I've had bees for 30 years. This is my first year as a bee keeper. Your videos have been a tremendous help to me. I've heard you give credit to other beekeepers and I have gone to their channels. Not the same. Your presentations are concise and easy to understand. Great channel and I must add the channel has a Great Videographer. Very professional. Thank you both for making this possible.
I've used O/A exclusively for 2 years. It knocked out the mites to a manageable level. This year I switched to Apivar strips. I'm very pleased at the longevity and knock down. I'm always interested in different methods. Looking forward to more of your informative videos. Keep them coming!
Very good video's . I hope you can keep up the energy to keep doing more videos. I will make sure to share your site at the next bee keepers meeting. Thanks
I’m very interested in your mite treatment experiments, thanks for sharing! I treat twice a year exclusively with Apivar and have good results. Here’s my concern. Many beeks around here with more hives and experience than me had serious crashes every 4-5 years when they treated exclusively with Apivar. Their opinion, no scientific evidence, is that some of the mites are resistant, propagated, and crashed their colonies. Of course, when the colonies crashed so do the mites. They recommend using at least two different mite treatments. Anyway, to make a long story short, I’m trying to decide what I’ll use for a second treatment.
Hello kamon I know this video is a old one but I am using Apivar this year for the first time an for my other kind of treatment I always use OAV. Should I wait till the Apivar is completed before going back with my OAV an not use at the same time. I use OAV also in December maybe a two shot winter hit an then come spring around February or March I Will recheck with a wash an if needed I will use OAV again if needed. Thanks
Kamon.love your frankness yes some times less is more desirable to perform the resaults we look for i love your humor its refreshing when talking about serious issues of the mites Take care from Michigan
Given the recent discussions on propolis inside the hive, I wonder if spotted bee balm (monarda punctata) planted in our forage area could provide a bit of thymol. Going to plant some this year after the last frost.
When you say can be really rough on the bees, what do you mean by that. Does it kill the queen or other adult bees? Does it cause the queen to stop laying and if so, for how long.
ever hear of Pseudoscorpion? i read in an old book that back in the day bee keepers found and used Pseudoscorpion in their hives to kill mites. the bees do not attack them and they do not attack the bees. reptile keepers are starting to use them in their tanks to control mites and other tiny pests and populations of tiny benifical bugs so we do not have a collaspe.
if I had to bet I'd say there was something already going on that had them unglued and that the OAV put them over the edge. I have had treatments cause bees to abscond but it has always happened on colonies that were just put into the hive (like a swarm dumped in one) or a colony that had virus or queen problems. I treat 4-5 frame colonies pretty frequently but they are a pretty balanced colony with a good queen.
I have a hive that I got as a 3-pound here in Maine. It was totally plastic foundation, coated with a thin layer of wax. To my surprise, they are doing quite well. I am in a valley surrounded by apple orchards, blueberry orchards, raspberry orchards. My first box is totally drawn-out,... My second box it's only five frames drawn-out and there is no sign of the queen wanting to come up and lay as they are putting totally honey in my second box. I have not tested for Varroa mites. Can I just use one of those Tupperware containers with some powdered sugar? And if I do have a high mite count,... will the 2nd deep super honey be edible for humans and after how many days. Already, here in the southern tip of the Mount Washington Valley it id getting into the middle 50's at night. I am feeding sugar water in a remote station about 70' feet from the hive. They are checking it down at an alarmingly fast rate. Goldenrod,I believe is the primary source now. Should I wait til a February thaw to check for mites or check now. Should I wrap my bees in Black paper or styrofoam? I did this years ago and I think they had moisture buildup and froze! At the time I believed they got into some kind of pesticides or herbicides and stored the honey and the cluster got disoriented or fed the bees and Queen the poisoned honey. Thank you. I really like your channel. You cover all the bases.
Mmm looks like mayonnaise. Since it's natural it's organic right lol. I can't say enough good about your channel. You are detailed and very informative. You don't keep things hidden like some channels. You truly are here to share your thoughts and knowledge not to puff yourself up but to reach out a helping hand so we can learn and be prosperous. Thanks again to you, your children and the silent but important wifey camera holder.
Great video as always, I plan on using this and bought some. How long after treatment can you put the supers back on? Thanks, and good luck with that hive, hope the girls get a better report next time. Thanks for sharing.
We've been using OA 3 times in the early spring and fall but during the summer mineral oil and wintergreen twice a month so far so good. Agree that higher loads require harder hitting methods.😎👍
So if that stuff works by tracking it through the hive would it make sense to put a smaller portions in four different places around the top so that it gets tracked more evenly through the hive?
ok I know this video is 2 months old, and we are at the end of Sept. my little 3 frame swarm that I got back in April has grown to 2 deeps and 2 meds as of now. I do think I have killed the Queen though the last time I broke down the hive and checked them. They have gotten really mean from then until now as well. But getting back to the topic would it be ok to throw a whole one of these Apiguard packs in tomorrow? P.S. how would I go about getting a Queen from you I live in Va.
