I live in a very cold northerly location in upstate NY near Canada.  I was
wondering!  With all of the trouble that beekeepers face getting bees
through the winter, especially now with both types of mites, why those at
least in northern climes don't just kill off the bees in the fall after
harvesting the last honey crop of the year.  Sure, you would not have strong
colonies to get early flows but in this area the usual early flow is
dandy-lion.  The best flows here are the later clover and goldenrod flows.
I seem to be able to get my fair share, 90 to 120 lbs. per hive of these
flows with new bees.  The advantages of this would be to stop the mites dead
in their tracks and purer honey as there would be less of a need for
Terramycin, Fluvalinate, Apistan, etc. as only the summer time controls
would apply.  None of the normal winter expenses would be there.  I bet
overall that since the cost and time of preparing a hive for winter would be
eliminated, that even if you did make less honey that it would still be more
cost effective to kill off the hive.    Any comments would be appreciated,
as long as they are not some bleeding heart babble about not killing the
bees.  If they die anyhow, there is no difference.   I like to keep my girls
alive too,  I even do all that I can to keep them from being squished when I
work them.  Hand picking them up and putting them back to a safe place.
 
        I am thinking of doing this myself but have not yet.  I have heard of
others in Canada doing this.  Also, this was basically how it was done in
the days of raising bees in skeps is in not?  I despise having to use
chemicals in my hives but realize that it is a necessary evil in modern
beekeeping.  Any comments?
 
                                                Happy Holidays to All,
   _ _
  (o!o)    Jeff Holbrook
 ((___))   [log in to unmask]
---"-"---  Canton, NY