apiguard treatment...is it too late now?

[juliabusybee]

Hi
I have already used 2 apistan strips in my hive in early september and the hive shows only a couple of varroa mites over this 2 week period. Should I used apigard treatment as well, or is it too late now (I live in the Highlands so its colder up here).
Any advice would be good.
P.S I have already fed the bees but am concerned I should have use some apigard as well.

Any help would be welcome

thanks
Julia

 

[RoofTops]

If you stick a tray of Apiguard in you will soon find out if it is working - dead mites on the floor. It is a bit late to use it, given where you live, but I cannot see any harm can be done. If a lot of mites are knocked down it strongly suggest you have resistant mites so the Apistan can go in the bin.

You should also follow up with an oxalic acid trickle in late December/early January. This will also give confirmation of how effective your treatments have been.

 

[victor meldrew]

However, I only started thymol treatment yesterday, last treatment early October .
As this treatment is placed at the edge of the brood nest and immediately on top of frames , I can't help thinking 30C will still vapourise the thymol if temps outside are a little low . We often get very nice days in late Autumn, take yesterday for instance; glorious around these parts warm and calm.
The gradual shift (drift) in the seasons mean that later honey flows often retard the commencement of thymol treatments as is the case with me
VM

 

[Arfermo]

Apistan is redundant as in most of UK the mites now have resistance to it. Get Apiguard or similar and, most importantly, download the FERA leaflet on "Managing Varroa".

 

[Baggyone]

Am I the only one who thinks that although everyone says apiguard should be put on at 15 degrees plus, the internal temperature of a hive surely means it will still work even if you slapped it on in the middle of next month.

 

[dpearce4]

Am I the only one who thinks that although everyone says apiguard should be put on at 15 degrees plus, the internal temperature of a hive surely means it will still work even if you slapped it on in the middle of next month.

i did wonder that just didnt want to ask just incase someone thought i was stupid.

 

[victor meldrew]

Am I the only one who thinks that although everyone says apiguard should be put on at 15 degrees plus, the internal temperature of a hive surely means it will still work even if you slapped it on in the middle of next month.

Read post no3 I think you'll find you are not alone
VM

 

[MrB]

Am I the only one who thinks that although everyone says apiguard should be put on at 15 degrees plus, the internal temperature of a hive surely means it will still work even if you slapped it on in the middle of next month.

what is the internal temp of the hive???
if its cold and the bee's are clustered, they don't keep the whole hive warm, just the cluster.

 

[VEG]

isn't it above 15 deg

 

[darren64]

and heat rises to the top of the hive,which where the apigard tray is.

 

[oliver90owner]

and heat rises to the top of the hive,which where the apigard tray is.

Ha ha. Not the case for all those (there are a lot of them) that leave top ventilation in the crownboard (see threads on this earlier in the year).

RAB

 

[tonybloke]

Apiguard is recommended to be used when temps are sufficient for the colony to be active and flying, the apiguard gel is then cleared through the hive by the bees, increasing the efficacy. relying on the bees to heat the gel isn't considered good practice, AFAIK.

 

[Hombre]

It will work, but maybe not quite as well.

I start my thymol treatments on Tuesday/Wednesday.

 

[drstitson]

"Apistan is redundant as in most of UK the mites now have resistance to it."




Julia (OP) - why did you choose to use apistan or rather who recommended it to you?

You need to download the FERA booklet mentioned by another poster.

 

[oliver90owner]

DrS

We are talking Inverness on this one. Gavin may well know whether mites are resistant that far up the Island, yet awhile.

RAB

 

[For want of a better word]

As the DALEKS monotoned " RESISTANCE IS USELESS WE WILL EXTERMINATE".... I wish!

 

[psafloyd]

Will be starting my Apiguard treamtment in the next week once I have the last of the honey off. Would have done it this weekend, but was away.

 

[alanf]

Apiguard is recommended to be used when temps are sufficient for the colony to be active and flying, the apiguard gel is then cleared through the hive by the bees, increasing the efficacy. relying on the bees to heat the gel isn't considered good practice, AFAIK.

Reading the manufacturer guides for the first time I was confused. It talks about temperature outside the hive when that will vary over every 24 hour period. A 15°C daily minimum for a period of a few weeks is high for anywhere in the UK. Asking around it became apparent that what is important is that the bees must be behaving as they do when the outside temperature is still reaching at least 15°C for a few hours each day. This spreads the thymol around the active bees and exposes the mites emerging from brood cells. The FAQ could be clearer but that's how most of the local BKA see it.

We are lucky here in that the long term mean average daily max is 15°C for October but that's not guaranteed in any particular year. Some locals start thymol treatments in the first week of August. From what I hear most started end of Aug or early Sept, the aim being not to run treatment too far into October.

 

[ksjs]

Apologies for any repetition but this is from Vita's website and might help:

"Apiguard works best in temperatures above 15°C. But it is also effective at lower temperatures even though the gel takes longer to evaporate and the gel needs to be left I place for longer."

Full info here:

http://www.vita-europe.com/products/Apiguard

 

[Flatters]

I started the treatment last week for two hives and the rest were done yesterday. If it relies on bees going out foraging and moving around the hive, well yesterday around 8:30 it was only around 10 degrees and the bees were still out and about. Last year there was plenty of HB and Ivy forage for my bees and they were active all through October.