Also, in a large colony finding the queen is all the more difficult b/c of shear numbers. Look for eggs and varying ages of larvae. If you see superceedure queen cells that’s a stronger indicator that the hive is queen-less or about to be.
I’m really tossed right now as to whether to use Apiguard or Apivar right now. I’m in Southeastern Ky so pretty much the same weather as you. Is the residue issue the reason you chose Apiguard since Apivar is easier on the bees. We pulled our honey in early June so any honey since then is for their winter feed. We have a 30 hive apiary .
I don't use just apiguard I also use oxalic acid vapor and last year I used some apivar. To be perfectly honest Apivar is more effective on mites and gentler on your bees than any other product. Even using apivar I would still treat Oxalic acid vapor to clean up any mites that could develop Resistance
kamon great videos what your thoughts on mite away quick strips im in northern ill going to use it in sept ben foging oxalic acid already love to here your thoughts
Do you use one treatment if your hive has three layers (two brood and one super) or do you have to put a treatment in each layer? Did you remove your honey super?
i used Apiguard for years and maintained a 5-10 percent losses annually. When I switched to other forms of mite control I went to 40 - 60 percent losses. It works! This summer I'm going back to Apiguard to get my survival rate back to normal You mention that you're going to three rounds of treatment. My understanding is two treatments is the rule. Why are you doing three treatments?
I'm using thymol and I make my own treatment using vegetable oil with thymol and paper for beermats. In long therm thymol is much safer for bees, queen bees than dangerous amitraz and residues of amitraz in the wax like DMF and DMPF - this is scientifically proven. I have never use apiguard or amitraz in my apiaries only thymol base medicine that I made. I've got different climate but temperature and dose to hive size is very important, also construction of hive - yours is not very good - low insulation of roof. Thymol have to evaporate properly - this is job for a beekeeper. I'm giving 10 grams of thymol with vege oil per hive. I had no serious problems like you. Also I'm giving thymol and citric acid to 3:2 sugar water. Greetings form Poland. Keep up the good work.
Greetings from TN. You may be right that your thymol treatments work better..... I don't know that. Also I cannot promote illegal products on my channel even if they do work. This is TN not Poland our bees overwinter great with this style of equipment.
Cool that my post is unshadowbanned now. Is it rly illegal to use thymol in USA? How about oxalic acid and formic acid? Is it illegal too? Here in Poland and whole EU it is illegal to use antibiotic and many miticides you can use in USA. In ecological apiaries you can use only thymol and acids. We can buy thymol without prescription in almost any bee shop. This is natural product. Have a nice day sir!
Being where the temperatures reach 100° do you find it helps to keep the mite counts down? I have been reading different advice to keep the internal temperatures off the hive up. Not to use additional vents, screened top boards, or screened bottom boards
Hi Angie, I don't use vents here and my mites are still an issue. I imagine the bees do a great job cooling the hive and therefore the mites remain unaffected.
I know this is an old video but im wondering if the cooler temps like in the 60s or 70s makes this product easier on the bees than in the 90sor 100s. I recently put it in my hives for the first time
i also want to know the answer to this. its my 1st yr beekeeping here in the UK and the temps are round about 13C at mo. i want to treat my hive, but im also wanting to keep feeding as their stores dont even fill 2 brood boxes yet. im hoping the weather warms up for a bit.
@@FloryJohann They say 2 will treat a standard size colony but they don't say what standard size is. So yes 2 treatments is what they call for and the second treatment has to stay on for 2-4 weeks. So the total treatment takes between 4 & 6 weeks. OA is done in 3 one week intervals. Did you do an alcohol wash on your hives to check your mite count? On the other side of the world they crush thymol crystals and lay them directly on the top bars of the brood frames and let the sun's heat release the thymol into the hive. The Fat bee man drills a hole in frame and put thymol crystals in with a vented cover then he puts on the west side of his hives and lets the sun do it's magic. In Italy they plant Thyme plants around the hives to deter mites. There are many ways to get the benefits of thymol.
As a first year hobbee keeper, I researched about this subject all winter before getting my hive set up in the spring, and all fingers seemed to point to apiguard. Sure enough I had to use it, and sure enough it did the trick. Haven't seen hide nor hair since (altho I'm sure "they'll be bock"!) It kinda slowed the girls down a bit, but they were rip roarin' before too long. When I have to treat again at some future date, I'm gonna try your suggestion. Thanks!
Thanks for the great video. How hot of temperatures can you use that product? Also thanks for the tip about using 2nd lid for shade, sounds like a good idea to me .
