All Lloyd's views are deserving of respect and consideration,
but I have to disagree with his comments on "Roundup".

I do agree with his statement about vinegar:

> 3. A cup of vinegar to a gallon of water.  Works just like Roundup(tm).

Well, if it works "just like Roundup", why not use it?  Vinegar is
cheaper, and the techniques for using it are well-documented.

As for the comments about Roundup, I cannot imagine why any
beekeeper would buy and use the product, given what it has
done to per-hive yields.

> 1. Roundup(tm).  A wonderful herbicide that is as safe as Ivory Snow.

There are many who disagree strongly with the statement made above.
A simple web-search will allow one to read the current consensus, but
the bottom line is that Roundup DOES contaminate soil and water, and
is much more "long-lasting" than Monsanto would like everyone to think.

For beekeepers, the "scorched earth" that results from use of Roundup means
that massive areas have no "weeds" to support bee colonies.  Edges of fields,
fencelines, and other "unused" land that produced those 100 lb-plus per-hive
yields of the early 1900s are now a universal brown.  Needless to say, other
beneficial and predatory insects are also eliminated when their habitat is
eliminated with Roundup, which is one of the reasons that formerly insignificant
pests can wipe out crops these days.

According to studies published in the Journal of Pesticide Reform, Roundup
damages the ability of bacteria to transform nitrogen into a usable form for
plants, and harms fungi that help plants absorb water and nutrients.
Significant residues of the herbicide have been found in lettuce, carrots,
and barley that were planted a year after the soil was sprayed.

The impact on nitrogen is of significant concern to beekeepers, since
nitrogen-fixing bacteria are crucial to the growth of clovers, vetches, and all
other legumes.  The legumes are, in general, serious nectar sources for
bees.

Glyphosate, the active chemical in Roundup, is less toxic to humans in
terms of acute hazards than many other herbicides, but it's the third most
commonly reported cause of illness among agricultural workers in California.
For landscape maintenance workers, it ranks highest.

The other aspect of Roundup is that Monsanto has developed an entire line
of "Roundup Ready" seeds (corn, canola, etc).  Farmers using these seeds can
spray the entire field with Roundup, even when their crop is growing.  This means
more extensive use of Roundup, more often.  The problem with this is that such
increased spraying means that there will be more "drift", killing the crops at the
edges of adjacent fields, since Roundup kills ALL vegetation.  This is a problem,
unless, of course, the neighboring farmers ALSO buy "Roundup Ready" seeds.

So, Roundup and "Roundup Ready" seeds is turning into a "protection racket".
Either buy Monsanto's seeds, or suffer the consequences.

> A thin spray now will keep your entrances grass free for the rest of the
> season, with no damage to soil.

Again, the "no damage" is a highly debatable point, with lots more evidence
around to refute the statement than support it.

> I was introduced to this be a commercial queen breeder...

...who, one would presume, was not a gardener of vegetables for
his own consumption.  :)


        jim