TIME TO WATCH THE BEES

This past Jan, after we got back from holiday, we discovered that the Varroa mites had taken out an entire hive of ours. It had been real cold before we traveled to Minn but we thought the bees would be fine. They had gotten through one winter that was not nearly as cold as Dec 2013 in SW Colorado.

After closer inspection, Jason realized that he had an attack of Varroa mites in his Carniolan hive. He open up the top box, only to find the entire honey bee colony was dead. Jason brought a sample over to me and I was able to photograph some and sure enough, the mites were attached to their bodies near the abdomen.




Some of the organic ways to treat the mites are with powdered sugar.

 http://www.damoc.com/beekeeper/sugar%20dusting/sugar%20dusting.html

We pulled the Carniolan away from the Italian hive so that there wouldn't be any other infestations, although,in the winter months, the mites will have froze or died with the bees itself. So, the next step is to continue to monitor the Italian hive for signs of Varroa mites.
To help you monitor the mites, you will need a bottom board. I recommend the Brushy Mountain Bee Farm, although, you can pick them up any any bee supply stores.


http://www.brushymountainbeefarm.com/8-Frame-IPM-Bottom-Board/productinfo/254IPM/

The preferred method of pest control while raising bees is the non-pesticide approach. If you are backyard bee keeper, this method will help you out a lot. There are a lot of  references and experts to assist you with this. I belong to the 4 Corners Beekeeping Club and they can be found on the website and they also have a FB page. Check it out.

 http://coloradobeekeepers.org/ai1ec_event/4-corners-beekeeping-club-meeting/?instance_id=