Kamon what are your thoughts (if any) on the “Mighty Mite” thermal heat system for control of Varroa?? I realize that it is not feasible for a commercial operation like yours, but for a new hobbist like myself, I would like to give it a try???
Hi one shoo, I can't say much on it. I have been beekeeping too long to fully trust a product I haven't used or that hasn't been verified for a while. It may work excellent, and I hope I am able to try it myself one day! I know that in the past experiments had been done with heat and mites. I hope it works as good as they say it does. I can't in good conscience reccomend something I am so inexperienced with.
I normally don’t ask harsh questions on someone else’s UA-cam channel especially someone that I like and look forward to watching. If you want us to use Apiguard fine and appreciated. I may consider using it myself someday, but not to the point of trying to sway or discourage others from using the organic products. as you seem to be doing during the first part of your video. We are not allowed to use Apiguard during a honey flow. But mite away quick strips we can use during a flow,. And will not hurt bees as long as the temperature is below a certain level. As far a honey supers on I quote. “There is no loss in efficacy. It is also recommended when treating in late summer and early autumn, to treat while the last honey super is still in place” Oxalic is also safe and natural to use and will not hurt the bees. No matter the temperature. Now there must be a good reason that you can not use Apiguard with honey supers on? Phillip Hall
Treatments that stay in the hive up to 45 days are more through than O/A because they consistently span 1 1/2 brood cycles as well as treat the foraging bees at night. I use O/A in the spring and Amitraz based products in the fall.
@Steve's Outdoor World, there is a concern that by continually using OA the mites will begin to develop a resistance and make OA ineffective. OA as part of an integrated pest management (IPM) scheme incorporating formic acid, thymol and some mechanical methods (i.e. splits, equipment changes, brood cycle interruption) is the safest and most efficacious approach. To learn more, check out Randy Oliver at ScientificBeekeeping.com - just my two cents.
Do Varroa mites kill off whole colonies of wild bees too? Or have they developed a way to deal with them? Or do nematodes create a control measure in the wild?
I know of a feral colony that spent more 15 years in a tree. The one observation I noted was that they swarmed several times a year. Sadly that old ash tree came down last winter but fortunately some local bee keepers where able to section out the log and stand it back up. So far they're still going.
Varroa absolutely kills bees in the wild. Varroa has only been here for a few decades, bees have not developed a defense against them. Evolution takes longer than that. There are bees with greater hygienic tendencies, meaning that they detect varroa on capped larvae, they open the cell and drag the infected bee with it's mites out of the hive so they can't reproduce. You could make a case that any wild colonies still alive in the age of varroa have those hygienic tendencies, if not, they'd be dead. Queen breeders have been working hard on developing VSH (varroa sensitive hygiene) traits for a while but it's not a trait that is reliably passed. They market their queens as "VSH" but maybe they are, maybe they aren't. Sometimes a queen's offspring gets it, sometimes they don't. If you have a colony that is badly infested with varroa though (counts above 3 or 4 in a sample) then your bees are not adequately hygienic and you either have to treat or they'll die. With Kamon testing 12 mites in his sample, if deformed wing virus is not already there it will be soon. Once you see deformed wing virus your bees are probably so sick and weakened that the colony is toast and your best bet is to euthanize them with dry ice before the varroa spreads to your other colonies. The answer is to test and detect before they get to 12 and start to treat right away.
@@elephantcup No so. Feral bees swarm often which creates a natural brood break which helps control the mites. Hives in the wild are faring better than kept colonies now.
In my opinion they kill then just as often and the wild tree or location acts as a very effective swarm trap and catches bees when it empties. I have never seen any proof in my hives or elsewhere of immune bees. The mites and viruses are a lethal combination
I still haven't seen a mite yet, haven't done a test though. Ya I read some info saying the 'natural' products and it was so much more toxic to them. a big difference can't remember exactly. Maybe being new and starting with all new equipment, probably just suppressed for now.
@@donaldhysi9017 Ahhh ok I know its probably a common theme upon new keepers waiting to long, guess we just hope it won't be a problem for us, but I know thats not the case.
@@joer5627 Now you have me worried, going to be top priority next week after I get them all situated, have some splits, new colonies, and cutouts still getting situated.
@@joer5627 I have a cutout that has the tiniest little bees ive ever seen. Cute little things but have you seen really small honey bees before? hopefully being wild they aren't loaded with mites and maybe stunting growth?
An 'organic' acid is an acid that has carbon in its formula. Nothing to do with being organic. Ironic but that little word 'organic' gets abused a lot.
No follow up in your catalogue. That basically makes this video pointless. Maybe it's addressed in another video with a completely different title, but there's no video published within a couple months of this one that appears to be a sequel.
