I have always believed in data-based bee management: Gather whatever information you can find and then make decisions based on what you learned. For varroa mites, this means taking samples, counting mites, and deciding on a strategy. Perhaps this is an old-fashioned idea, dating back ten years when some mite counts actually came out low—low […] Read more
Each time I think I’ve written my very last post on varroa, something else comes up. This time, it was a question about how to treat for mites now that we know mites eat fat bodies instead of hemolymph. Based on what I’ve read, I would say that if you are following current best practices […] Read more
A reader wrote that she was confused about scheduling oxalic acid vaporization treatments when brood is present. Some folks advised her to use three treatments five days apart, another advised three treatments seven days apart. She wants to know which is best. I think the big question here is how long after a treatment does […] Read more
This week my inbox is choked with questions about using lithium to treat varroa mites. Although I don’t know a thing about lithium, I feel compelled to answer. If you haven’t heard, a paper was published on January 12 about lithium chloride as a possible treatment for varroa mites. The peer-reviewed work with the alluring […] Read more
“If one more speaker starts yapping about Varroa mites, I’m gettin’ up and walkin’ out!” The grumbler sitting next to me in the audience didn’t know me and didn’t know I was the next speaker. And yap I did. My topic? Deformed wing virus. Honestly, I can’t blame the guy for feeling that way. I […] Read more
Today I’m going to write eloquently about something I know nothing about. I realize some of you will think that’s not unusual, so I forgive you in advance. The thing on my mind today is the pronunciation of the word “Varroa.” I was always taught that scientific names are a bit wishy-washy when it comes […] Read more
For beekeepers who treat for varroa mites, oxalic acid has become the default favorite miticide. It is inexpensive, a natural component of honey, safe for bees when used as directed, and is drop-dead effective. But being beekeepers, we can’t agree on anything, so the disagreement about how to apply oxalic acid rages on. The US […] Read more