Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum
BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => DISEASE & PEST CONTROL => Topic started by: windowbee on April 12, 2017, 07:50:08 pm
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Hello Every one,
I found during last 10 Years that varroa mite can not propagate in
my hives and invasion decline after one Year rearing in observatory hives. I dont know Why ...
Does any one have familiar remarks?
I rear my Bees in observatory hives yearround.
So i am asking people with those type of beehive for some replay.
In conventional beehive such thing will not happen.
Please use my Web Page www.windowbee.com/home (http://www.windowbee.com/home) to write an E-mail.
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There have been many theories about "Varroa infection decline", Recently I read somewhere that insecticides called neonicotinoids is blamed as Varroa destructor. The varroa mite has infected bees throughout the country. Other then Pesticides and loss of habitat is another factor.
However, there are a few things the average citizen can do to help these important pollinators thrive.
* Do not overuse insecticides and read application instructions carefully.
*Let herbs flower; bees love mint, basil and cilantro.
*Avoid spraying roses while they are flowering.
*Plant flowers to attract bees; they are attracted to blue, purple and yellow flowers.
This information may not be very usefull as we control pests such as Bed Bugs, Spiders, Moles, Bees, Hornets, Fleas, Bat etc.
Let me know if you need more information.
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Windowbee,
Do you use foundation less frames? That may be one cause (smaller cell size). The other may bee the queen and the drones that she mated with. Almost all of my hives keep the mite levels very low. Almost all of them are from feral swarms. When I catch a swarm from a commercial hive, which happens during the summer at my farm, the mite drop is really high on these hives. Commercial beekeepers depend on chemicals to keep the mites under control instead of depending on the bees to do it.
Jim
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Windowbee: How often do your observation hives swarm? Each time a hive swarms it loses up to 45% of the varroa population. How much drift does an observation hive have when there are other colonies in an area for the adults to go into? How much Varroa Sensitive Hygiene is in your queen lines? There are many factors that enter into varroa population growth.