Watch OUT guys! This channel is shadowbannig comments. It was about thymol, amitraz and science - don't know why he did that. This is sad, maybe to much ego? :(
@@kamonreynolds so now I'm not flagged by youtube and everyone can see my comment? How come? I checked few times my comment after I posted it by "Sign out" and everyone could see it. After ~1h it was shadowbanned. I just dont like censoreship like in commie Russia. That's why I posted this.
I don't know why UA-cam flags certain posts. I get a dozen or more every week and very few are actually spam. There was nothing wrong with yours that should have flagged Google's algorithms but it did. When that happens I have to go in and hit a button to then allow your comment to be seen. Or I could hit spam and block everything. Until I saw the other comments I was not aware you had posted it.
But wait, I heard from the "treatment free" beekeepers that if you just ignore varroa, they'll go away. God will sort them out, or evolution will go into hyper drive and the bees will evolve in a few days or weeks to kill them. Right?
No one has ever said ignore your mites and they will go away, Bees that survive varroa infestation are what breeders are developing. I have Minnesota Hygienic bees and haven't had to treat in 3 years.
@@privatebubba8876 Actually there are a lot of people who ignore mites. I've seen "treatment free" groups on facebook and elsewhere, where the actual rules of the group are that members may not mention or acknowledge varroa in their comments, that they proceed as if varroa do not exist. They later post wondering why their bees (that they only open and check on a few times a year) "disappeared". Treatment free is different from intentionally buying VSH queens. In order to buy a VSH queen, you have to acknowledge the existence and threat of varroa, most of those people think that bred queens are making varroa worse, so they usually only keep feral colonies.
@@elephantcupThey are developing survivor bees that adds to the bees being able to fend off mites and disease. Feral colonies line their hive with propolis which defends the hive from bacteria and viruses. Some beekeepers are now using rough lumber to build their hive bodies so the the bees will do the same to them.
I love your videos so much! However, you repeat yourself so much, like 2-4 times, it's taking too much time. I only have time to watch one or 2 of your videos, when I want to watch more. Lol, It's a terrible thing to have people love your channel so much we want to have the time watch them over and over again!
This is a video for education and efficiency of Apiguard not how I run my business. Also, formic is too damaging this time of the year. I can't be losing brood this close to the fall flow
I've had bees for 30 years. This is my first year as a bee keeper. Your videos have been a tremendous help to me. I've heard you give credit to other beekeepers and I have gone to their channels. Not the same. Your presentations are concise and easy to understand. Great channel and I must add the channel has a Great Videographer. Very professional. Thank you both for making this possible.
Thanks for the info. I have not used Apiguard before and I appreciate watching your demonstration.
That is a really Good Idea about putting the second hive cover on top for more protection from the sun.
I've used O/A exclusively for 2 years. It knocked out the mites to a manageable level. This year I switched to Apivar strips. I'm very pleased at the longevity and knock down. I'm always interested in different methods. Looking forward to more of your informative videos. Keep them coming!
Hey Kamon, did you do a part 2 to this video? I can’t seem to find it. If not, do you remember what the post treatment mite count was? Thanks
Very good video's . I hope you can keep up the energy to keep doing more videos. I will make sure to share your site at the next bee keepers meeting. Thanks
I used apivar and my mite count was 28/300. So I did OA treatment and used apiguard. My bees are well now. Still using OA vape to keep them down.
Kamon, thanks for the info and good advice.
I’m very interested in your mite treatment experiments, thanks for sharing! I treat twice a year exclusively with Apivar and have good results. Here’s my concern. Many beeks around here with more hives and experience than me had serious crashes every 4-5 years when they treated exclusively with Apivar. Their opinion, no scientific evidence, is that some of the mites are resistant, propagated, and crashed their colonies. Of course, when the colonies crashed so do the mites. They recommend using at least two different mite treatments. Anyway, to make a long story short, I’m trying to decide what I’ll use for a second treatment.
Wow yeah I agree 2 treatments types is a good idea. Oxalic acid can be very cheap if properly applied as a dribble or used in vapor form
Hello kamon I know this video is a old one but I am using Apivar this year for the first time an for my other kind of treatment I always use OAV. Should I wait till the Apivar is completed before going back with my OAV an not use at the same time. I use OAV also in December maybe a two shot winter hit an then come spring around February or March I
Will recheck with a wash an if needed I will use OAV again if needed. Thanks
Kamon.love your frankness yes some times less is more desirable to perform the resaults we look for i love your humor its refreshing when talking about serious issues of the mites
Take care from Michigan
Thank you very much For your advice, I live in Olympia, Washington and that's exactly what I was wondering if I could use.Maybe a third treatment
Old but EXCELLENT vid. Thank you.
Very interesting. I have never heard of this kind of varoa treatment.
