has anyone made them for the bees? how do you like them? whens the best time to put them in the hive? one more :-D how u think the outcome is when you us them?
If you have SHB you don't want grease patties. The SHB love them. We can't use them here at all.
Grease patties are used for the tracheal mites and they are not the problem they once were. Samples of bees taken by the USDA in about 10 states have shown no tracheal mites in those samples.
When they were used it was 1 part crisco to 2 parts table sugar. The patties were placed in the colonies all during the year. The hive beetle is attracted by the patties and can cause you big problems.
I made grease patties of Crisco, sugar and wintergreen oil, and put them on my hives last fall. I ended up throwing most of them away this spring. The girls hardly touched them, and they were active a good part of the winter thanks to warm temps. I did not see any increase in SHB, though. My hives are in full sun and I don't see beetles that often.
They are really not used/ needed any more. In most areas they do cause more of a problem than good with SHB. Don't worry about them.
thanks on the input. don't have any sing of SHB except for one out of my 15 hives don't need those little pest invading. but if they like those grease patties so much i think i,m going to put some in a SHB trap and see what the out come is. Don't like chemicals in my hives so I'll use that for bait.