I have been using mineral oil (FGMO) as part of an evolving IPM program since '99. My last report to the list was 9/99 (so this post may be a bit long). I have not used scientific methods like controls (I have a BS in Biology and like most biologists have limited income for expensive studies). I do keep thorough notes. I now have 40 hives and counting. Lost 1 hive of 30 (March starvation in out yard) last winter here in the South Carolina Piedmont after 3 years of brutal drought. I have never used Apistan or Coumaphos. I'm a newbie beekeeper, only since '97 tho with good mentoring. My mineral oil method was inspired by a UVA essential oil trackboard recipe in '99. I melt beeswax (my own non-pesticide wax) over hot water and add an equal amount of FGMO. This melted glop is painted thinly inside the hive body walls (and on bottom boards if solid). During active seasons I TRY to replace the glop every 6 weeks by moving frames into a freshly glopped box as I inspect them. Presumably little bee feet pick up the glop and it is spread onto mites through grooming. Mites that fall onto glop get bogged down and then die (observation, not speculation). The one hive that didn't get any spring glop had nervous numbers of mites in May. Other hives, so far so good. We'll see come September. In 2000 I went to all screened bottom boards. I use an extruded polyethylene plastic 1/8" mesh from our fish farm. Cheap, non-toxic, easy to work with, but un-tested by mice, which don't bother us. In 2000 I used formic, as labeled, on most hives in March. I had planned to use it in 11/00 but unusually cold weather pushed it to 1/01 for all hives. Daytime 50's (F), nighttime 20's/30's is probably too cool to release enough vapor in one brood cycle. Formic seemed most effective on tracheal but apparently helped some on varroa. This year's plan depends on how bad the drought is. Other parts of my IPM: Drone trapping and freezing (drone foundation); reversing drone-carrying boxes to the bottom over mesh; purchase of and selection of diverse hygienic stock and stock showing signs of suppressed mite reproduction; introduction of feral bees to genetic pool that have survived at least one wild winter; re-queening; powdered sugar treatments in all or part of the hive (depends on honey flow, brood), especially when multiple mites are found in drone brood; and NUTRITION, including mineral salt and agricultural lime spread on the shores of one pond near where bees collect water (they like it). Also every time I go in a hive I use a pastry bag to stripe the top bars with a pollen-substitute/sugar/water/cold-pressed-vegetable-oil mixture. The latter ingredient replaces Crisco patties, a nutritional disaster (do bees get hardening of the arteries?) which my bees wouldn't eat. When fresh it gives those little faces something to do besides sting, which is helpful since I rarely use smoke, tho I'm considering it if I can get grapefruit leaves. Also puts all basic nutritional elements throughout hive (see Taber's thoughts on pollen). I group-fed dry pollen substitute and sugar syrup during Jan and Feb, plus sugar syrup in some nucs and splits. I'm perpetually playing catch-up on reading the bee-l list -- but many thanks to all who contribute. Special kudos to Dr. Rodriguez on the FMGO thing -- like so many issues of non-patentable foods and supplements, there is no "scientific evidence" because there's no money for scientific study. At least in nutrition there's a body of basic biology and animal-feed research from before the 80's when basic research became an endangered species. Most of the latest nutritional headlines (Trans-fatty acids! Vitamin E! Soy phytoestrogens!...) can be found in Adelle Davis' 1960's analysis of existing literature. Too bad no-one was working on bees! Maybe we could learn from the fruit fly guys....what are the essential nutrients for insects???