Laura is a good cameraman 👍
You live in a beautiful place, it is perfectly suitable for beekeeping
Given the recent discussions on propolis inside the hive, I wonder if spotted bee balm (monarda punctata) planted in our forage area could provide a bit of thymol. Going to plant some this year after the last frost.
When you say can be really rough on the bees, what do you mean by that. Does it kill the queen or other adult bees? Does it cause the queen to stop laying and if so, for how long.
1 day and back to the old veil....lol
Ha...I figured he'd get tired of it, just not this fast !!
Doc Ash it looks like he has added some sort of weight to the rim to hold it down.
ever hear of Pseudoscorpion? i read in an old book that back in the day bee keepers found and used Pseudoscorpion in their hives to kill mites. the bees do not attack them and they do not attack the bees. reptile keepers are starting to use them in their tanks to control mites and other tiny pests and populations of tiny benifical bugs so we do not have a collaspe.
You are right. The little bugs can be found in the pages of old books.
hey Kamon ,I used oxalic acid vaporizer on 6 frames nucleus and.my bees absconded
if I had to bet I'd say there was something already going on that had them unglued and that the OAV put them over the edge. I have had treatments cause bees to abscond but it has always happened on colonies that were just put into the hive (like a swarm dumped in one) or a colony that had virus or queen problems. I treat 4-5 frame colonies pretty frequently but they are a pretty balanced colony with a good queen.
I have a hive that I got as a 3-pound here in Maine. It was totally plastic foundation, coated with a thin layer of wax. To my surprise, they are doing quite well. I am in a valley surrounded by apple orchards, blueberry orchards, raspberry orchards. My first box is totally drawn-out,... My second box it's only five frames drawn-out and there is no sign of the queen wanting to come up and lay as they are putting totally honey in my second box. I have not tested for Varroa mites. Can I just use one of those Tupperware containers with some powdered sugar? And if I do have a high mite count,... will the 2nd deep super honey be edible for humans and after how many days. Already, here in the southern tip of the Mount Washington
Valley it id getting into the middle 50's at night.
I am feeding sugar water in a remote station about 70' feet from the hive. They are checking it down at an alarmingly fast rate. Goldenrod,I believe is the primary source now.
Should I wait til a February thaw to check for mites or check now.
Should I wrap my bees in Black paper or styrofoam? I did this years ago and I think they had moisture buildup and froze! At the time I believed they got into some kind of pesticides or herbicides and stored the honey and the cluster got disoriented or fed the bees and Queen the poisoned honey. Thank you. I really like your channel. You cover all the bases.
Mmm looks like mayonnaise. Since it's natural it's organic right lol. I can't say enough good about your channel. You are detailed and very informative. You don't keep things hidden like some channels. You truly are here to share your thoughts and knowledge not to puff yourself up but to reach out a helping hand so we can learn and be prosperous. Thanks again to you, your children and the silent but important wifey camera holder.
When will u update this video with results of apiguard treatment also can u feed the bees when treating
Great video as always, I plan on using this and bought some. How long after treatment can you put the supers back on? Thanks, and good luck with that hive, hope the girls get a better report next time. Thanks for sharing.
thans for another great video
I'm interested in knowing if you've ever tried hopguard
bought formic pro but waiting for right temps ,and following guidelines, may try apiguard later,and or OA
What do you think the pollen is that is coming in this time of year?
Not much coming in but I think the lambs ear are what is giving us the little bits of yellow pollen here in the early mornings
Do you ever used Amitraz? I have had great luck with it!
We've been using OA 3 times in the early spring and fall but during the summer mineral oil and wintergreen twice a month so far so good. Agree that higher loads require harder hitting methods.😎👍
Mineral oil and wintergreen aren't approved.
@@beebob1279 We use it in a fogger approved in my State it's only a 60% or so kill ratio for mites and not as hard on the bees.
So if that stuff works by tracking it through the hive would it make sense to put a smaller portions in four different places around the top so that it gets tracked more evenly through the hive?
ok I know this video is 2 months old, and we are at the end of Sept. my little 3 frame swarm that I got back in April has grown to 2 deeps and 2 meds as of now. I do think I have killed the Queen though the last time I broke down the hive and checked them. They have gotten really mean from then until now as well. But getting back to the topic would it be ok to throw a whole one of these Apiguard packs in tomorrow?
P.S. how would I go about getting a Queen from you I live in Va.
A colony temperament changes some as it goes from a small Nuc sized colony (your swam), to a full honey production size colony
Also, in a large colony finding the queen is all the more difficult b/c of shear numbers. Look for eggs and varying ages of larvae. If you see superceedure queen cells that’s a stronger indicator that the hive is queen-less or about to be.
What’s the shelf life of the pail of Apiguard once opened?
Can you use it with honey supers on ? Or in the spring ?
