On Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:37:32 -0800, allen <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>Other than that...

Other than that is the small matter of stock. What kind of bees are
being used? If I told you I came back from 90% losses in one year and
made a crop of honey in NY state you would rightly assume I was using
European stock. If I was writing from AZ or NM, you would be safe to
assume I was using Africanized stock. So we would be talking about two
different things. African bee keepers seldom do splits, as the bees
fill the hives back up quicker than it takes to talk about it. So if
it is simply a matter of getting the hives going again, having done
this in an Africanized area is what you might call: no big deal.

So if we are going to talk about restocking, shouldn't we ask: with
what kind of bees? If an AZ beekeeper does not have African bees, then
he or she has a very interesting story to tell. How is it possible to
keep Euro bees in a totally Africanized area? People from all over
surely want to know this. I simply don't see how letting the bees
raise their own queens could produce anything but wild type stock.
Many beekeepers in AZ or TX have made a success with wild type bees,
and have given up chems as well. But they are African bees, so getting
the numbers back up is like I said: no big deal.

While we are on the subject, I might add that it is now generally
accepted that restocking with survivors is the best and quickest way
to get resistant bees. It has been successful in many areas. This is
not really a management tool, though; it's more of an anti-management
tool. But hey, if it works I am all for it. My point is, there is no
need to look further for the root of success with these bees.
According to Occam's Razor, the simplest explanation is the best: Bees
bouncing back on their own, through no particular talent of their
keepers.

-- 
Peter L Borst
Danby, NY  USA
picasaweb.google.com/peterlborst
groups.google.com/group/upstate-new-york-beekeeping

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