'seams' for oxalic acid

[Beezy]

Sorry if this has been answered a thousand times, but I'm not 100% clear still on how to apply oxalic acid. Adding drops to 'seams' of bees - does that mean the gaps between the frames where they are? And do I have to make sure I don't drip too much on individual bees?

 

[greatbritishhoney]

does that mean the gaps between the frames where they are?

Yes


[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mj_FV40DEwk[/ame]

 

[alanf]

Very useful illustration of the basics.

Not wanting to take away anything from someone volunteering to show a technique but there are a couple of features that might be worth pointing out.

Poor practice to put any poison in a food container. Recycle something non food from the garage if you need a container, hack the bottom off a bottle if you have nothing else. Make it obvious it's not drinkable, do not use a coffee cup.

The chap announces 7 seams on the third hive, translates that to 35ml of solution. Then as far as I can count he treats 6 seams. Fair enough in the real world where a miscount or change of mind occurs and an extra 5 ml over six seams is not going to overdose but not a good example.

No insulation visible and crown board holes open. No mention of the floor type but a minority practice to leave holes over the centre as far as I read this board. Most books have warnings about taking queen excluders out if over wintering on multiple boxes, two are present here but late in the season to take them out I would have thought.

 

[greatbritishhoney]

Very useful illustration of the basics.

Not wanting to take away anything from someone volunteering to show a technique but there are a couple of features that might be worth pointing out.

Poor practice to put any poison in a food container. Recycle something non food from the garage if you need a container, hack the bottom off a bottle if you have nothing else. Make it obvious it's not drinkable, do not use a coffee cup.

The chap announces 7 seams on the third hive, translates that to 35ml of solution. Then as far as I can count he treats 6 seams. Fair enough in the real world where a miscount or change of mind occurs and an extra 5 ml over six seams is not going to overdose but not a good example.

No insulation visible and crown board holes open. No mention of the floor type but a minority practice to leave holes over the centre as far as I read this board. Most books have warnings about taking queen excluders out if over wintering on multiple boxes, two are present here but late in the season to take them out I would have thought.

The hives do not belong to the person doing the OA.

 

[drstitson]

if you count 7 seams, make up 35ml and only treat 6 seams with the prescribed 5ml each you will have 5ml left at the end.

 

[greatbritishhoney]

Don't forget that most of us use a bit of discretion when it comes to dosage - 5ml per seam is a guide. For example, one seam could be 3 inches and another could be 6 inches - you put more on a long seam and less on a short seam.

 

[alanf]

The hives do not belong to the person doing the OA.

True, the conversation about 'store them here' suggests it's the camera operator who has the apiary. It is the OA applier who uses the coffee cup and miscounts. He even suggests a honey jar would be better than the cup; it should be breakable too?

The first absent colony makes it clear that it's a 'warts and all' sequence and all the more valuable for it. That's not a reason why any faults shouldn't be discussed.

 

[alanf]

Don't forget that most of us use a bit of discretion when it comes to dosage - 5ml per seam is a guide. For example, one seam could be 3 inches and another could be 6 inches - you put more on a long seam and less on a short seam.

Entirely reasonable if that had been explained. He says 'seven seams' and announces '35 ml' before and after treating six. No further explanation offered.

 

[greatbritishhoney]

. That's not a reason why any faults shouldn't be discussed.

And I hope it didn't come across that I was saying that.

I have made the odd beekeeping video before now, and when you watch it back it is amazing how many silly mistakes you make because you are concentrating more on the camera etc than what you are doing.

 

[Monsieur Abeille]

Sorry if this has been answered a thousand times, but I'm not 100% clear still on how to apply oxalic acid. Adding drops to 'seams' of bees - does that mean the gaps between the frames where they are? And do I have to make sure I don't drip too much on individual bees?

Beezy - if deciding to Oxalic and not hugely confident, then I would strongly recommend using a pre pack like Trickle2 https://secure.thorne.co.uk/popup/trickle2.htm. Cost is about £2.28 from Big T and does two hives. You can also buy a 81p empty container for a practise run with water (not on the bees!).