I’m really tossed right now as to whether to use Apiguard or Apivar right now. I’m in Southeastern Ky so pretty much the same weather as you. Is the residue issue the reason you chose Apiguard since Apivar is easier on the bees. We pulled our honey in early June so any honey since then is for their winter feed. We have a 30 hive apiary .
I don't use just apiguard I also use oxalic acid vapor and last year I used some apivar. To be perfectly honest Apivar is more effective on mites and gentler on your bees than any other product. Even using apivar I would still treat Oxalic acid vapor to clean up any mites that could develop Resistance
How do bees act and move when badly infested with varroa? I have a hive that bees are trembling and shivering on front of hive.
kamon great videos what your thoughts on mite away quick strips im in northern ill going to use it in sept ben foging oxalic acid already love to here your thoughts
Apiguard all my bees are out of the hive its 10.30 pm is this good iv fully open entrance and fully open bottom board
Thanks for the info. Won another subscriber
Do you use one treatment if your hive has three layers (two brood and one super) or do you have to put a treatment in each layer?
Did you remove your honey super?
i used Apiguard for years and maintained a 5-10 percent losses annually. When I switched to other forms of mite control I went to 40 - 60 percent losses. It works! This summer I'm going back to Apiguard to get my survival rate back to normal
You mention that you're going to three rounds of treatment. My understanding is two treatments is the rule. Why are you doing three treatments?
It was upwards of 100 degrees that day and they say you can do smaller doses 3 times on the big tubs so that it is not so hard on the hive.
@@kamonreynolds Thanks for the information. I'm interested to read your findings when you're finished.
I commented again asking for your findings of using the apiguard. What did you find?
I'm using thymol and I make my own treatment using vegetable oil with thymol and paper for beermats. In long therm thymol is much safer for bees, queen bees than dangerous amitraz and residues of amitraz in the wax like DMF and DMPF - this is scientifically proven. I have never use apiguard or amitraz in my apiaries only thymol base medicine that I made. I've got different climate but temperature and dose to hive size is very important, also construction of hive - yours is not very good - low insulation of roof. Thymol have to evaporate properly - this is job for a beekeeper. I'm giving 10 grams of thymol with vege oil per hive. I had no serious problems like you. Also I'm giving thymol and citric acid to 3:2 sugar water. Greetings form Poland. Keep up the good work.
Greetings from TN. You may be right that your thymol treatments work better..... I don't know that. Also I cannot promote illegal products on my channel even if they do work. This is TN not Poland our bees overwinter great with this style of equipment.
Cool that my post is unshadowbanned now. Is it rly illegal to use thymol in USA? How about oxalic acid and formic acid? Is it illegal too? Here in Poland and whole EU it is illegal to use antibiotic and many miticides you can use in USA. In ecological apiaries you can use only thymol and acids. We can buy thymol without prescription in almost any bee shop. This is natural product. Have a nice day sir!
Being where the temperatures reach 100° do you find it helps to keep the mite counts down?
I have been reading different advice to keep the internal temperatures off the hive up.
Not to use additional vents, screened top boards, or screened bottom boards
Hi Angie, I don't use vents here and my mites are still an issue. I imagine the bees do a great job cooling the hive and therefore the mites remain unaffected.
Ok, it’s organic. But, gluten free?
Thank you it's informative I really look forward to a video on apis strips I think that's what Mike Palmer uses
goodjob brothier
I know this is an old video but im wondering if the cooler temps like in the 60s or 70s makes this product easier on the bees than in the 90sor 100s. I recently put it in my hives for the first time
i also want to know the answer to this. its my 1st yr beekeeping here in the UK and the temps are round about 13C at mo. i want to treat my hive, but im also wanting to keep feeding as their stores dont even fill 2 brood boxes yet. im hoping the weather warms up for a bit.
I wonder if anyone has tried using paper towels damp with Listerine as a mite treatment, or would the other ingredients besides thymol kill bees.
Brand new to beekeeping... Does this treatment impart any flavor or smell to the honey? Is it applied when the bees aren't storing honey?
Only use when the honey you are going to take is off. It can impart a Listerine
like flavor to the honey
Hi Kamon, do you honey in the boxes that you're not using OA on this hive?
?
Why didn't you use Oxalic Acid?
This is to show folks how good (or not) apiguard works. We will cover OAV soon but yes OAV could be used
oh ok I wasn't sure why you didn't use it because you mentioned using it in the spring. I thought you ew something we didn't know :)
Wow not many spacers/shims available online....wonder why.
Because they are very easy to make for yourself
So can you treat a sickly or small colony?
12 mites? I had a hive this year that had over 33 mites.
If you can’t use Apiguard for a weak hive, what can you use ? What about Oxalic Acid vaporization ?
OA vapor is a good choice for a weak colony. Has to be applied several times tonworj with brood though
@@kamonreynolds it is applied 3 times just like Apiguard.
