CHRS: IBMPC 2
 CODEPAGE: 437
 MSGID: 240:244/116 29f2607f
 REPLY: 240:44/0 c4160795
 PID: FDAPX/w 1.12a UnReg(200)
 BL> Upon returning from a Christmas trip to England, a member of
 BL> the Comox Valley Beekeepers Association reported of an
 BL> article read in a (national) newspaper that the three
 BL> accepted treatments for Varroa mites are considered to be:
 BL> Apistan, fourmic acid and talcum powder. Unfortunately he was
 BL> not able to gather any information on the talcum powder
 BL> treatment. Do any BEE-Lers, especially in the UK know
 BL> anything about this or is it just a red herring?
 
 
 BL> have a BEEutiful day ;-)
 BL> Urs Schaufelbuehl
 BL> [log in to unmask]
Hallo,
Talcum powder is not a red herring, I know a renowned british beekeeping
lecturer who uses Talcum. I don't as the results are not good enough and the
treatment is wasteful of time both for me and I believe the bees.  Talcum
firstly causes loss of physical adhesion to the bees, next it makes the bees
groom themselves free of the powder. Do they then groom off any remaining
mites?? If so then that is a good thing. The mites have good suckers on the
bottoms of their feet so I have read, I ought to verify this under the
microscope.
 
Apistan (Fluvalinate) is an illegal treatment here in the UK at present. There
is only one lawful treatment and that is Bayvarol (Flumethrin) I use Formic
acid at 60-85% strength, there are a number of Evaporators on the market.
CAUTION, formic acid is very corrosive to human tissue and proper protective
clothing and precautions must be observed. If you are not used to handling
dangerous chemicals then DO NOT use until you have received instructions from
and seen a capable person handling these hazardous materials. Wear face
protection including a mask that removes acid fumes, wear acid resistant elbow
length gloves, wear a thick rubber apron, wear rubber boots. Use a syringe or
laboratory flexible wash flask with tube for dispensing acid. Etc. Make
yourself a fume cabinet for decanting perhaps. I do very little of what I
advise, I decant acid inside a barn out of the wind but with plenty of air to
disperse the fumes, I use a purpose made pump to draw the acid from a barrel
into a smaller container, then a syringe to draw the acid from the container
and to discharge into the evaporator. I wear acid resistant gloves, these are
tight fitting. When filling several containers I use a full face mask and
filter. (Available from RACAL) I transport the containers within a larger
sealed plastic container with sawdust packing, this is a precaution against
traffic accidents causing spillage. I also have three to five gallons of water
close by in case of accidental spillage. The Law here requires that if you
transport hazardous chemicals in a vehicle, there must be a separate
compartment for the material and that you display a Hazchem sign with the
correct definition on it. All information is given in good faith, it is for you
however to check the regulations that may exist in your Country and to comply
with any laws or regulations. The information I give may not be sufficiently
comprehensive for an inexperienced person, do find a capable instructor.
 
Best wishes from the Garden of England
 
Peter Hutton
 
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 * Origin: Kent Beekeeper Beenet Point (240:244/116)