Not cost effective for those with a bunch of colonies, but makes life nice and easy for the beginner. In fact if I decide to go ahead with Oxalic this year I'll be reusing last year's containers to dispense my own made up mixture.

 

[alanf]

if you count 7 seams, make up 35ml and only treat 6 seams with the prescribed 5ml each you will have 5ml left at the end.

He has an empty syringe and confirms 35 ml at the end.

 

[alanf]

I have made the odd beekeeping video before now, and when you watch it back it is amazing how many silly mistakes you make because you are concentrating more on the camera etc than what you are doing.

What editing is for. That and cutting the 'are we filming now' which it starts with. I only know because I've been there (non beekeeping context). Always proof read/watch and edit. Then do it again.

 

[greatbritishhoney]

What editing is for. That and cutting the 'are we filming now' which it starts with. I only know because I've been there (non beekeeping context). Always proof read/watch and edit. Then do it again.

haha - "are we filming now" is a classic! The way all good videos should start.
Anyway, I can't criticise - I come from a family of technophobes - when I was a child we would return from our summer holiday, my Mum would get her photos developed and, without fail, every year would find that she had left the lens cap on for the whole holiday.

 

[Finman]

.
I have given too much to several hives. Bees just became wet and the cluster broke in several pieces. After couple of days they were able to act normally again.

A week ago I gove again too much. The cluster dispersed and the bees were on alls a little bit in choma. I put sawdust a big handfull into seems. Extra oxalic droplets dried into dust. Bees activated again and started to clean the hive.

Why in seems? The bee cluster is between frame gaps. Cluster is not one big ball.
If weather is cold, bees do not change their situation, and every seam chould get a dose of dirty acid. Bees rub themselves when they try to get rid off thestugg and acid spreads totally on bees.
Too much is too much and in one box hive 4 ml per seem is enough. 5 ml per seem is to the 2 box cluster.

 

[Beezy]

Good video demo, thanks! Bit shocking that his first hive had died though - I would've been gutted!

Mr Abeille - cheers for the link. I bought the wrong thing from Thornes as when I looked for Oxalic acid, the only thing that came up was the 'oxalic acid technical', which I now realise is the wrong one. Their website isn't that good. https://secure.thorne.co.uk/popup/oxalic.htm

 

[Monsieur Abeille]

Good video demo, thanks! Bit shocking that his first hive had died though - I would've been gutted!

Mr Abeille - cheers for the link. I bought the wrong thing from Th**nes as when I looked for Oxalic acid, the only thing that came up was the 'oxalic acid technical', which I now realise is the wrong one. Their website isn't that good. https://secure.thorne.co.uk/popup/oxalic.htm

Be aware not to buy it too early as pre-mix can go off

 

[casualman]

As a newbie is it common practice to use oxalic acid? Already used Apiguard going into Autumn. I still have brood and as I undertsand it you shouldn't use Oxalic acid until broodless. I have 5 hives. 2 of them langstroth Polys and the other three wooden Langstroths (2 homemade).All with queens from this year so i expect that coupled with the mild Autumn they will not be broodless until we get some colder weather. When is the best time to treat bearing in mind I live in south Hampshire? Do you only treat if varroa levels increase and at what level?

 

[Finman]

When is the best time to treat bearing in mind I live in south Hampshire? Do you only treat if varroa levels increase and at what level?

oxalic trickling is efficient because you may use it in the middle of winter, when hives are broodless.

It gives a final cnock out to mites. It is better to use without calculations. At the end of December is a good time.
When out temp is near 0 to + 5C, open the inner cover and do the job.

 

[For want of a better word]

oxalic trickling is efficient because you may use it in the middle of winter, when hives are broodless.

It gives a final cnock out to mites. It is better to use without calculations. At the end of December is a good time.
When out temp is near 0 to + 5C, open the inner cover and do the job.

And for those who do not want to open up the hive when is best time to vaporise?

 

[Finman]

.
Nothing wrong to open the cover. Vaporazing is much more disturbing operation to bees.

Bees are in cluster. You trible the stuff on them before they wake up. 20 seconds.
Cover on and thats it.

But every one makes to his hives what they want. It is just an option and a good one.

Oxalic trickling is absolutely the best method to treat varroa. Bees do not even notice what happened.