Feeding bee's syrup for 3/5 days before varroa treatment ..

[Curly green fingers]

Hi, I was wondering if other bee keepers before varroa treatment feed syrup to stimulate the queen to lay more eggs .
My idea is for my queen's to produce more brood then treat for varroa in the process killing more varroa as they feed on the brood .
I don't know if this is an old method ? and it would only really be of benefit if there wasn't any honey flow or very little..
I hope I've explained this properly and would like your thoughts , advice
Cheers mark.

 

[Ian123]

Hi, I was wondering if other bee keepers before varroa treatment feed syrup to stimulate the queen to lay more eggs .
My idea is for my queen's to produce more brood then treat for varroa in the process killing more varroa as they feed on the brood .
I don't know if this is an old method ? and it would only really be of benefit if there wasn't any honey flow or very little..
I hope I've explained this properly and would like your thoughts , advice
Cheers mark.

Why does more brood mean your treatment will be more effective?

 

[Amari]

I don't follow the logic. My understanding is that adult varroa feed off haemolymph of adult bees, not eggs or larvae. They then move into the brood cells as they're capped where they breed. The varroa youngsters presumably feed off the pupae. I can't see how giving syrup 3-5 days before could make treatment more effective.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

no logic at all in this which is why you've never heard of it before - the less brood the better with varroa treatment - whatever method you use.
as an aside - feeding bees thin syrup to stimulate brood rearing is another myth.

 

[Millet]

Hi, I was wondering if other bee keepers before varroa treatment feed syrup to stimulate the queen to lay more eggs .
My idea is for my queen's to produce more brood then treat for varroa in the process killing more varroa as they feed on the brood .
I don't know if this is an old method ? and it would only really be of benefit if there wasn't any honey flow or very little..
I hope I've explained this properly and would like your thoughts , advice
Cheers mark.

You will get a load of pathetic replies from this post but i have a rough idea were you are coming from.. the best thing to do is treat for Varroa during a broodless period..however at this time of the year it will be hard to do as the bees are making winter bees for fun..

If you feel the urge Now to treat them against varroa.. use Oxalic acid type stuff five days apart for four times in your vaporizer.. if you have one.. if not get one.. it will save the other brutal methods that kill Queens and brood.

 

[john t]

no logic at all in this which is why you've never heard of it before - the less brood the better with varroa treatment - whatever method you use.
as an aside - feeding bees thin syrup to stimulate brood rearing is another myth.

Thats rather a sweeping statement- would you like to elaborate, do you mean thin syrup or syrup in general ?

im curious why you would say this as i have been feeding syrup to nucs and full colony's for years, when i want them to build wax/draw comb and expand the brood area.

 

[Eyeman]

[/B]

Thats rather a sweeping statement- would you like to elaborate, do you mean thin syrup or syrup in general ?

im curious why you would say this as i have been feeding syrup to nucs and full colony's for years, when i want them to build wax/draw comb and expand the brood area.

If there is no or little nectar coming in during spring to Autumn the queen's laying may reduce. Feeding syrup simulates a nectar flow so she resume laying.

 

[john t]

If there is no or little nectar coming in during spring to Autumn the queen's laying may reduce. Feeding syrup simulates a nectar flow so she resume laying.

 

[Finman]

.
IT is two moths there that hives rear Winter bees. IT is almost 3 brood cycles.

What idea is to stimulate now bee rearing? What for?. They only spend hive's pollen stores and die out before autumn.

Those bees which feed larvae, they will not survive up to Winter cluster.

 

[Karsal]

Hi, I was wondering if other bee keepers before varroa treatment feed syrup to stimulate the queen to lay more eggs .
My idea is for my queen's to produce more brood then treat for varroa in the process killing more varroa as they feed on the brood .
I don't know if this is an old method ? and it would only really be of benefit if there wasn't any honey flow or very little..
I hope I've explained this properly and would like your thoughts , advice
Cheers mark.

