Varroa treatment's

[BKF Admin]

copyright notice:"The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, New Zealand"

 

[Peebels]

That seams like a useful guide!

What kind of treatment (if any) should i be looking to use either now or in the coming months?

 

[MrB]

Very interesting and usefull table!
Not to sure on a couple of the headings though, ie what is MRL's (ppm)?
i guess the ppm is parts per million.
and LD50 (oral)?

 

[Norm]

LD50 means Lethal Dose that will kill 50% of the bees within 24 hours IIRC. So I should add the lower the number the more lethal it is!

 

[MrB]

Thanks Norm. Oh and btw, welcome to the forum

And great blog!!!

 

[Finman]

So, lethal dosage to 100 kg man is 50 g oxalic acid.
How much he should eate carrots to die? Carrot has 0,5% oxalic acid.

1000 g carrots have 5 g OA.

10 kg carrots are able to kill one half of big men. Take care.

 

[Hombre]

Finman, I suspect that if you were to dine on 10kg of carrots at one sitting, that you wouldn't feel much like pudding.

 

[Repwoc]

what is MRL's (ppm)?

Maximum Residue Level

 

[MrB]

Maximum Residue Level

Many thanks

 

[Norm]

At the risk of being controversial, I would add a further approach to dealing with varroa, a do nothing policy otherwise known as 'Live and Let Die'. This one is not for the feint hearted as you have to expect severe losses if your stocks still have vulnerable genetics. My belief is that most of the very vulnerable bees have long since gone! I have adopted this approach for various reasons but the reality is I am still having some success since they were last treated in 2007. I am not going to start quoting anybody elses work, just my own experience, but there are many other beekeepers who are saying they too are having success with this approach. I was told initially that all my bees would be dead within the first season. Then, when most were still going strong in the second season, I was informed that they would soon crash with mite driven viruses etc. etc. Recently I was told that they will perhaps crash in the third season. I am in that third season now. The losses I have incurred last summer were down to comb collapse in the unusually hot summer, not varroa as far as I could establish. I am not advocating this for everybody but I do believe that every time you treat a colony, you delay the co-adaptation process a little.

OK, I have lit the blue touch paper, is it time to get my coat???

Norm

 

[Finman]

but I do believe that every time you treat a colony, you delay the co-adaptation process a little.


Norm

The idea is beautifull but has no practical meaning.

 

[oliver90owner]

Norm,

You probably don't need a coat in Spain. Unless you are in Galicia!

I agree, wholeheartedly. But I like to try to select rather than let them all take their chances. Yet another reason why I only treat with OA when necessary.

Regards, RAB

 

[Norm]

Norm,

You probably don't need a coat in Spain. Unless you are in Galicia!

Today I did! It's persisiting down!

I agree, wholeheartedly. But I like to try to select rather than let them all take their chances. Yet another reason why I only treat with OA when necessary.

Regards, RAB

As I mentioned, not for everyone, but your selection process is skewed by your own imaginings of what are the 'best' bees to breed from. 'Live and let Die' allows nature to select. I once heard brother Adam say that only nature selects for survival. That stuck with me and I feel is very apt in this situation.

Norm

 

[tony350i]

At the risk of being controversial, I would add a further approach to dealing with varroa, a do nothing policy otherwise known as 'Live and Let Die'. This one is not for the feint hearted as you have to expect severe losses if your stocks still have vulnerable genetics. My belief is that most of the very vulnerable bees have long since gone! I have adopted this approach for various reasons but the reality is I am still having some success since they were last treated in 2007. I am not going to start quoting anybody elses work, just my own experience, but there are many other beekeepers who are saying they too are having success with this approach. I was told initially that all my bees would be dead within the first season. Then, when most were still going strong in the second season, I was informed that they would soon crash with mite driven viruses etc. etc. Recently I was told that they will perhaps crash in the third season. I am in that third season now. The losses I have incurred last summer were down to comb collapse in the unusually hot summer, not varroa as far as I could establish. I am not advocating this for everybody but I do believe that every time you treat a colony, you delay the co-adaptation process a little.

OK, I have lit the blue touch paper, is it time to get my coat???

Norm

I was told the same that my bees would die in the first, second, third year but I still have them, I do practise smaller cell and natural in the brood box, one beekeeper been in it 30 plus years lost all his hives last winter and he use to rotate treatments from year to year (poor bees) the has started to shown some interest in the way I keep mine

Tony

 

[BKF Admin]

This thread is turning into a bad mike bispham moment....

 

[Norm]

Whatever do you mean Admin? Mike Bispham is a theorist without experience. Both Tony and I are detailing our actual experience. Please don't place us in the same category.

 

[BKF Admin]

Sorry Norm I would never do that.
Its just that the words "Natural selection" send's a shiver down the spine of many a member here after reading Mr Bispham's post's in the past.

 

[RoofTops]

one beekeeper been in it 30 plus years lost all his hives last winter and he use to rotate treatments from year to year

We have had resistant varroa in the South West longer than anyone in the the UK. Last year I heard someone tried Apistan on some hives and found it knocked down quite a few mites. However, they then followed up with Apiguard and found about the same number of mites knocked down. In other words the Apistan was only about 50% effective. This was on a hive which had not seen a synthetic pyrethroid treatment for at least 3 years.

The lesson seems to be that rotating treatments between thymol and a pyrethroid will not work as the resistance to the latter is long lasting.

It may be residues from the treatment remaining in the wax mean the mites are never really free of the chemical and therefore continued exposure to it maintains resistance.

 

[tony350i]

It may be residues from the treatment remaining in the wax mean the mites are never really free of the chemical and therefore continued exposure to it maintains resistance.

I think you are right, a never ask this beekeeper if he melted all that old wax down and sent it into one of the bee suppliers to be reused in to brood wax again.

Tony