Hi Randy,

> To answer your question about finding time--my poor bee business has
> gotten hammered by me being distracted by research and writing.

Mine was also. Takes time to research articles. I could hammer out a typical
ABJ or BC article about wintering bees or making splits etc. in a few hours
but articles like my neonicotinoid article (ABJ April 2008) and the
Australian update (December 2007 ABJ) took countless hours. The fuel alone
traveling to North Dakota & back for the December article was over $500 plus
I spent five days on the road.

My editors at ABJ & BC are the same as yours and both have told me they
value your articles and mine.

This summer I put the bees first and the bees look the best in years. Maybe
in the coming weeks I can finish a few articles. The "Moving bees in hot
weather article" (ABJ) which you shared your experiences for only needs 
finishing
touches. My article for BC on providing heat to Milk tanks only needs some
pictures taken at a commercial operation in Nebraska.


  Also
> hit by foregoing most mite treatments for the last two years (and
> going on 6 years without synthetic chems)-

I last used a hard chemical strip the year before API LIFE VAR came on the
market. At the ABF convention in Savannah, Georgia I spoke to beeks on the
experience as I believe I might have been one of the first to use. I believe
the convention was in January 2002(?). After I quit using strips I changed
all comb which had ever had coumaphos or fluvalinate used on and went to
using Api Life Var ( first few years)  then  apigard or miteaway 2.

After six years of using thymol or formic  treatments I can say the
beekeeper can control varroa with these products. Each has limitations which
the beek needs to be aware ( which I have discussed on BEE-L over the last
six years and a search with my name and the product should bring up my
methods)
.
Also Randy has tested each except maybe api life var and his results are in
his articles or at his website.


Sincerely,
Bob Harrison

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