Fumigation of oxalic acid does not work properly

[Finman]

In new Finnish beekeeping magazine there was a warning that fumigation does not work very well in winter. Many experienced beekeepers have told that when they trickled the same hives after fumigation they got huge amount of mites. ... so accordin magazine.

The writer says, that why this happens it is not know?

I could imagine that our colonies are in tight clusters now and they do not move much during winter when temps are near zero. Bees do not get contact to acid dust. Temps have been here +3 to -8C

 

[BrianO]

Was a recent report saying "Fogging" was not effective , not "Vaping" which has the same hit rate effectively as dribbling solution. So to be clear Vaping does work , as someone who employs this method I can also testify to this.

 

[Finman]

Was a recent report saying "Fogging" was not effective , not "Vaping" which has the same hit rate effectively as dribbling solution. So to be clear Vaping does work , as someone who employs this method I can also testify to this.

I do not not those "gazifying" terms. However another that forms fine acid dust inside the hive, and dribbling glues the acid with sugar onto bees' body.

What is the question.... Dribbling does not succeed always. You see the result next autumn, when hives die or not. It is same with gazifying, how it succeeded.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

What is the question.... Dribbling does not succeed always.

Can make a hell of a mess on your shirt front.

 

[MerryBee]

Interesting.

The Apiarist (aka Fatshark) suggested something similar in a recent blog post.
Perhaps he will be along shortly his perspective.

 

[Finman]

Can make a hell of a mess on your shirt front.

We have a laudry machine.

 

[fatshark]

As Finman suggests ... if it's absolutely baltic I strongly suspect the cluster is neither open enough nor moves about enough for the OA vapour to permeate properly.

However, I've not done one after the other. I did treat colonies in early December on two consecutive days ... 11C by vaporisation on the first (cluster widely dispersed) and - in another apiary - 24 hours later and at 4C, by trickling (clustered again). Both gave reassuringly good mite drops, so I'm pretty confident they both worked well.

Colonies I checked were broodless.

 

[Finman]

As Finman suggests ... if it's absolutely baltic I strongly suspect .

Welllll. Baltic

1. Northern Irish slang, used among contemporary youth to describe a severe degree of cool. Synonyms include chill, radical, sweet, and awesome.


We have had here +2C on the coast of Baltic. Snow has melted next day.

 

[Uncle Betty]

Welllll. Baltic

1. Northern Irish slang, used among contemporary youth to describe a severe degree of cool. Synonyms include chill, radical, sweet, and awesome.

Best. Post. Ever.

 

[Eyeman]

Best. Post. Ever.

Well it is Christmas. Unfortunately only one Christmas each year!

 

[fatshark]

Ha! A different definition of baltic

Our baltic is your mild winter day. Your baltic is probably something to do with yakutsk.

I've not experienced anything colder or darker than Saariselka in early December ... which was darker than it was colder.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Can make a hell of a mess on your shirt front.

We have a laudry machine.

I thought that was full of sugar syrup

 

[Finman]

I thought that was full of sugar syrup

IT was but I fed syrup in September. IT has been empty 3 months.
On another hand that hell mess happened only in your head.

If somebody writes, that trickling did not succeed, it does not mean in my country that the syrup goes to opposite direction than meant.

 

[bontbee]

The Varrox instructions specify not treating below 4C... I assumed that it's because the cluster is too "tight" at that temp, and the vapour won't penetrate very effectively - ???

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

The Varrox instructions specify not treating below 4C... I assumed that it's because the cluster is too "tight" at that temp, and the vapour won't penetrate very effectively - ???

as with all OA treatments the cluster needs to be open enough for the bees to be active and mobile so that they spread the crystals around.
That's my take on it anyway.