Not treating varroa

[Fusion_power]

I do not actually believe that there is such a thing as a Varroa resistant bee... well not in the Melliffera mellifera host it has been transferred to.

On this, I have to disagree. I've watched my bees grooming off varroa when I deliberately placed them in a hive. Varroa is a pest. It can be mechanically removed by the bees. The problem is beekeepers. They are not yet willing to do the work required to change over to varroa resistant genetics.

 

[foghornleghorn]

On this, I have to disagree. I've watched my bees grooming off varroa when I deliberately placed them in a hive. Varroa is a pest. It can be mechanically removed by the bees. The problem is beekeepers. They are not yet willing to do the work required to change over to varroa resistant genetics.

Have you ever sent any of your queens that are surviving fine without treatment to a long term treating beekeeper in an area with plenty of hives to see how they perform in that environment treatment free?

 

[For want of a better word]

.
Guys. There are lots of parasites which kill their hosts or make them weak.
.

Black Death... decimated the European population numerous times.

Mankind {Beekeepers/ Bee importers} moved the rats { Varroa mite} that carried the bacteria { DWV.. Danish pastry virus.....etc etc} that killed us!!

So all in a time honoured fashion... nothing new!!

 

[B+.]

The problem is beekeepers. They are not yet willing to do the work required to change over to varroa resistant genetics.

Part of the problem is that they don't (or, don't want to) understand what it is and how to use it. I see lots of comments on here that are partially, or completely, wrong. This forum is becoming as blinkered as the other place in its views (and. I am not referring to The house of Lords!)

 

[For want of a better word]

Part of the problem is that they don't (or, don't want to) understand what it is and how to use it. I see lots of comments on here that are partially, or completely, wrong. This forum is becoming as blinkered as the other place in its views (and. I am not referring to The house of Lords!)

Keep your eye on the ball.......

In the land of the blind, any man can claim to be one-eyed because nobody can actually see. So in a way, our real world is the land of the blind and our leaders are just those who claim to hold power (eg, having one eye) successfully through the fear/ignorance of the masses.

QED

 

[ASPIRERITE]

Its ironic that I stopped treating because I couldn't afford the soaring cost of treatments.

Back in the 90's a 5 hive treatment of Bayvarrol cost £25. I had 30 hives then, so, 6 boxes would have cost £150.
As a struggling student, I had to make a choice between treating my bees and continuing my studies. The choice really was that clear. So, I continued my studies. I lost colonies, but some survived. I realised that all I was doing was lining the pockets of BAYER and the other chemical companies. This was long before we discovered that wax was soaking up the chemicals and making drones infertile though.

30 hives can bring in some pretty good income nowadays. I don't know about back then because I wasn't even thinking about bees or income. Treating a hive costs pennies nowadays though if you vape em as you know. The most expensive treatment I buy is Apiguard but I buy it in bulk when I get money from my splits and queens. Its been damn expensive to get where I am now though

 

[Finman]

30 hives can bring in some pretty good income nowadays. I don't know about back then because I wasn't even thinking about bees or income. Treating a hive costs pennies nowadays though if you vape em as you know. The most expensive treatment I buy is Apiguard but I buy it in bulk when I get money from my splits and queens

30 hives x 100 kg x £10 = £ 30 000....

Is that a good income?

Apiquard is not a big cost. I bet that the car and transporting here and there is a big cost.
.
Selling antivarroa queens may be a good business. £500/queen and 50 queens = £ 25000

.

 

[B+.]

30 hives can bring in some pretty good income nowadays. I don't know about back then because I wasn't even thinking about bees or income. Treating a hive costs pennies nowadays though if you vape em as you know. The most expensive treatment I buy is Apiguard but I buy it in bulk when I get money from my splits and queens. Its been damn expensive to get where I am now though

But.... I don't need (or, for that matter, particularly want to) so why should I?
If I did, they would be ineligible as future breeding stock too.

 

[ASPIRERITE]

30 hives x 100 kg x £10 = £ 30 000....

Is that a good income?

Apiquard is not a big cost. I bet that the car and transporting here and there is a big cost.
.

Its a good supplemental income. Apiguards not a big cost but its the biggest cost I pay for treatment of my bees is what I mean. If your making £1000 per hive your doing a damn site better than I am

 

[B+.]

Its a good supplemental income. Apiguards not a big cost but its the biggest cost I pay for treatment of my bees is what I mean. If your making £1000 per hive your doing a damn site better than I am

He's misleading you (again).
Think about it: 3000Kgs is 6000lbs (or a bit over). Selling that for £5/lb wouldn't be easy. It would be a full time job in fact....so, in reality, you'd sell it in bulk to a packer for a lot less than that.

 

[ASPIRERITE]

He's misleading you (again).
Think about it: 3000Kgs is 6000lbs (or a bit over). Selling that for £5/lb wouldn't be easy. It would be a full time job in fact....so, in reality, you'd sell it in bulk to a packer for a lot less than that.

I use honey to give to my splits at the moment in the frame so I only have a few hives that I use to produce it. All the others I use to draw frames and produce splits. I want to expand not produce honey on mass but my bees produce a lot. I just use them to get what I want

 

[Beefriendly]

Selling that for £5/lb wouldn't be easy. It would be a full time job in fact....so, in reality, you'd sell it in bulk to a packer for a lot less than that.

Currently packers seem to offering between £3- £3.30lb in buckets. They will take all they can get at the moment.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Currently packers seem to offering between £3- £3.30lb in buckets. They will take all they can get at the moment.

Same price as last year, have a ton being collected next Tuesday, heather honey sells for more, around £4.30 a pound.

 

[ASPIRERITE]

Same price as last year, have a ton being collected next Tuesday, heather honey sells for more, around £4.30 a pound.

 

[Finman]

Same price as last year, have a ton being collected next Tuesday, heather honey sells for more, around £4.30 a pound.

IT is then better to collect whole summer heather honey. From May to September.
200 kg/hive.

 

[ASPIRERITE]

I spat my drink out

 

[ASPIRERITE]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNc9phYujWY

 

[Ian123]

I hear 1 packer just coughed up £3.50

 

[For want of a better word]

He's misleading you (again).
Think about it: 3000Kgs is 6000lbs (or a bit over). Selling that for £5/lb wouldn't be easy. It would be a full time job in fact....so, in reality, you'd sell it in bulk to a packer for a lot less than that.

£10 lb at retail,,, would be more realistic.... gross of £60K.....
Then take out time in beekeepering,producing, processing, all the consumables, fuel, wages, insurance National Insurance, pension schemes... sick pay. holidays... and then costs of advertising, packaging. marketing, distribution......

A couple of buckets of Apigard pales into insignificance [ or should that be pails?] ( although no longer available in buckets as beekeepers could not be trusted to dole out the correct amount of thymol in wallpaper paste!)

Keeps one busy in retirement tho!!

I am beginning to think ASPERITE is a robot with a severe wiring problem!

 

[Hivemaker.]

I am beginning to think ASPERITE is a robot with a severe wiring problem!

...also known as a bot, maybe even a chatbot.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chatbot