Varroa control procedures and one's responsibility to play mite shaman

[Mici]

finsky, well said about the authority things. but what soviets have to say about (well, had to say) about their authority is just true. lately, anywhere i look i see false "scientifical prooved" information, literally ANYWHERE!!! 
may i invite you to check out the "coffe house", there's a tread about global warming named "bann the usa", by me. but, this is just one, ONE of the things.

i don't know how dependant are you on beekeeping but i actually don't need bees, never have i needed bees, but since i got them, i just want to have them, although by now i've spend ugh, too much and got nothing, and probably never will get much, but i don't care. anyway, what i wanted to point out is that i will try the whole "natural" beekeeping, if it won't go, it won't i'll step to your side. so far i do not see a reason why i shouldn't be "against" your way of beekeeping, so far what they say about natural beekeeping seems logical, and they say it works, who in the world wouldn't give it a try?
they promis less work, less trouble....

just hope we can talk about my resultst in the next 5 years ;)

[mick]

Hey Finsky! how do I make sugar water :-D

[Finsky]

Hey Finsky! how do I make sugar water :-D

Bye one headfull sugar canes, then crush and strain.

http://static.flickr.com/33/88175208_4c176ea681.jpg

[Cindi]

Finsky, nope, the sugar cane is for chewing on, could last for days.  Have a wonderful day.  Cindi

[Finsky]

the sugar cane is for chewing on, could last for days. 

You may ask subcontractor to help

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d8/Sugar_cane_juice_Dhaka.jpg/800px-Sugar_cane_juice_Dhaka.jpg


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[Cindi]

Eee gads!!!!  They crush the cane by hand???  LOL.  I prefer to chew on it.  Best of this grand day.  Cindi

[Eve Sylvia]

I am new here, and I am trying to find out about sugar.So my question is: If I want to find out how to treat with sugar should I just follow all the threads and piece it together from your conversations, or is there a spot on the site or somewhere where directions are given?  I feel like I am walking into the middle and missed the beginning sometimes. Thanks again!!

( Here is my oxalic method, by the way)
RE: oxalic,  do a mite count in fall, if you have more than 20-30, fume with oxalic acid crystals. When the temp is above 50. (Oxalic is also called wood bleach at the hardware store and comes in crystals.)
Here is what I did last fall, I wonder what you all think about this:
In the bottom of an L-shaped copper plumbing tube (Bottom capped) I put 1 tsp of oxalic crystals. The open end of the tube went into the middle of the back of the hive. (The L was upside down by now, with the crystals at the bottom of the vertical leg) I sealed the entrance for 5 minutes while I heated the bottom of the tube with a torch. Fumes went in.
This spring my mite count was down to 3, so far so good, keeping fingers crossed.

[tillie]

Search powdered sugar on this site (beemaster)

http://beekeeperlinda.blogspot.com/2007/03/bermuda-inspection-today.html
Above are pictures on my blog about how to do it

Randy Oliver's method is described on Beesource:
http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?t=200973&highlight=powdered+sugar

After the shake you put a sticky board under the SBB for 24 hours and count the mites.

Linda T

[Kirk-o]

 think everyone who treats there bees with chemicals should list that on there label "This Honey Comes From Bees That Have Been Treated With Chemicals" And liste the chemicals
kirk-o

[Finsky]

think everyone who treats there bees with chemicals should list that on there label "This Honey Comes From Bees That Have Been Treated With Chemicals" And liste the chemicals
kirk-o

Yeah!  "Natural honey. Ice Sugar added every week and syrup feeded whole summer". 

[Michael Bush]

>I put 1 tsp of oxalic crystals...

If you need to kill Varroa mites, it works very well.

[Dane Bramage]

Yeah!  "Natural honey. Ice Sugar added every week and syrup feeded whole summer". 

hahaha ~ I really love your posts Finsky!  You are the Simo Häyhä of beekeeping.  8-)

Cheers,
Dane

[Finsky]

hahaha ~ I really love your posts Finsky!  You are the Simo Häyhä of beekeeping.  8-)

I did not know  Simo Häyhä, but he seems to a really bad a*.*

It seems that  he was named "white death". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simo_H%C3%A4yh%C3%A4

During the Winter War (1939 â€" 1940) between Finland and the Soviet Union, he began his duty as a sniper against the Red Army. Working in temperatures between −20 to −40 degrees Celsius, and dressed completely in a white camouflage suit, Häyhä was credited with 505 confirmed kills against Soviet soldiers.  ...Besides his sniper kills, Simo Häyhä was also credited with as many as two hundred kills with a Suomi M-31 SMG submachine gun, thus bringing his credited kills to at least 705.

.... hmmm, family forum.... more about bad a*.*s  http://libraryautomation.com/nymas/Changjinjournal020801.html

In Finnish language "motti" is one cubic meter of choped fire wood. So they choped  Russian army to smole "motties".


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[Dane Bramage]

I did not know  Simo Häyhä, but he seems to a really bad a*.*

Valkoinen kuolema indeed & quite the hero and inspiration to many of those (myself included) involved in marksmanship (another hobby).  I thought you may have already known of him.  The analogy/metaphor was your posts are precise and deadly to illogic, like shots from a sniper (only much more funny).
Thanks for the other link.  Interesting!  The Finns (& Swiss) are an inspiration for defensive, independent states resisting the aggressive imperial ambitions of larger nations.  But I digress...