I found I didn't get a 90% drop unless I did 5 rounds in a 21-24 day period on large colonies
@@privatebubba8876
I thought apiguard is used 2 times per instruction?!
This is the first year I will be using it.
@@FloryJohann They say 2 will treat a standard size colony but they don't say what standard size is. So yes 2 treatments is what they call for and the second treatment has to stay on for 2-4 weeks. So the total treatment takes between 4 & 6 weeks. OA is done in 3 one week intervals. Did you do an alcohol wash on your hives to check your mite count? On the other side of the world they crush thymol crystals and lay them directly on the top bars of the brood frames and let the sun's heat release the thymol into the hive. The Fat bee man drills a hole in frame and put thymol crystals in with a vented cover then he puts on the west side of his hives and lets the sun do it's magic. In Italy they plant Thyme plants around the hives to deter mites. There are many ways to get the benefits of thymol.
Hey I’m using formic pro and it seems my bees run from it I don’t like it should I bee worried
As a first year hobbee keeper, I researched about this subject all winter before getting my hive set up in the spring, and all fingers seemed to point to apiguard. Sure enough I had to use it, and sure enough it did the trick. Haven't seen hide nor hair since (altho I'm sure "they'll be bock"!) It kinda slowed the girls down a bit, but they were rip roarin' before too long. When I have to treat again at some future date, I'm gonna try your suggestion. Thanks!
How do you feel about Hopgaurd ll
Thanks for the great video. How hot of temperatures can you use that product? Also thanks for the tip about using 2nd lid for shade, sounds like a good idea to me .
Kamon what are your thoughts (if any) on the “Mighty Mite” thermal heat system for control of Varroa?? I realize that it is not feasible for a commercial operation like yours, but for a new hobbist like myself, I would like to give it a try???
Hi one shoo, I can't say much on it. I have been beekeeping too long to fully trust a product I haven't used or that hasn't been verified for a while. It may work excellent, and I hope I am able to try it myself one day! I know that in the past experiments had been done with heat and mites. I hope it works as good as they say it does. I can't in good conscience reccomend something I am so inexperienced with.
Thanks Kamon. If I try it will be in September. I have a “knockdown “ planned this week with OAV on both of my hives.
Sounds great keep me posted regardless
I split each tin foil in two and treat in 2 treatments.
Thanks !!
👍
Hey Kamon why not just use O /A to treat?
I normally don’t ask harsh questions on someone else’s UA-cam channel especially someone that I like and look forward to watching. If you want us to use Apiguard fine and appreciated. I may consider using it myself someday, but not to the point of trying to sway or discourage others from using the organic products. as you seem to be doing during the first part of your video. We are not allowed to use Apiguard during a honey flow. But mite away quick strips we can use during a flow,. And will not hurt bees as long as the temperature is below a certain level. As far a honey supers on I quote.
“There is no loss in efficacy. It is also recommended when treating in late summer and early autumn, to treat while the last honey super is still in place”
Oxalic is also safe and natural to use and will not hurt the bees. No matter the temperature.
Now there must be a good reason that you can not use Apiguard with honey supers on?
Phillip Hall
Treatments that stay in the hive up to 45 days are more through than O/A because they consistently span 1 1/2 brood cycles as well as treat the foraging bees at night. I use O/A in the spring and Amitraz based products in the fall.
Kamon now has a spokesman?
@@mark-wn5ek Other peoples experiences are also valuable.
@Steve's Outdoor World, there is a concern that by continually using OA the mites will begin to develop a resistance and make OA ineffective. OA as part of an integrated pest management (IPM) scheme incorporating formic acid, thymol and some mechanical methods (i.e. splits, equipment changes, brood cycle interruption) is the safest and most efficacious approach. To learn more, check out Randy Oliver at ScientificBeekeeping.com - just my two cents.
Always read and follow label directions.
Do Varroa mites kill off whole colonies of wild bees too? Or have they developed a way to deal with them? Or do nematodes create a control measure in the wild?
I know of a feral colony that spent more 15 years in a tree. The one observation I noted was that they swarmed several times a year. Sadly that old ash tree came down last winter but fortunately some local bee keepers where able to section out the log and stand it back up. So far they're still going.
Varroa absolutely kills bees in the wild. Varroa has only been here for a few decades, bees have not developed a defense against them. Evolution takes longer than that. There are bees with greater hygienic tendencies, meaning that they detect varroa on capped larvae, they open the cell and drag the infected bee with it's mites out of the hive so they can't reproduce. You could make a case that any wild colonies still alive in the age of varroa have those hygienic tendencies, if not, they'd be dead.
