Dear Bee-friends,
One and a half year ago I caused some commotion on this list. I reported
about 'Thymol', with which you could fight against the parasitic varroa mites
of honeybees.
Now it's time to let you hear from me again, although not much has changed.
For the wintertime the honeybee-colonies receive 4 times 2 grams of powdered
Thymol. First I give a few well-directed puffs of smoke (the smoker is filled
with tobacco) under the innercover to prepare the bees I'm still alive. I
wait a minute before I take away the innercover. 2 grams of powdered Thymol
are distributed directly on the topbars of the frames. Sprayed on some bees
or between the frames seems no problem. It may be helpfull to yourself to add
two or more grams of powdered sugar and using a tea-strainer. Whatever you do
the bees will roar their indignation, but they make no reprisals.
This won't cost you more than one dollar per colony per 4 treatments!
You can do it in a few seconds and the preparation time is as long as the
weighing of 2 grams Thymol will take you. Last autumn in my colonies even
three treatments with one gram Thymol were sufficient.
So up till now this method has been succesfull in my bee colonies (Apis
mellifera mellifera, the european Dark Bee). However, this succes (3 seasons)
is up little scientific value, since as a poor hobby-beekeeper I only have
two colonies at my disposal. For me that's more than enough, because I
consume all the honey myself. Therefore, neighbours are stung by my bees, I
eagerly offer them a jar of honey. Surprisingly, they let them sting very
often: I think I know why.
Best regards,
Francois Hogenboom
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