This idea was stolen, fair & square, from Randy Oliver. Folks living outside of Boise might want to follow the methodology in the ScientificBeekeeping.com article instead of using this chart. The graph illustrates the treatment periods in color. Light blue is the thymol application period, formic acid is pink and hop beta acids are shown on the tails of the calendar during the broodless period. In the case of thymol, the dates assume that thymol is on for 4 weeks and the supers can go on right after the product is removed, per the label. Formic acid is bounded by temps. The color areas show the application period, and the dates assume a three week application window. The application period is only 7 days. This may be a little obtuse. Check it out and send any questions. The intent here is that we can have a tool for the beginning beeks to use when trying to figure out when and with what to treat for that despicable, nasty varroa mite.
Dawglus Cleveland, Beekeeper Extraordinaire, demonstrates catching and hiving a swarm in 40 images.
Bill Ahaus wrote an article about how the club got started and Jeff Bergland gathered the historical facts:
Articles on the small hive beetle:
Here is a guidebook for winterizing your bees written by: Eliese Watson at Apiaries and Bees for Communities in Alberta, Canada.
The most thorough and comprehensive review available. This piece is heartily endorsed by the TVBC "Mite Kraut." "This review provides a survey of the current knowledge in the main fields of Varroa research including the biology of the mite, damage to the host, host tolerance, tolerance breeding and Varroa treatment. We first present a general view on the functional morphology and on the biology of the Varroa mite with special emphasis on host–parasite interactions during reproduction of the female mite. The pathology section describes host damage at the individual and colony level including the problem of transmission of secondary infections by the mite. Knowledge of both the biology and the pathology of Varroa mites is essential for understanding possible tolerance mechanisms in the honey bee host. We comment on the few examples of natural tolerance in A. mellifera and evaluate recent approaches to the selection of Varroa tolerant honey bees. Finally, an extensive listing and critical evaluation of chemical and biological methods of Varroa treatments is given."
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