Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

ocba - Re: [ocba] HIve management

ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: Orange County, NC Beekeepers

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: Walter Starks <walterstarks AT icloud.com>
  • To: rjarnts AT att.net
  • Cc: Rob Cook <crookkohler AT bellsouth.net>, Randall Austin <ra41717 AT gmail.com>, ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [ocba] HIve management
  • Date: Tue, 18 Oct 2016 14:46:26 -0400

1. Yes. The bees will probably appreciate your generosity.

2. The recommendation is to treat all the hives in that apiary. An alternative would be to move the hive being treated to an isolated area at least 5 miles away from the closest apiary for the duration of the treatment. I think this probably isn't really practical for most Beekeepers in this area though.

______

Walter


You never can tell with bees. ~ Winnie-the-Pooh

On Oct 18, 2016, at 1:14 PM, rjarnts AT att.net wrote:

Several questions:

 

1.       Is it OK to place a frame full of capped honey back into the hive after it has been frozen, thawed, but sitting in my garage in a plastic bag for several weeks?  I will spare everyone the convoluted rationale for this happening.

 

2.       After treating with Api-Var in late August, and having 0-1 mite counts in my hives on post-check, I now have one hive with 8 mites and one hive with 1.  I am inclined to treat both hives , unless someone has a reason that would be counter-indicated. 

 

Thanks for any feedback! Jeannie Arnts

 

 

From: ocba [mailto:ocba-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Rob Cook
Sent: Tuesday, October 18, 2016 10:05 AM
To: Randall Austin; ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org
Subject: Re: [ocba] Winter prep

 

Got it Randall. I am looking at it now.

 

Thanks,

 

Rob

 

On Monday, October 17, 2016 12:11 PM, Randall Austin <ra41717 AT gmail.com> wrote:

 

Rob,

There is an excellent description of a dead-simple way to do the sugar shake test starting on page 3 of the article <here>. The article also explains why visual inspection isn't a valid diagnostic technique.

Randall

On 10/17/2016 11:37 AM, Rob Cook wrote:

Will do. Thanks for the advice.

 

Any tips on the sugar shake procedure? It will be my first sugar shake test. I have seen it done and read about it but any tips are appreciated.

 

Rob

 

On Monday, October 17, 2016 11:18 AM, Todd Walker <mtwalker AT imageray.net> wrote:

 

It is not possible to accurately assess mite levels via visual inspection of bees. One study found that 99.4% of mites on adult bees are under the abdomen in between the sternites feeding on the rich fat bodies located there. The mites you saw could indicate a bigger problem. If a sugar shake reveals that the mite level exceeds the safe threshold, I would use formic acid now. If the level is close to the threshold, I would wait until late December and use Oxalic. If it is well below the threshold, I would let it ride until Spring.

 

~Todd

 

From: ocba <ocba-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org> on behalf of Rob Cook <crookkohler AT bellsouth.net>
Reply-To: Rob Cook <crookkohler AT bellsouth.net>
Date: Monday, October 17, 2016 at 11:00 AM
To: Walter Starks <walterstarks AT icloud.com>
Cc: "ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org" <ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org>
Subject: Re: [ocba] Winter prep

 

I am not disagreeing with that conclusion of possible high mite levels. But I would also say that I am a trained biologist and I was really doing a very slow and thorough inspection. I was treating with apiguard this fall also.



If I find high mite levels can I still treat with oxalic or formic acid at this time of year?



Thanks,



Rob

 

On Monday, October 17, 2016 9:55 AM, Walter Starks <walterstarks AT icloud.com> wrote:

 

If you are seeing mites during hive inspections there is a good chance that your mite levels are very high. I would recommend a sugar shake as soon as possible.

______

 

Walter

 

 

You never can tell with bees. ~ Winnie-the-Pooh


On Oct 17, 2016, at 9:43 AM, Rob Cook <crookkohler AT bellsouth.net> wrote:

I have not done the shake test. When I removed the grid that I had below the hive to clean it I noticed that I had some young and some adults on the grid. I also noticed that I had a mite that I saw when I was inspecting the hive. I only saw one adult and one smaller one during my inspection.

 

I did have a lot of bees with pollen on the bees pollen sacs. So that seemed good. I am right on the edge of Carolina North Forest and it seems for the most part the bees are always flying up and towards the forest.

 

Thanks,

 

Rob

 

On Saturday, October 15, 2016 9:59 PM, Randall Austin <ra41717 AT gmail.com> wrote:

 

Rob,

Yes, it is typically for the bees to be mostly up top this time of year,
at least at my place. When they finish filling up the top with the fall
nectar flow they should move back down to the bottom.

How much brood you have this time of year depends on what sort of queen
you have. A thrifty queen may have already begun cutting back on
egg-laying in preparation for winter. That's not a bad thing at all, as
long as you have lots of bees already. Other queens lay pretty much the
time, or don't slow down until later. Genetics is a big factor (for
example, Carniolans are known for being thrifty and Italians are known
for being extravagant), and also simply colony-to-colony variation.

As I was inspecting hives today, I looked for the queen and a nice-sized
bunch of bees. I wasn't concerned with brood. If you've got a queen, a
sufficient amount of bees and abundant honey stores, then (in general)
you are ready for winter.

Have you done a post-treatment varroa assessment? Many folks, including
myself, have been surprised by high mite numbers despite treating with
ApiGuard this fall. It is worth checking.

Randall


On 10/15/2016 5:10 PM, Rob wrote:
> Hello, so my last inspection of my hive showed me that majority of the bees were concentrated up in the top super. Is this normal for this time of year?
>
> I think the honey amount is ok, maybe slightly light. I stopped feeding in august but how much brood should I have?
>
> I have treated for mites with apiguard.

> Thanks,
> Rob crook
>
> Sent from my iPhone


> _________________________________________
> ocba mailing list | North Carolina Beekeeping| http://www.theocba.org/
> Manage Your Subscription: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/ocba/


>

 

_________________________________________
ocba mailing list | North Carolina Beekeeping| http://www.theocba.org/
Manage Your Subscription: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/ocba/

 

_________________________________________ ocba mailing list | North Carolina Beekeeping| http://www.theocba.org/ Manage Your Subscription: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/ocba/

 

_________________________________________
ocba mailing list | North Carolina Beekeeping| http://www.theocba.org/
Manage Your Subscription: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/ocba/

 



_________________________________________
ocba mailing list | North Carolina Beekeeping| http://www.theocba.org/
Manage Your Subscription: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/ocba/

 

 

_________________________________________
ocba mailing list | North Carolina Beekeeping| http://www.theocba.org/
Manage Your Subscription: http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/ocba/



Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page