Chris Slade wrote

>David is doing what he does best - beekeeping.  On top of that he is
>showing us that he is an observer and has the will and the resources
>not only to experiment but also to share his results with the world.
>Pause for applause.
>On the other hand, David is also showing us that he is not a
>scientist -this is not a criticism, neither am I.

Surprise, a supporter at long last! I was beginning to think trying
to give information was a total waste of time, as all I got was
criticism.
        There has been conflicting reports on the use of FGMO, one or two
reported they had tried it-successfully, still others who were quite
vehement in their distrust etc. IMHO it works, it's the delivery
method that requires refining, plus the dose rate for hives of
various sizes.

Bill Truesdell wrote
>Dr. R ran tests of the same method of application and abandoned
>it since it did not work. So we have two observations and two
>separate conclusions.

Sorry, incorrect, I think if you read his work on Barry's pages
you'll find he didn't abandon it at all, this list drove him off to
continue working on it all from a different angle. There are some who
consider the methods of this list to be damaging to original thought.
Destructive to say the least.

Blane White wrote
>As for the lower populations in mating nucs that is what I
>would expect based on the biology involved i.e. these are small
>colonies that never raised much brood and had frequent breaks in
>broodrearing. Under these conditions varroa populations are unable
>to build up quickly due to the breaks in broodrearing and may even
>decline.  I would expect the varroa populations to be considerably
>lower in the nucs than in full sized colonies in the same location.

Here is a classic. Drawing 'conclusions' without all the facts. Our
baby nucs have no breaks in brood, well perhaps a couple of days at
most. We work very hard with the logistics problem of keeping them
full and in brood all the time, as soon as a queen is ready to be
harvested a cell is ready to refill it.
        With the information out of Alberta recently regarding the longevity
of Varroa on ostensibly dead brood, I don't believe a short break in
brood has such a noticeable impact on mite quantities, after all they
live all winter and expand rapidly in the spring, a long time in our
area.

        Some time ago Aaron renamed this list "Informed DISCUSSION of
Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology" If I may be so bold to point out
the word 'discussion', because of the actions of a few, this list
suffers for lack of it. If you persist in shredding others views soon
there won't be discussion, only questions, the answers will come off
list and only benefit the one who raises the question. I am quite
dismayed by the amount who wrote to me direct expressing their views
re. FGMO and their reluctance to post knowing they would be taken to
task by the critics.
        Nothing is achieved by criticism. What it does do, is to demean the
writers viewpoint at a time when we should be encouraging
experimentation regarding alternative treatments, as it's up to us,
the beekeepers. You won't find help from the 'establishment' on free
alternative treatments, new chemistry-yes. Note how quickly Coumaphos
has been accepted as a regular treatment for Varroa?
        So, a simple request, if you can't say something pleasant, say
nothing, there are some not so thick skinned.


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The Bee Works, 9 Progress Drive, Unit 2,
Orillia, Ontario, Canada.L3V 6H1.
Phone (705)326 7171 Fax (705)325 3461
David Eyre,
e-mail<[log in to unmask]>
http://www.beeworks.com
This months special:-Vest/veil combination
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