Don't overthink what is required. We will be taking them to the vets next!!

 

[oliver90owner]

There is no logic. None at all. What would all the oxalic acid treaters gain in the middle of winter, per eg?

Another thread started without much, if any, prior thought given to the facts of the issue!

 

[Curly green fingers]

Thank you for the replys.. my reasons for possibly using syrup 1/1 syrup for 3/5 days .
1. As it's such a short time it would only stimulate the queen to lay more for a week.
2. When you then treat for varroa you would be treating more than 1 brood cycle, I thought the more brood cycles you could treat the better when treating for varroa late summer/ early autumn.
Im not overthinking things . I'm a farmer, gardener who wants to be a vet

 

[Finman]

Thank you for the replys.. my reasons for possibly using syrup 1/1 syrup for 3/5 days .
1. As it's such a short time it would only stimulate the queen to lay more for a week.
2. When you then treat for varroa you would be treating more than 1 brood cycle, I thought the more brood cycles you could treat the better when treating for varroa late summer/ early autumn.
Im not overthinking things . I'm a farmer, gardener who wants to be a vet

What ever, but varroa killing does not go that way.

 

[Erichalfbee]

.
IT is two moths there that hives rear Winter bees. IT is almost 3 brood cycles.

What idea is to stimulate now bee rearing? What for?. They only spend hive's pollen stores and die out before autumn.

Those bees which feed larvae, they will not survive up to Winter cluster.

Ages before winter bees are made

 

[mbc]

[/B]

i have been feeding syrup to nucs and full colony's for years, when i want them to build wax/draw comb and expand the brood area.

Me too, its unusual to have much pollen dearth round here but nectar dries up at the drop of a hat. A series of light syrup feeds of a few pints at a time can get stalled colonies zooming again in my experience.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Don't overthink what is required. We will be taking them to the vets next!!

The.vets I know ask me about bees so not much chance of that

 

[Beefriendly]

2. When you then treat for varroa you would be treating more than 1 brood cycle, I thought the more brood cycles you could treat the better

You are not treating for several brood cycles. Just covering the current cycle. already underway. A brood cycle lasts around 21 days. Using vaporised oxalic acid you only kill the varroa that are in the phoretic stage on the adult bees or those wandering loose about the hive. The ones that already inside a sealed cell will not be killed. Hence you treat 5 days after the first vape to now kill the varroa that were already breeding in the capped cells and were immune but are now accessible to kill as they emerge with the new bees. Then repeat again 5 days later and for good measure another one 5 days later.
Remember that worker bees remain capped for around 12 days, so this 3x5 days vaping should cover most of the new varroa as they emerge with the bees. AND more importantly measure the drop counts after vaping to make sure it is working, you get an occasional rogue hive that is a martyr to varroa.
Stimulating the queen to lay more eggs is just not going to have any effect on the varroa already present...... which are the ones you are killing.

 

[Curly green fingers]

You are not treating for several brood cycles. Just covering the current cycle. already underway. A brood cycle lasts around 21 days. Using vaporised oxalic acid you only kill the varroa that are in the phoretic stage on the adult bees or those wandering loose about the hive. The ones that already inside a sealed cell will not be killed. Hence you treat 5 days after the first vape to now kill the varroa that were already breeding in the capped cells and were immune but are now accessible to kill as they emerge with the new bees. Then repeat again 5 days later and for good measure another one 5 days later.
Remember that worker bees remain capped for around 12 days, so this 3x5 days vaping should cover most of the new varroa as they emerge with the bees. AND more importantly measure the drop counts after vaping to make sure it is working, you get an occasional rogue hive that is a martyr to varroa.
Stimulating the queen to lay more eggs is just not going to have any effect on the varroa already present...... which are the ones you are killing.

Im only going to treat with thymol products this time and then use OA as a trickle treatment over the winter if needs be. I've more hives now so perhaps vaping is the way to go . But I won't be doing it for now...