Hi folks,

I think I will be getting hives for bees this year (yay!) and I need some advice on the Deadly Mites that I hear are preying on bees. I'm told it's antibiotics or nothing, but won't it get into the honey? Are there any herbal remedies that work? Anything else that can be used that won't taint the product?

-- Raven Kaldera (cauldronfarm@hotmail.com), January 17, 2001

Answers

Check out mite resistance bees they are more expensive but it helps. ask about them where you are buying your bees not all outfits sell them. what they do is find bees that tend to keep them selves cleaner. and breed toward that trait. dosent mean they get all the mites off but it helps, also using screened bottom boards seems to help from what ive read. and use any medication as the label says, dont leave it on to long. The mites seem to be building a talerance to it. here is a good site for info on bees read as much as you can

http://www.internode.net/Honeybee/Default.htm

-- Mike Honaker (mhonk@oz-online.net), January 17, 2001.

there are mite controls, but you never use them during a honey flow,, same as medicating your bees, never during a flow,, or YES it will get into your honey,, which ,makes it unfit for human consumption, (FDA rules), so you treat when a flow isnt on. I've been keeping bees for a few years, and dont have a problem. The pick up the mites from other bees, so it depends on what the bee population is in your area

-- Stan (sopal@net-port.com), January 17, 2001.

There are some good non chemical ways to handle mites.You won't see these mentioned in the magazines because they are house publications of supply houses that sell the chemicals. There are two kinds of mites.One is controlled with a pattie made of Crisco and sugar.This is placed over the brood chamber.The grease kills in the mites.The other mite is controlled by peppermint and/or tea tree oil mixed with vegetable oil.Soak several layers of paper towels in this mix and place over the brood nest.The mix is 5 or 6 cc of herb oil to one cup of veg oil. I will try to drag a link in here.If I can't do it I will just type in a web address. Now,of course,I can't find the web address.Will locate and post later.

-- JT in Florida (gone2seed@hotmail.com), January 17, 2001.

Ah....here is the promised link to mite control with essential oils. OK I can't drag it here.Will do it the hard way. http://www.wvu.edu/~agexten/ipm/insects/pollinat/honeybee/ Also,there are a ton of other sites for this.Go to any search engine and search honeybee+mite+control Hope this helps.

-- JT in Florida (gone2seed@hotmail.com), January 17, 2001.

Just don't get Guineas when you're raising bees. They stand at the hive entrance and eat the bees as they enter/leave!

-- ~Rogo (rogo2020@yahoo.com), January 18, 2001.

I checked out the link for essential oils,, , sounds great, hate using chemicals. Anyone know a place to get them, without paying the high prices at a health food store?

-- Stan (sopal@net-port.com), January 18, 2001.

Stan, regarding essential oils, you pretty much get what you pay for. Cheap oils are likely to be that way for a reason, such as inferior quality, diluted, or impure. This is not such a great consideration, perhaps, when you want them for perfume. But using them in a medical situation (such as this), you want high quality.

That said, the price of individual oils will vary. Some are from scarcer ingredients or are more difficult to produce -- this has an effect on the price, of course. I notice that they cited wintergreen as the oil most frequently used. Perhaps this is because it is less expensive than some of the other suitable oils.

Frontier Herbs has high quality essential oils. Aura Cacia is a brand name of theirs, but I have also purchased their oils labelled "Frontier". I have no idea why that is. These oils can be found in most health food stores in this country, but you might want to check out their website. I see that they have larger bottles of some of the oils. Usually all you can find is the 1/2 oz size in the stores. I would start with the small size, though, until you find out what works for you. www.frontierherb.com (look under Aromatherapy) Good luck!

-- Joy Froelich (dragnfly@chorus.net), January 18, 2001.

We have the problem with Varroa Mites and now the Small Hive Beetle exactly because of poor hive management. The wild honey bee colonies are nearly extinct in North America because of diseases and parasites like the Varroa Mite, Trachea Mite, foulbrood, chalk brood and Nosema. Several universities are hard at work to find non-chemical solutions to these problems, but for now, essential oils, grease and other such remedies are not proven and are not completely effective in the treatment of these diseases or parasites, and are in fact, illegal if used in place of proper treatments. If you own even one hive, PLEASE register with your state department of agriculture apiarist and follow state rules for disease and parasite prevention and treatment. This is a serious problem. The Varroa Mite has already become resistant to the Apistan we have been using, and now many states have applied for and receive Section 18 exemptions from the feds for the use of Coumaphos, a really nasty chemical, to control the Varroa Mite. Nothing else is proven effective at ridding a hive of the mites and our bees cannot cope with them. The hybrids are better at cleaning off the mites, but will still succumb if left to themselves. Essential oils will not help. Here's a hint: all commercial beekeepers use these chemical treatments despite the high cost. It's not accurate to say that the manufacturers are pushing these products: they are required by law! It's a simple formula today: no chemical medications, no bees. No bees, no honey and no crop pollination. Without honey bees to pollinate crops, we will all go hungry. Here's the minimum you need to do in order to have healthy colonies: Fumidil B fed in sugar water spring and fall for prevention/control of Nosema. Terramycin (broad spectrum antibiotic) mixed with powdered sugar and sprinkled on top of frames (but not over brood) or mixed with shortening and placed in patties in wax paper on top of frames between hive bodies for control of European and American Foulbrood. Menthol Crystals (Mite-A-Thol) for control of Trachea Mites - applied right after harvest when the weather is warm and the inside of the hive can get hot. The heat will help release the menthol and the bees will circulate it through the hive as they try to cool themselves. Coumaphos (CheckMite+) for control of Varroa Mites and Small Hive Beetle. Apply in fall right after harvest. Spring application is optional, but you must check for mites. If present, then you must treat, or say goodbye to your honey harvest and probably your colonies as well. Join a local bee club or find an online email group. Register with the state and take advantage of their services. This is one area where government is actually doing something good and providing an important service for almost no cost. (I pay $10/year to register my six hives.) Beekeepers who think they can control these diseases and parasites without the proper medications are only helping to spread the diseases around. Bees can forage up to five miles and do intermingle. All beekeepers will have a hive that swarms from time to time. If a swarm gets away and is infected, then it can pass it on to another beekeeper's colonies, or worse, to a wild colony.

-- Skip Walton (sundaycreek@gnrac.net), January 22, 2001.