While checking my hive last weekend, and taking 9 deep frames of
honey from a colony I stated with in June (it helps to have a whole deep
of honey to start with!), I noticed and was glad to see quite a pile of
yellowjackets piled up at the end of the landing board. I was very glad I
had reduced the entrance 3 weeks ago, I think that helped keep the
yellowjackets out.
 
        Onto the mites...I did an ether roll on about 30 bees two weeks
ago and came up with nothing on the sides of the jar. I'm not sure if I
just didn't see them or I don't know what I'm looking for. I was looking
for small, hairy, legged dirt particles, right? I put a grease patty on
the week before, but didn't get low enough to see how they did with it.
The bees were supposedly treated in April/May as they were building up
from the long cold, wet spring and I got them in June. Should I not treat
them since the mites may be low enough in population adn the queen has
more or less stopped laying?
 
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