Fungi v bee viruses

[drex]

Anybody got any more info?

Fungus provides powerful medicine in fighting honey bee viruses: Mycelium extract reduces viruses in honey bees

A mushroom extract fed to honey bees greatly reduces virus levels, according to a new paper. In field trials, colonies fed mycelium extract showed a 79-fold reduction in deformed wing virus and a 45,000-fold reduction in Lake Sinai virus compared to control colonies. The hope is that the results...

www.sciencedaily.com

Heard about this on radio 4 this morning and looked up the paper when I got home

 

[pargyle]

Anybody got any more info?

Fungus provides powerful medicine in fighting honey bee viruses: Mycelium extract reduces viruses in honey bees

A mushroom extract fed to honey bees greatly reduces virus levels, according to a new paper. In field trials, colonies fed mycelium extract showed a 79-fold reduction in deformed wing virus and a 45,000-fold reduction in Lake Sinai virus compared to control colonies. The hope is that the results...

www.sciencedaily.com

Heard about this on radio 4 this morning and looked up the paper when I got home

Yes I was listening to it - but when you look up Paul Stamets and then look into the patent he had registered it's a very speculative patent designed to tie up any prospect of his work being used elsewhere ... not a lot of hope in it for bees either despite what the radio 4 programme was suggesting ...

 

[ericbeaumont]

Interview here with Stamets by Merlin Sheldrake, a British biologist, mycological evangelist and author of the splendid Entangled Life: How Fungi make our Worlds, Change our Minds and Shape our Futures.

Fungi are pretty much beneficial to everything and I'm intrigued by the results. Closer to Drex than he probably thought likely is a tincture to add to bee feeds made by Colchester organic producers Mushroom Table. Out of stock currently, but I've always wanted to try it; I'll ask William at the Saturday market and find out when bees can become guinea pigs.

 

[derekm]

The curious part of it was an observation of honey bees feeding on fungi.... So all those mouldy frames Beeks hate so much are a source of protein after all. Which shouldnt be a surprise as other hymenoptera do the same.

 

[Murox]

I recall reading about fungus growing amongst the detritus from "wild"nests in hollow trees, with potentially some sort of symbiosis going on. As already said fungi are generally beneficial, the seem to be capable of cleaning up all manner of 'bad stuff'.

 

[Finman]

And what fungus or fungi... what eve r?

In Finland we have 400 different Cortinarius fungi for example.

We know that medicines do not affect on viruses.
We use vaccination. Vaccine must be exact for the virus, that it works. Pp

Why this mycelium medicine does not follow usual virus knowledge.

New viruses are with varroa. Even if we kill the viruses, we still have varroa bugs, which kill hives.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

And what fungus or fungi... what eve r?

In Finland we have 400 different Cortinarius fungi for example.

We know that medicines do not affect on viruses.
We use vaccination. Vaccine must be exact for the virus, that it works. Pp

Why this mycelium medicine does not follow usual virus knowledge.

New viruses are with varroa. Even if we kill the viruses, we still have varroa bugs, which kill hives.

I'm sure a sprinkling of Psilocybe semilanceata on your morning muesli will help while away the long dark winter days Finnie

 

[madasafish]

I recall reading about fungus growing amongst the detritus from "wild"nests in hollow trees, with potentially some sort of symbiosis going on. As already said fungi are generally beneficial, the seem to be capable of cleaning up all manner of 'bad stuff'.

There are fungi in our lawn.
They're not doing a good job in getting rid of the moss, or the daisies , or the creeping buttercups.

And they appear inedible as well..

 

[Erichalfbee]

There are fungi in our lawn.
They're not doing a good job in getting rid of the moss, or the daisies , or the creeping buttercups.

And they appear inedible as well..

We have some on our lawn quietly gobbling up a felled tree. Honey fungus!

 

[madasafish]

We have some on our lawn quietly gobbling up a felled tree. Honey fungus!

We have that as well : it has killed two cherry trees, a beech and a willow over the past 30 years.

 

[elainemary]

We have some beautiful wax cap fungi in our wildflower meadow - apparently a good sign of unimproved grassland - but a bit off subject! Definitely heard about bees foraging on fungi & guess they must know what’s good for them, thanks for sharing the paper

 

[Garry R]

Interesting............ I am sure that fungi produce an antibiotic (think one of them is called penicillin) and in earlier times (think still used in USA) we had Fumidil B. But that was banned although very effective against nosema. So anything that smacks of antibiotic in the UK would be likely to get banned. PLUS residues in honey.

 

[Garry R]

Just remembered we had sulphonamides too for EFB and AFB. Also banned but effective. J'arrete ma valise!!

 

[Murox]

There are fungi in our lawn.
They're not doing a good job in getting rid of the moss, or the daisies , or the creeping buttercups.

And they appear inedible as well..

Dont just think about the fruiting bodies. Most plants rely on fungi to help the uptake of minerals from the soil. Mycorrhizae offer the host plant increased protection against certain pathogens. Mycorrhizal fungi

 

[madasafish]

Dont just think about the fruiting bodies. Most plants rely on fungi to help the uptake of minerals from the soil. Mycorrhizae offer the host plant increased protection against certain pathogens. Mycorrhizal fungi

I add those when planting trees and shrubs.

 

[Finman]

I know fungi, which makes alcohol.

 

[The Poot]

We have some on our lawn quietly gobbling up a felled tree. Honey fungus!

I dealt with honey fungus a few years ago that was travelling across my lawn following tree roots from the base of a cherry tree. I soaked the tree base with Armillotox and saved it. Armillotox was banned shortly after as an anti-fungal “treatment“ but is allowed to be sold as a “soap based cleaner”
Honey fungus doesn’t just feed on dead stuff, but can invade healthy trees too unfortunatel.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I dealt with honey fungus a few years ago that was travelling across my lawn following tree roots from the base of a cherry tree. I soaked the tree base with Armillotox and saved it. Armillotox was banned shortly after as an anti-fungal “treatment“ but is allowed to be sold as a “soap based cleaner”
Honey fungus doesn’t just feed on dead stuff, but can invade healthy trees too unfortunatel.

The tree is just a trunk
We have Armillotox. Stan uses it to clean the moss off the paving. I’ll mention it to him. He’s in charge of the garden.

 

[Buzby]

Phil Chandler experimented with an "ECO Floor" for his TBH's with woodland detritus in the bottom which encouraged fungus growth.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Phil Chandler experimented with an "ECO Floor" for his TBH's with woodland detritus in the bottom which encouraged fungus growth.

Do you know what his conclusions were, by any chance?