Back to topic re: v. destructor ~> do you have any advice on if/when would be a good time for formic acid fumigation springtime treatment for a new hive (built from Nucs)?  I'm still evaluating the severity of my own mite infestation (could be very minimal) and am curious - cautious to change the environment of a new hive with new queen.

[Finsky]

You have spring there http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/city.html?n=202

And it seems that you have not leaves on trees.  http://www.trekearth.com/gallery/North_America/United_States/photo288.htm

If you want to kknow conamination of mites, it is laborous job with formic acid. If mites are too much you se them with naked eyes on just hatched bees.

Easier you will se if you make drone zone in brood frames. Leave lowest wire gap free from foundation, of cut from ready comb. Bees make drone combs and soon you will se how much capped brood carry mites.  If you se some in pic size area, that is normal. No need to calculate them all the time. No help from calculations.
http://bees.freesuperhost.com/yabbfiles/Attachments/kuhn.GIF

You live quite in north and you have real brood brake in winter. When you give one treatment with oxalic trickling, that is enough what you need.  Illegal or not, but don't tell to policeman.

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[Cindi]

Finksy, right, the drone frame.  Last spring when I went down to visit an old time beekeeper from our bee club, he showed me his way of mite control through drone comb use.  He instructed me that this was what I was to do, to assist with keeping the varroa under control. 

He told me to take the dadant frame (1/2 size of the deep frame), place it in the 3rd frame (or 7th frame) position.  We have 10 frame Langstroth use.  The bees, like you said, Finsky, draw drone comb naturally on the bottom of these frames.  The varroa loves to lay its eggs in with the drones.  Perfect.   Once the brood is capped, the drone comb is removed and the human does whatever they choose to dispose of these critters.

This is all wonderful in theory.  BUT...I was neglectful last season and I readily admit this.  I performed this task with two of my colonies.  The black dadant in the 3rd position.  But I forgot about this in all my business in my life around the farm.  I never did remove the drone comb frame.

That was probably one of the biggest mistakes that I had ever made in my beekeeping.  I probably bred the varroa mite like there was no tomorrow.  Yup, I hang my head in shame.

I applied oxalic acid to my two colonies in mid December.  We have a broodless period in our short winters.  I lost one colony and have one colony left, which is building up like crazy.  With the O.A. treatment, broodless period, I anticipate NO varroa right now.  Not to say that when the weather warms up much more and the feral hives (if there are any) become active, the varroa may get transferred to my bees.  My neighbour that keeps bees lives a fair distance away, I do not know if he treats his bees.  Another neighbour that lives within flying distance of my hives treated her one colony the same time that I treated mine.  As far as I know, there are no other "cultivated" bee colonies within flying distance of my colonies. So, maybe things will go well this year.  I am anticipating a wonderful and healthy season with my girls.  Have a beautiful and awesome day, with good health.  Cindi

[Finsky]

I applied oxalic acid to my two colonies in mid December.  We have a broodless period in our short winters. 

That situation is easy to handle. It takes 3-4 years before mite kills the hive. Treatment every year keeps mites in harmless level.

I did not se many mites in summer but in every hive there were 300-500 mites when I trickled them.  This spring I have had harms with nosema but I have so much extra hives that that bothers me at all.  Beekeeping cannot go without losses and problems.

[Cindi]

Finsky, does nosema kill the adult bees and that colony collapses?  I know that nosema is usually brought on because the bees cannot get outside to deficate, like in your long winters with no flying weather.  But can this colony still carry on to be at all productive, or do you just say goodbye to the hive?  Have a wonderful day and great health.  Cindi

[Dane Bramage]

Thanks Finsky.

Yes, we're definitely in spring time here and experienced record warm days the past two... back to normal for now.  Pears, cherries, dandelions, alder, maple, birch - all are in bloom and the pollen is so thick it covers anything left outside with what looks like a layer of curry.

I'm also clear on how to determine the level of mites.  I just not have done it diligently on my new hives yet.

I would like to be as "mite-free" as possible while still being as natural as possible.  This article from 5/05 ~> Survival of a Commercial Beekeeper in Norway seems like principled and workable approach.  Summary = mite resistant breeding/selection practises, small (4.9mm) cell brood (with large cell honey super (w/queen excluder)), organic acids.

The Formic Acid I was considering comes in pads ~> "250 ml of 65% food grade formic acid soaked into a fiber board pad inside a perforated plastic pouch." with a sustained, "safe" release ~> "...releases enough formic acid over three weeks to be an effective dose, charging the colony environment, but not enough to damage the colony health."

My question is if this would be specifically disruptive to a newly queened hive (i.e. interfere with the pheromones, etc.,). 

[Finsky]

This article from 5/05 ~> Survival of a Commercial Beekeeper in Norway seems like principled and workable approach.  Summary = mite resistant breeding/selection practises, small (4.9mm) cell brood (with large cell honey super (w/queen excluder)), organic acids.
.,). 

Formic acid works fine in spring. Efficacy of method is something 70%.



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