REGARDING           RE>Pitiful Sight Update
 
Allen Dick wrote:
>I also gather the original poster in this thread did not actually
monitor his results until he noticed that the hives had died or
dwindled and that varroa were everywhere on the remaining bees.  By
then it was too late.
 
And... since the amount of fall feed was only 5 quarts per hive --
if I recall, I would disagree with Andy and say that the syrup
should not have been the cause of collapse.  It seems to have been
the failure of the mite treatment.<
 
I agree with Allen's comments.  Upon rereading the whole thread, it does
certainly seem to me that the bees died of a typical varroa infestation.  The
condition of the hives - lots of stored honey and no bees or virtually none -
is identical to what I experienced a year ago when my Apistan strips didn't
get on the colonies until mid to late September.  I doubt that the amount of
feeding had anything to do with the bee demise, nor were they poisoned by the
essential oils.  Other workers haven't reported such results that would
indicate poisoning.  On the other hand, observations on the remaining hives
indicate that great numbers of varroa were still present.
 
So now the question is why didn't the treatment protect the bees from varroa?
Some argue that it is because all treatment methods were not used.  I wonder
if it may not be rather that the treatment was applied to late, after varroa
got the upper hand.  That is what happened to many of us last year with
Apistan.  If varroa kills not directly but by acting as a vector for virus (or
bacterial) disease, perhaps the damage was already done before the treatment
was applied.
 
What have others of us observed when treating with essential oils?  And when
did you start treating, and for how long?  I, and I'm sure others as well,
would like to have some more info.
 
Ted Fischer
Dexter, Michigan USA