Wax moth concern

VolunteerK9 · January 01, 2011, 05:53:04 PM

Ive searched on here about storing honey filled comb and the general consensus is to freeze the combs then place in plastic bags. I took down my dead out hive yesterday and removed another super from a small cluster hive to reduce their space. I dont have a deep freeze and I think sweating might be an issue if I used plastic bags with the weird weather we're having. Are wax moths really an issue right now? Will they hatch out in a brief warm period (40-60 degrees for a day or two)or do they typically lay dormant until the summer months?
I plan on giving the syrup/honey frames to my spring packages an really dont want to infuse them with moth crystals if I dont have to.

AllenF · January 01, 2011, 06:47:48 PM

You can store them outside in the dry (very dry) in the cold weather. Look into buying some BT before the weather warms up and the moths start laying.

VolunteerK9 · January 01, 2011, 06:51:45 PM

Yeah I need to buy some for sure. It (BT) wont effect the honey?

AllenF · January 01, 2011, 06:55:42 PM

No. It will just harm the worms. http://www.beeworks.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1&products_id=18

AllenF · January 01, 2011, 06:58:47 PM

And here for info. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bacillus_thuringiensis

VolunteerK9 · January 01, 2011, 07:00:28 PM

Thankye sir. I'll order it this week.

iddee · January 01, 2011, 07:00:50 PM

It's a lot cheaper from Sundance.......

http://www.beekeepingforums.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=1834

BjornBee · January 02, 2011, 09:01:44 AM

Wax moths are not a problem after a good freeze. leaving hives in the yard, yet protected from mice, is a way to have them until spring with no damage. All my deadouts stay outside through winter just fine, with no wax moth damage. The worst thing you can do is bring them inside.

And there are simple things you can do to protect comb without Bt treatments.

If you understand how designed spores are engineered to outbreak under certain conditions and for specific larvae, it is not a far stretch to think bees could be harmed if their normal Ph levels ever were changed, for a host of reasons.

Scan down to the article about "altering Ph levels, near the bottom of the page.

http://www.bjornapiaries.com/beekramblings0910.html

I'm not convinced that placing Bt spores in hives is a good thing. And any testing is always done in laboratory settings under normal conditions. And many times, this does not hold true once certain chemicals and treatments are applied in the real world setting.

Just as with most treatments, we always find out later that it really was never as safe as we thought. Wasn't that long ago that the bee industry thought coumophos and fluvalinate was safe also. :roll:

VolunteerK9 · January 02, 2011, 12:44:40 PM

Quote from: BjornBee on January 02, 2011, 09:01:44 AM
The worst thing you can do is bring them inside.

Just as with most treatments, we always find out later that it really was never as safe as we thought. Wasn't that long ago that the bee industry thought coumophos and fluvalinate was safe also. :roll:

Now you tell me :-D All I did though was put them in my wood shop. It's non insulated without heat/air so really the only thing different I spose would be cold minus the windchill factor. (Hopefully)