Mailing list for the Person County Beekeepers Association, Roxboro, NC

[Randall Austin <s.randall.austin AT gmail.com>]

Hey Donna,

Thanks for sharing this! I'd like to offer some thoughts on this topic.

1) Tracheal mites are no longer a high priority problem for North Carolina. If I remember the conversation correctly, the folks at the NC State Bee Lab have told me that tracheal mites aren't often found in NC these days and they aren't the cause of the problems NC beekeepers have. It's true that tracheal mites are nasty and historically have been the cause of massive bee die-offs, but the reason they aren't a problem for us now are: a) the standard treatments we typically use for varroa mites (for example, ApiLife Var, ApiGuard) are highly effective against tracheal mites too, and b) if beekeepers aren't effectively treating for varroa, varroa-related diseases will kill the hive before tracheal mites do. So I don't give tracheal mites a second thought.

2) Using certain so-called essential oils to treat against pests is obviously a good idea because they work. That's what ApiLife Var and ApiGuard contain. I've never used Honey-Bee-Healthy but it is made from essential oils also. So this isn't a new idea or a hidden secret. The trick is to use the right material applied in the right way in the right concentration at the right time. You can get penicillin from moldy bread but eating a bunch of it won't cure an infection because the concentration, application etc. are all wrong, plus it is gross. Since I only have a dozen hives and the per-hive cost of the tested & approved treatments is fairly cheap (less than about $5 per hive per year), I stay away from internet recipes and go with the products that come with tested, government-approved instructions. Too much of something can easily kill your bees while too little is a complete waste of time and money.

3) The statement in the attachment, " They are natural in any case so unlike "chemical dumps" that the bees have been known to discard all their open brood, this won't happen with these. ", is not true. Essential oils are chemical compounds. The only difference between these and the compounds people get excited about is that they aren't synthetic. Depending on how much you use, over-application can kill open brood, sealed brood and even cause absconding. If you've had much experience with ApiLife Var or ApiGuard then you know you have to be careful with these "all natural" compounds. Arsenic and strychnine are totally natural substances too but let's not eat them!

4) We need to be very careful to not treat for problems we don't have. For example, treatments that kill bad bacteria kill good bacteria too. Good bacteria in the gut are necessary for healthy digestion. Treatment is justified if the down-side is outweighed by the positive benefit. But if we don't have an actual problem then all we get is the down-side, since we can't get a positive benefit if there isn't a problem to begin with. Similarly, the trade-off may be acceptable for a one-time treatment, but treating constantly or frequently is unlikely to be beneficial. This is yet another reason to use well-tested treatments with clear, proven application directions.

As I mentioned, I haven't used Honey-Bee-Healthy or similar syrup additives. I would be interested to hear the experiences of those who have, especially what problem they were treating, what the result was and what was the basis for making an assessment of the treatment.

Thanks!

Randall Austin


On 7/1/2012 7:28 PM, donnasteen AT yahoo.com wrote:

1341185321.10735.YahooMailNeo AT web161202.mail.bf1.yahoo.com" type="cite">

I received this from a beekeeper in Richmond, Virginia.  We have connected on Facebook.  Wondering if anybody in our club has an opinion or experience with this??

Thanks,

Donna Steen

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