Winter SHB Management

[Pond Creek Farm]

Hello all.  I inspected the year a couple of weeks ago and put feed on three hive that felt relatively light (although all seem to have plenty of food this year).  I found more SHB than I am accustomed, and of course I killed all I saw.  I am curious, however, if treatment is in order at this late date. Should I tear down and put trayed bottom boards with oil or sonny-mel traps on the top, or should I simply let everything ride till spring and inspect then?  What do you all do late November for the SHB problem?

[jajtiii]

SHB are zone dependent. In my zone (7), SHB disappears come Winter. They can no longer hide out in the nooks and crannies, as they cannot survive the temps. A hive strong enough to make it through the Winter will herd them into one of these spots and propolis it shut. They then die (their eggs cannot hatch either, unless they could get them in the actual cluster, which doesn't appear to happen around here - I suppose the bees are keeping them out or chewing up the eggs if they show up.)

[tecumseh]

come winter time even here they move so slow they are really easy to pick off with your hive tool.

If I was considering some kind of late fall/ winter prevention for the SHB I would use this season to reduce all the organic matter beneath and around the hive to zero. 

[Pond Creek Farm]

How would  you remove all organic matter?  Would you set the hives on sheet plastic or something similar to prevent communication with the earth beneath them?  Have you found this an effective deterrent to SHB?

[scdw43]

All good advice, but SHB's do live through the winter in the cluster.  They can't pupate in the soil after the soil temps drop to the low forties.  This is per Dr Mike Hood Bee Culture Magzine Feb 2009 page 15 in "Science of Beeculture".  "Apparently, the mature larvae were unable to survive when they moved away for the area above the cluster in an attempt to pupate.  The SHB larvae were dependant on the warmth from the colony cluster for survival and were unable to survive the colder conditions."

[tecumseh]

PondCreek writes:
How would  you remove all organic matter?  Would you set the hives on sheet plastic or something similar to prevent communication with the earth beneath them?  Have you found this an effective deterrent to SHB?

tecumseh:
gravel or plastic should work fine as would fire.  the idea is to limit organic material on the ground in which the shb can over winter.

effective manipulation or strategies  to counter the shb...
1) a freezer for placing any and all contaminated frames (24 to 48 hours).
2) most times a bit of feed in the form of sugar water helps.
3) for those hive short of population a frame of sealed brood helps greatly.

and lastly..
I have never much used shb traps but fatbeeman's (he had a video on the web) approach I am told is effective (by a  commercial beekeeping outfit that used them in great numbers).