The Honey Factory

[5Australorpasaures]

Oh, we surely have more winter.

As much as I want to dive in It looks like weather says March 1. Projected 62F sunny no wind. Today 62 so I will lift the top for a peek. Formic Pro on the way.

 

[Sally PB]

We added some patties to the hive. Lots of bees out and flying! I saw a couple over on the compost pile.

 

[5Australorpasaures]

Bees were actually bearding, OK we'll call it whiskering and flying all around the hives. Tried to get a bead to see if they were roaming or just orienting and cleansing some are even carrying water. Sugar blocks are mostly untouched so they had ample stores of their own which is great. Hope I can get the blocks out so I can give them honey for spring feed. Sixty-three F today warmer tomorrow. Still have another blip of cold within the next 10-12 days. Really want to get in flip the boxes, Varroa Treat and pollen patties.

 

[TheDandyLion]

Any thoughts on ApiLife Var vs Formic Pro in spring.

 

[Sally PB]

I used Apivar last spring and Formic Pro in August/September. You can use Formic when you have honey supers on.

 

[5Australorpasaures]

3 applications as opposed to Formic Pro and Apivar, one and done. Less expensive than FP/Apivar. Personally I don't want to open the boxes that much. But it would be a good idea to add to your treatment rotation of different products. I may give it a try after fall flow when the brood production is dropping off.

 

[Apis mellifera]

Any thoughts on ApiLife Var vs Formic Pro in spring.

They are both good spring treatments. Just make sure you thoroughly read the instructions. Formic Pro has the advantage of killing mites under the cappings and ApiLif Var doesn't. But both are very effective. Formic Pro can be used with honey supers on while ApiLif Var you should wait 30 days after treatment to add supers. One of the most important things is to do a mite wash before and after the treatment to make sure it was effective.

https://honeybeehealthcoalition.org...22/08/HBHC-Guide_Varroa-Mgmt_8thEd-082422.pdf

I used Apivar last spring and Formic Pro in August/September. You can use Formic when you have honey supers on.

3 applications as opposed to Formic Pro and Apivar, one and done. Less expensive than FP/Apivar.

Be careful when buying and using mite treatments. Apivar and ApiLif Var are VERY different. Apivar is Amitraz, a synthetic chemical/insecticide. ApiLif Var is thymol based.

Excellent information here tomorrow:

 

[TheDandyLion]

Thanks for the info folks.

I only have the one hive right now, the swarm I caught last year. They have survived so far and were active earlier this week. I'm thinking I may split it if they are strong enough.

They had amitraz on them in the fall, so wanted to run with a soft treatment this time. I don't mind the extra work right now with the one hive. I have used formic pro/maqs on hives previously. I'll have to think about timing it with supers.

In case anyone is interested, I just saw on Betterbee, ApiLife Var is in their bargain bin for $8.84 for the 3 pack. They also have larger packs as well. Expires in May, in case anyone can use it.

 

[jerryse]

Warm weather and silver maples are starting to bloom. Bees are bringing in pollen.

 

[5Australorpasaures]

Warm weather and silver maples are starting to bloom. Bees are bringing in pollen.

Same here, working hard.