Worldwide Beekeeping
Beekeeping => Pests and Diseases => Topic started by: Gypsi on November 08, 2014, 05:54:19 pm
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Please keep in mind there are very few bees near me. Used to be my neighbor had a hive, and one of bee club's kids we were mentoring had a hive, I'm not sure if his made it, my neighbor sold his hive off after one sting too many when I had extra buyers for mine.
Top varroa count was on the 3 box stack that is hive 3, but was the only hive I had deliberately kept this spring. 53 on the sticky board after it had been in 4 days. But I have noted that when those fall bees hatch I get a lot of varroa out where I can see them, and all 3 hives have a bit of brood in them right now.
Hive 1: had a month long brood break while the queen was above the inner cover, so no varroa. BeeWeavers fall queen.
Hive 2: only 2 boxes in stack, not much brood now, lots of bees and the drones have all been evicted I think from all 3 hives. 4 or 5 varroa on the sticky. Hot little hive, VSH queen daughter locally mated. Duct tape is a wonderful thing. I sprinkled Organic Powdered Sugar on top of the top frames. They should distribute it.
Hive 3, the one with 53, has about 2 full dual sided deep frames full of capped brood, so I painted the bees in the deep with powdered sugar. Fortunately they are a very docile VSH hive, brood count is probably that high because there hasn't been a brood break in that box of over a week in the last couple of years and last year I didn't treat with anything. When I requeened I squashed the hot queen and painted her on the new queen's cage, so it was a good takeoff.
I find what really knocks varroa back for me are screened bottom boards and a brood break. If I don't feed enough in summer that happens on its own pretty well. This year I fed. No pics, working alone.
I will scrape and reoil my stickies tomorrow afternoon as the powdered sugar will soak up the oil. I am such a disappointment to people that sell treatments.
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If it ever warms up I get to see if this worked.
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I'm curious as well Gypsi, not a good time to go into winter with even one of those in the any hive.
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the status of the brood will determine whether the varroa count went up or not, at hatching is THE moment for the treatment to get a good thorough defeat of mites, as they are all removed at once, but the cold front came in fast and hard and I work on ponds too, no time to follow up on bee stuff
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K! Got my fingers crossed for ya :)
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gypsi,
good on you for your treatment methods. i have a question:
"Hive 1: had a month long brood break while the queen was above the inner cover, so no varroa. BeeWeavers fall queen."
what? your queen take a vacation above the inner cover?........ :D or did you have her up in another box?
ps, sorry if i missed this somewhere....... :P
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came out of her cage and the hive was broodless when I checked so I went in to do a combine with Ledifini, and there on top of the inner cover sat her highness and a dozen or so worker bees. Put her downstairs and she started laying.
My other Beeweavers queen left or was killed by the queenless hive which I swiped stores from to feed the bigger 2 hives
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I am such a disappointment to people that sell treatments.
LOL Good for you! If what you are doing works, then dont fix it!