s entrance. These are not in-hive feeders and should never be used unless this is your only option. Why? Because these landing board feeders are the primary causes of robbing frenzies. The enticing aroma of freshly mixed syrup, especially if any of the feeding stimulants are utilized, attracts every robber bee, skunk, possum, and bear in the area, with each one eager to clean that jar of its contents.

Top Feeders

Top feeders come in two styles. One style sits on top of the outer cover, is exposed to the elements, and isn’t considered an in-hive feeding system. The second type, while not technically an in-hive feeder (though often called one) is placed inside the hive. They offer many of the same benefits as division board feeders. Therefore, I’ve included these feeders in this discussion to help keep things simple.

by Kristi Cook

Top feeders come in many styles, ranging from a simple tray feeder placed between the inner cover and the top brood box to literal chicken waterers converted into honeybee feeding systems. Tray feeders require the outer and inner lid to be removed while sugar water is poured into the top portion of the tray feeder. Small wooden or plastic floats in the feeder act as landing pads for worker bees.

Chicken waterers, upturned glass jars, and buckets are other forms of in-hive feeders that many utilize with great success. These containers are placed directly on the top bars of the top hive body, and then an empty hive box is placed around the feeder with the outer cover on top. These options are excellent forms of inhive feeding systems, with many sharing the same pros and cons.

Benefits of In-Hive Feeders

If you’ve ever fed bees outside the hive, it likely didn’t take long before you figured out why many of us opt to feed inside the colonies instead. Open-air feeders, also referred to as community feeders, are simple buckets, bowls, or other containers that are placed somewhere outside the apiary in the open air and make supplemental feeding available to every honeybee and other creatures in the area. This feeding of the masses gets expensive quickly, often with little sugar syrup going where it was intended — inside your hives.

On the other hand, in-hive feeders keep the masses away and keep the sugar syrup where it belongs, right inside your hive and your honeybees’ food frames. But this isn’t the only benefit to in-hive feeders. Perhaps most importantly, supplemental feeding inside the colony allows for the syrup to be collected and moved about the hive regardless of the weather, provided it’s warm enough for the bees to move. In addition, because the syrup is closed up inside the hive, outside robbers are less likely to detect an aroma indicating a new food source; thus, robbing is often kept to a minimum if not deterred entirely. The prevention of robbing is often one of the primary reasons most of us opt for in-hive feeders over all others.

by Kristi Cook Division board feeder

Another positive regarding inhive feeders is the ease of feeding. Top feeders inside the hive allow supplemental syrup to be added by removing the outer cover and pouring syrup into the top feeder. There’s no need to move frames or lift a heavy box to get to the feeder, and the bees are generally not disturbed. Alternatively, division board feeders, when placed correctly, allow the beekeeper to slide the outer cover to the side a few inches, exposing only the top of the feeder. This limits exposure, loss of heat, and prevents rain from flying in when feeding during less desirable weather. Empty jars, buckets, and chicken waterers are easily replaced with full containers and little disturbance to the bees.

A Downside

Top feeder trays can make routine inspection difficult, unless you time your check up with refilling empty trays. Because the trays are on top of the hive and contain no lid other than the colony’s outer cover, sloshing and spillage are of primary concern when removing the tray to gain access to the lower levels of the hive. Drowning is another concern with both tray feeders and division board feeders. However, this is mitigated by using floats, sticks, or even pine straw placed inside the feeder to act as landing pads for the bees.

Chicken waterers, jars, and upturned buckets also have their downsides. These feeders must be removed before entering the lower chambers, yet their enclosed design prevents heavy sloshing and the loss of large quantities of syrup. They’re often easier to remove, and bee drownings are minimal. However, the bees tend to clog up the tiny holes poked in the lids with propolis and other debris. The lids must be cleaned between feedings to ensure access to the syrup inside. Chicken waterers are also prone to separating from their bottoms upon lifting, so extra care must be taken to ensure no leakage occurs.

Feeding honeybee colonies is one of the most daunting tasks for new beekeepers to master. However, most in-hive feeders offer the same primary benefit — to keep robbers away and the syrup inside the hive where it belongs. No matter which of the in-hive feeding systems you select, you’ll be sure to enjoy its many benefits.


Kristi cook lives in Arkansas where every year brings something new to her family’s journey for a more sustainable lifestyle. She keeps a flock of laying hens, dairy goats, a rapidly growing apiary, a large garden, and more. When she’s not busy with the critters and veggies, you can find her sharing sustainable living skills through her workshops and articles.


Originally published in the January/February 2024 issue of Countryside and Small Stock Journal and regularly vetted for accuracy.

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