Feed Super
Lexikon
The feed super is a special hive box that, unlike the other boxes of a modern box hive, holds no frames but instead has a closed floor and so serves as a container for liquid feed.
The feed super is a special hive box that, unlike the other boxes of a modern box hive, holds no frames but instead has a closed floor and so serves as a container for liquid feed. It is usually placed right on top of the hive, directly above the brood chamber, so that the bees can reach the syrup or feeding paste without a detour.
So that the bees do not drown in the feed, most feed supers have a kind of climbing ramp, a maze, or a floating raft, by means of which the bees can reach the feed safely without falling in. The feed super is used above all for autumn feeding, when the colonies must take up large amounts of winter feed within a short time in order to build up sufficient reserves for the cold season.
For beginners it is important to remove the feed super again promptly once feeding is complete and to clean it thoroughly, since leftover sugar water can otherwise grow mold or attract wasps and ants. If feeding is done too late or in too small an amount, the stores may not be sufficient in winter; if it is done too early or in too large an amount, on the other hand, the colony can clog the brood chamber with feed, and the queen is left without space for the last egg-laying of the year.