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• Thymol — A new application method? Part 2

  Contents Extended-release thymol 1 The optimal release rate and placement of thymol 1 What’s The Optimal Dose?. 2 Our Field Testing. 3 The Dose-Response Curve. 12 Discussion. 12 Citations and notes 13   Thymol — A new application method? Part 2 First published in ABJ in December 2022 Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com   I do a […]

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• Thymol — a New Application Method? Part 1

  Contents “Off-Label” use of thymol 4 Thymol products for varroa control 5 Understanding Thymol 6 Reaction to the delivery matrix by the bees 6 Thymol in Shop Towels. 7 Removal and dispersion of thymol matrices by the Bees 9 Extended-Release Thymol?. 11 A Thicker Matrix. 11 moving ahead to 2022. 15 Citations and notes 15 […]

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• Formic Pro in Hot Weather — Slowing the rate of vapor release

  Contents Hard “Flash Treatment” vs Slow-Release. 1 Flash Treatments 1 Extended-release application. 2 our Follow-up experiments. 3 But did the wrapped strips kill mites?. 8 Discussion. 9 Citations and notes 9   Formic Pro in Hot Weather — Slowing the rate of vapor release First published in ABJ in October 2022 Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com   […]

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• Formic Pro and Queens in Hot Weather

  Contents Formic for mite management 1 A trick for using formic pro on weak colonies 2 Queen loss in hot weather 5 Why would queens be more susceptible to formic than workers?. 6 A test of queen loss in tiny colonies. 7 Taking advantage of opportunity. 10 Trial #1 — Would foil covers reduce queen […]

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• Selective Breeding for Mite Resistance, Part 3; Shifting the Genetics of a Breeding Population

    Selective Breeding for Mite Resistance, Part 3 Shifting the Genetics of a Breeding Population Randy Oliver ScientificBeekeeping.com   The alleles necessary for varroa resistance already existed in my stock of bees, so I didn’t need to “create” anything new. What I’m attempting to do via strong selective pressure is to (1) eliminate from our […]

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• Selective Breeding for Mite Resistance, Part 2; Mite Resistance and Genetic Expression

  Contents The Achilles’ heel of varroa. 2 Genotype vs. Individual- or colony-level phenotype. 2 gene regulation. 3 An example of the differential expression of genes in the honey bee. 4 What Is our own bees’ mechanism(s) for Resistance?. 6 Testing for Uncapping behavior 9 Is there a Cost to the colony for resistance?. 10 Our […]

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• Walking the Walk Selective Breeding for Mite Resistance; 2022 Update, Part 1

  Contents Resistance vs. Tolerance or “Survival” 1 Managed apiaries vs. natural evolution. 2 Background. 3 The necessity of Mechanical Agitators 3 The resistant colonies 6 So what’s our progress so far?. 10 A built-in lag inherent in open mating programs 13 Exhibit A: Mite-count tracking for our 2022 breeders 14 Coming. 16 References. 16   […]

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• 2022 Extended-release Oxalic Update Part 3

  Contents The slow effect of OaE. 1 Mite turnover 3 A bothersome question. 5 You don’t need to kill a single mite in order to control varroa! 5 Varroa’s world: Olfaction, taste, and touch. 7 Disruption of mite sensory perception. 9 “Blinding” or irritant?. 9 A relevant question. 9 Wrap Up. 10 Citations and notes […]

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• 2022 Extended-release Oxalic (OAE) Update Part 2

  Contents An additional test of matrices and OA:gly ratios. 1 Cardboard Strips vs. Sponges. 3 Compostability of spent sponges. 3 A winter field trial 4 Methods. 5 Results. 9 Discussion. 11 The Elephant in the Room.. 12 Reality Check. 12 A possible easy solution for getting us legal 13 Citations and notes. 15     […]

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• The varroa incursion in Australia 4 July 2022

  I’ve been speaking on a daily basis with one of the two beekeepers whose operations are infested, as well as others in the industry. So far, over 1000 of their colonies have been euthanized, with many more planned to be burned.  As you can imagine, this is very emotional for those beekeepers, who have also been prevented from […]

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