Bob wrote:

We are talking big bucks. If beeks were not seeing results do you really
> think they would be spending the money?
> Mattila & Otis are talking to their *peer* audience as we see the results
> and could care less their opinion.
> I wonder if Mattila & Otis even know about the many many tons of sub being
> used with excellent results.
>
> Pretty harsh, and I think unwarranted, criticism Bob.  I am sure the
researchers know a lot about substitute, because the University of Guelph is
where one commercial substitute now used was developed.

Also, I am a commercial beekeeper and very interested in their results.  And
as a commercial beekeeper I can see others maybe spending big bucks because
they HOPE it is helping.  Maybe they see big populations in the fall, but
how many are doing the careful monitoring that the researchers did.  I
certainly don't have the time to do it.  And it is just the sort of research
that is very relevant to commercial beekeeping.  You are often extremely
critical of researchers for not doing stuff that is relevant to beekeepers.
This is.

Another point is that conditions in the areas you are familiar with may be
much different than Ontario ,or my area, or probably the northeast US.  I
feed several tons of global patties in the spring but would never consider
fall feeding because the bees are glutted out on goldenrod pollen.  My eyes
started itching from handling frames over a week ago and won't stop when
working bees until mid September.  I brought this study up with Medhat once,
when he visited PEI for the Maritime Beekeepers Tour.  He is a proponent of
fall pollen feeding and had some criticism of the study.   I no longer
remember his criticism, so maybe he will post.   But your criticism does not
seem fair to me.
Stan

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