Queen breeders have been working hard on developing VSH (varroa sensitive hygiene) traits for a while but it's not a trait that is reliably passed. They market their queens as "VSH" but maybe they are, maybe they aren't. Sometimes a queen's offspring gets it, sometimes they don't. If you have a colony that is badly infested with varroa though (counts above 3 or 4 in a sample) then your bees are not adequately hygienic and you either have to treat or they'll die. With Kamon testing 12 mites in his sample, if deformed wing virus is not already there it will be soon. Once you see deformed wing virus your bees are probably so sick and weakened that the colony is toast and your best bet is to euthanize them with dry ice before the varroa spreads to your other colonies. The answer is to test and detect before they get to 12 and start to treat right away.
@@elephantcup No so. Feral bees swarm often which creates a natural brood break which helps control the mites. Hives in the wild are faring better than kept colonies now.
In my opinion they kill then just as often and the wild tree or location acts as a very effective swarm trap and catches bees when it empties. I have never seen any proof in my hives or elsewhere of immune bees. The mites and viruses are a lethal combination
@@kamonreynolds Get some hygienic queens.
I still haven't seen a mite yet, haven't done a test though. Ya I read some info saying the 'natural' products and it was so much more toxic to them. a big difference can't remember exactly. Maybe being new and starting with all new equipment, probably just suppressed for now.
varroa hides better use treatment asap after honey extraction
better keep them low ,
@@donaldhysi9017 Ahhh ok I know its probably a common theme upon new keepers waiting to long, guess we just hope it won't be a problem for us, but I know thats not the case.
Alcohol wash is the best way to determine mite loads. By the time you see them on bees it may be a bit late.
@@joer5627 Now you have me worried, going to be top priority next week after I get them all situated, have some splits, new colonies, and cutouts still getting situated.
@@joer5627 I have a cutout that has the tiniest little bees ive ever seen. Cute little things but have you seen really small honey bees before? hopefully being wild they aren't loaded with mites and maybe stunting growth?
where's part 2
So what is result?
An 'organic' acid is an acid that has carbon in its formula. Nothing to do with being organic. Ironic but that little word 'organic' gets abused a lot.
No follow up in your catalogue. That basically makes this video pointless. Maybe it's addressed in another video with a completely different title, but there's no video published within a couple months of this one that appears to be a sequel.
Watch OUT guys! This channel is shadowbannig comments. It was about thymol, amitraz and science - don't know why he did that. This is sad, maybe to much ego? :(
You were flagged by UA-cam not me. Some people get flagged just saying "thanks for the video" it appears it is not my ego that is hurting......
Dumb comment. Kamon is a stand up guy. You should check yourself or find another channel Troll
@@kamonreynolds so now I'm not flagged by youtube and everyone can see my comment? How come? I checked few times my comment after I posted it by "Sign out" and everyone could see it. After ~1h it was shadowbanned. I just dont like censoreship like in commie Russia. That's why I posted this.
I don't know why UA-cam flags certain posts. I get a dozen or more every week and very few are actually spam. There was nothing wrong with yours that should have flagged Google's algorithms but it did. When that happens I have to go in and hit a button to then allow your comment to be seen. Or I could hit spam and block everything. Until I saw the other comments I was not aware you had posted it.
@@kamonreynolds you are right. I'm sorry.
But wait, I heard from the "treatment free" beekeepers that if you just ignore varroa, they'll go away. God will sort them out, or evolution will go into hyper drive and the bees will evolve in a few days or weeks to kill them. Right?
Lol. And that's why they buy bees every year.
No one has ever said ignore your mites and they will go away, Bees that survive varroa infestation are what breeders are developing. I have Minnesota Hygienic bees and haven't had to treat in 3 years.
@@privatebubba8876 Actually there are a lot of people who ignore mites. I've seen "treatment free" groups on facebook and elsewhere, where the actual rules of the group are that members may not mention or acknowledge varroa in their comments, that they proceed as if varroa do not exist. They later post wondering why their bees (that they only open and check on a few times a year) "disappeared".
Treatment free is different from intentionally buying VSH queens. In order to buy a VSH queen, you have to acknowledge the existence and threat of varroa, most of those people think that bred queens are making varroa worse, so they usually only keep feral colonies.
@@elephantcupThey are developing survivor bees that adds to the bees being able to fend off mites and disease. Feral colonies line their hive with propolis which defends the hive from bacteria and viruses. Some beekeepers are now using rough lumber to build their hive bodies so the the bees will do the same to them.
Most folks that do not treat for mites will actually kill the mites in the end........when their bees die.
I love your videos so much! However, you repeat yourself so much, like 2-4 times, it's taking too much time. I only have time to watch one or 2 of your videos, when I want to watch more.
Lol, It's a terrible thing to have people love your channel so much we want to have the time watch them over and over again!
Not very effective u wasted your time ....Go with formic
This is a video for education and efficiency of Apiguard not how I run my business. Also, formic is too damaging this time of the year. I can't be losing brood this close to the fall flow