Treating bees

[Finman]

Yeh .... well perhaps he learnt in a year what it took you 50 to learn ? Some of use learn fast ...

.
I learned trickling in one minute in the year 1987. When varroa arrived to this district.
Before that was no way to eliminate varroa.

 

[SDM]

Was it about then you decided you had nothing left to learn?

 

[Finman]

Was it about then you decided you had nothing left to learn?

A typical Welsh intelligent question.

Heh heh. Before this google has not been able to connect terms " intelligent and Welsh".

 

[JWF]

A typical Welsh intelligent question.

Heh heh. Before this google has not been able to connect terms " intelligent and Welsh".

Anybody would think that winter had already started, the amount of abuse that's flying around recently.

It's no wonder that people stop posting.

 

[Finman]

Was it about then you decided you had nothing left to learn?

No wonder that people stop posting.

A year ago I revieled that Lasi queens are humbug. No one other in this forum was able to say it.

Even from NZ beekeepers ask from Britain, how to mix water and sugar.
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[Finman]

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It is ridiculous idea, that you do not disturb the colony, if you vaporize it.

You mean that bees do not notice anything? But mites do not disturb the colony at all. Such dreaming.

IT is very necessary, that the cluster wake up and rub the syrup around the body. So the acid gets contact to mite.

I bet that same happens when bees get acid dust inside the cluster. Vaping is not gas, it is tiny condensated dust of acid around the hive.

Trickling has been used almost 20 years in Scandinavia, and nothing bad to say about it. Colonies do well in spring.

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[Stiffy]

Vaped hives last year and had the largest loss of queens ever when it came to the spring checks.
Cant say if it was the vaping but wont be doing it this year and will see how they fare.
S

 

[Finman]

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This autumn, when I started feeding, 3/4 of hives were without brood. I trickled them all when I put the feeder. Our autumn has been rainy and hives did not get pollen from nature, and they consumed all stores from hives.

In November I treat them again.

 

[Millet]

Vaped hives last year and had the largest loss of queens ever when it came to the spring checks.
Cant say if it was the vaping but wont be doing it this year and will see how they fare.
S

That is the first time i have read that Queens could be killed from vaping, i might be lucky as i have vaped them a fair bit over three seasons and not lost a Queen through vaping yet.

 

[Uncle Betty]

Vaped hives last year and had the largest loss of queens ever when it came to the spring checks.
Cant say if it was the vaping but wont be doing it this year and will see how they fare.
S

It would be more useful (not suggesting anyone should go against their best judgement for our edification ) to see how they fare next spring, if you DO vape.

Otherwise, 'post hoc, ergo propter hoc' and all that.

 

[Finman]

Totally agree. Wouldn't be happy if someone lifted the roof of my house middle of winter and poured something over me.
Vape every time.

What if somebody opens your door and starts to vape you every time.
And every time you do not mind at all.

Such teaching....

 

[Stiffy]

It would be more useful (not suggesting anyone should go against their best judgement for our edification ) to see how they fare next spring, if you DO vape.

Otherwise, 'post hoc, ergo propter hoc' and all that.

Vaped the hives the previous year and had minimal over winter queen losses, last year vaped the hives and lost many queens. As I said, it may have been something else but, my hives were wintered in a similar way each year, queens are less than 2 years old, mites were at similar level and feed given was very similar.... only variable I can (quickly) see was the weather was warmer last winter and the queens would have been laying a great deal more than 'normal'
Vaped the hives the previous year and had minimal over winter queen losses, last year vaped the hives and lost many queens. As I said, it may have been something else but, my hives were wintered in a similar way each year, queens are less than 2 years old, mites were at similar level and feed given was very similar.... only variable I can see was the weather was warmer last winter and the queens would have been laying a great deal more than 'normal'

Just a thought: The losses may also be a result of the vaporiser heating the acid too much resulting in formic acid being produced, which is I believe the constituent of MAQS and known to affect brood and queens.


Really just my experience, caveat emptor as they say!
S

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

well you're the only one who has reported any queen losses due to vaping.
But to follow the thread.
I have not lost one queen over the winter since I started vaping.
Lost a few to Apiguard and trickling though

 

[Finman]

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Queen losses are quite usual without varroa treatments.

Last winter it was asked from Canadian beekeeper reasons to Winter losses. Biggest reason was queen losses.

No one in Finland had mentioned that trickling kills queens. Neither trickling rearches.

Apiguard is thymol.
.

 

[peteinwilts]

Just a thought: The losses may also be a result of the vaporiser heating the acid too much resulting in formic acid being produced, which is I believe the constituent of MAQS and known to affect brood and queens.


Really just my experience, caveat emptor as they say!
S

MAQ's is on the naughty step for me also. Treated one apiary with MAQ's in late spring, with only a single strip. lost every queen.

For the last 8 years I have trickled and tend to have losses of half the national average. Last year, I struggled to get round them all with optimal weather conditions.
Fearing another mild winter, this year I will be vaping, so will be an interesting comparison.

.. of course CBPV is also becoming increasingly fashionable which may skew results.

 

[Finman]

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British beekeepers do not mind, how big dosages they use in trickling and what percentage to use. Advices are rough.

On one box langstroth it should be used 30 ml and in two box langstroth 50 ml.

Guys use often directly 6% OA. Difference between 3.5% and 4% is not big. Italian use normally 4%.

I have sometimes used double volume dosages. Bees become wet and they loose heat control. I have poured into hive saw dust which sucks the extra syrup. All queens were alive in spring.

.

 

[Stiffy]

well you're the only one who has reported any queen losses due to vaping.
But to follow the thread.
I have not lost one queen over the winter since I started vaping.
Lost a few to Apiguard and trickling though

Glad to hear that your losses are so minimal you can correctly identify what the cause was....are you 100% sure it was the Apiguard or trickling, I doubt that very much?
S

 

[Finman]

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You can find researches from internet about QUEEN losses.

One research was, that 150 hives got 3 successive trickling treatment apart 16 days..

No Queen losses.

You can see that trickled on winter there a slight shortening og life span on Spring.

My opinion is that wintered bees are very short living. When new bees start to emerge, old bees die very soon.

Often bad spring weathers kill half of cluster. Sometimes a colony dwindle so fast that they are not able to rear new bees. Perhaps reason is nosema.


Do not cry after every bees. Such is bees' life.
.

My wintering bees live 8 months. I would not say it "a short life span". Some die very soon in robbing fights. Which really shortens life span is varroa.

.

 

[Erichalfbee]

.. of course CBPV is also becoming increasingly fashionable which may skew results.

Fashionable or not it's heartbreaking to watch a strong vibrant colony shake itself to death off the landing board till there is but one seam of bees.

 

[Softley]

MAQ's is on the naughty step for me also. Treated one apiary with MAQ's in late spring, with only a single strip. lost every queen.

You didn't use the correct dosage. Could it be that there were other things you did that weren't as per the instructions?

I only ask as I've never lost a queen to MAQS. I always use the two strips, only ever use it on strong colonies, give them extra space, entrance blocks out and give a little top ventilation.