There is a golf course across the street from a house that has had bees since the 60's. My friend who lives there had always been able to keep productive hives there. When he got to old to tend hives (he is in his 90's guys so don't get to worried you have a ways to go) I started keeping hives there. Five years ago I started losing a lot of hives in that yard through the season starting in August where my other yards would be fine and winter survival was really horrible. The last winter I had hives there I lost 8 out of 11 hives which is way above my other yards. As an example last winter was close to typical for our area and I lost 2 out of 14 hives at another location, that is about my normal. The course has been there at least 15 years or better and the problem with the bees has started in the past 5 or 6 years. Out of curiosity this year I ask the town for a list of what is being sprayed on the course and it is mainly fungicides. They spray early morning 5 to 6:30 except for two fungicides and one is combined with a antimicrobial which they do a noon. There is no reason the bees should be on the golf course there is nothing blooming so they must get effected by the wildflowers around the edges of the course, I blame the golf course for the loss of this bee yard. Here is the list of the chemicals they use. I had to look every one up because I had no clue what they where used for. Dimension Ultra 40WP – Dithiopyr - Pesticide DuPont Acelepryn - Insecticide Chipco 26019 – Iprodione - Fungicide Procon-Z - Propiconazole - fungicide and antimicrobial Up-star SC – Bifenthrin - pyrethroid insecticide Pegasus HPX – Chlorothalonil - fungicide T-Methyl SPC 4.5f - Thiophanate-methyl - fungicide Primo Maxx - trinexapac-ethyl - plant growth regulator Cutless Mec - flurprimidol - Plant Growth Regulator Disarm 480 SC - Fludxastrobin – fungicide Ensign 720 – Chlorothalonil – fungicide Interface - Iprodione / Trifloxystrobin – fungicide Banol - propamocarb hydrochloride – fungicide Spotrete F - Thiram [Tetramethylthiuram disulfide] – fungicide Emerald - Boscald – fungicide Inignia SC – pyraclostrobin - fungicide Is losing bees close to golf courses typical? There are so many golf courses around I would think I wouldn't be the only one seeing problems. In the past the bees and the course co-existed but not in the past 5 years. Karen T-K Maine and I hate golf courses, a waste of good land *********************************************** The BEE-L mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html